The Devel Sixteen: Is This Supercar Real or Smoke and Mirrors?

As a huge fan of the idea behind this car, I have to admit that seeing pictures, blogs, Instagram, Facebook, and even videos of it rolling around was pretty awesome. The specs are mind-boggling - 5,000 horsepower, a 0-60 time of just 1.8 seconds, and a top speed of 350 miles per hour. It's enough to get anyone excited.

But, if you ask me, it seems a little too good to be true. I mean, where are the videos of this car actually in action? We've been hearing about it for years, but we still haven't seen it on the road. Is this car real, or is the Devel Sixteen just smoke and mirrors?

My curiosity was piqued, so I decided to dig deeper. And what I found out is actually quite interesting. Here's thanks to Fanttik for sponsoring today's video.

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Back to the Devel Sixteen

Now that I've got my excitement level up with the T8 Apex, let's get back to the show - you get it? Like, jump, never mind. But seriously, I want to start off this video by saying that I'm a big fan of the idea behind this car.

I mean, how can you not smile when you hear 12.3 liters, quad-turbocharged, V16, 5,000 horsepower, and 350 miles per hour? If those numbers don't get you excited, you're a robot. The thing is, from all our research, everything that's come out about this car is theoretical.

We've yet to see what this supposed supercar, nay, hypercar is capable of doing in a real life test, and that's disappointing because it can honestly be really, really cool. So, why is it that eight years after this car was announced people are still talking about it?

Back in 2013, Dubai-based car maker, Devel, announced at the Dubai International Motor Show their plans to produce a 16-cylinder roadster capable of 5,000 horsepower with the intent to quote, "create a car that will change the world." That's quite a statement, and I'm curious to see if they'll deliver on it.

In conclusion, while we still don't have any concrete evidence of the Devel Sixteen in action, I'm excited to see where this story goes. Will it be a reality, or just another example of smoke and mirrors? Only time will tell.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en(whooshing)(car engine revving)(tape rewinds)(car engine revving)- This is the DevelSixteen, and for years,we've been seeing thissupercar in pictures,on blogs, Instagram, Facebook,we've all heard the specs.5,000 horsepower, 1.8seconds zero to 60 time,capable of 350 miles per hour.We've even seen a fewvideos of it rolling around.(car engine revving)Sounds pretty awesome, right?Well, if you ask me,it seems a little too awesome.(whooshing)(gun cocking)It's pretty suss thatwe've never seen this caractually do a pull.Is this car real, or is the Devel Sixteenjust smoke and mirrors?What I found out isactually (beep) bananas.(upbeat theme music)Here's thanks to Fanttik forsponsoring today's video.A dead battery will ruin anyone's day,which is why you need the leading pioneerof portable 65-watt, two-way,supercharging jump starters.The T8 Apex jump starter.It's got a four-core,high-quality battery cellthat'll get your car juiced in seconds.In just an hour and ahalf, it's fully charged,and in just five minutes ofcharging, it can start a car.And I know what you're thinking,why does this thing look so much coolerthan the crappy one I use?Well that's because the T8Apex is the luxury sports carsof jump starters.And as we all know, withluxury comes bad-ass featureslike an ultrabright 400 lumensLED lamp with three modes.It's dustproof, it's waterproof,it's V-0 flame retardant,and safe as hell withshort circuit, high temp,and reverse polarity protection.There's even an override manual modewhen you press the powerbutton and LED light buttonat the same time for three seconds.So don't wait aroundfor the three vowels company to save you,get back on the road witha T8 Apex car jump starter.Click the link below andsave $15 off your purchasewhen you use the code, DONUTT8APEX.Now let's jump back to the show,you get it?Like, jump, nevermind.(light beeping)I want to start off this videoby saying that I'm a big fanof the idea behind this car.I mean, how can you not smilewhen you hear 12.3 liter,quad-turbocharged, V16, 5,000 horsepower,350 miles per hour?If those numbers don't getyou excited, you're a robot.The thing is, from all our research,everything that's come outabout this car is theoretical.We've yet to see whatthis supposed supercar,nay, hypercar is capable ofdoing in a real life test.And that's disappointingbecause it can honestlybe really, really cool.So why is it that eight yearsafter this car was announcedpeople are still talking about it?(drums beating)Back in 2013, Dubai-basedcar maker, Devel,announced at the DubaiInternational Motor Showtheir plans to producea 16-cylinder roadstercapable of 5,000 horsepowerwith the intent to, quote,"break all world records".That's what you wantto do as a new company,you shoot for the freaking moon.It was also gonna be oneof the first cars designedand produced solely inthe United Arab Emirates,a place every other caron the road is an exotic,but none of them arereally produced there.According to one of Devel'sdevelopers, Rashid Al-Atari,the company had actually been workingon the Sixteen secretly, since 2006.In his own words, quote,"we keep it hush".Rashid also revealed at the unveilingthat this wasn't the onlyproject Devel was working on,and the other project was, quote,"Much, much bigger than this one,you will not be disappointed."which is something I saywhen I turn in a scriptthat's not quite done yet,I really lean on James' improv skills.(screaming)- Never come back.(screaming)(gunshots)(blows raspberry)- Hi, I'm James Pumpkin.- Breaker one nine,there's some diesel bearshasslin' a chicken truck.- Hi.- Hi.- Hi.(grunting)- Getting my seat belt.(farting)- Just frightened?- Don't do this again.- Always in the frightened zone.(laughing)- When the Devel Sixteen prototypewas unveiled to the world, it made waves,but some waves brokefor the wrong reasons.The prototype was a little roughwith unfinished and illfitting carbon fiber,hilariously over the top exhaust ports,and quilted leather seatsthat were just, meh.Car Blog, Motor Authority, saidit looked like it was quote,"Hastily built in a back shed somewhere,"and that's pretty harsh.But the looks weren'tthe only thing the Develwas getting roasted for.People balked at the claim that the V16was going to make 5,000horsepower, I mean, how?To put that in perspective,the most powerful Formula One car evermade about 1,350 horsepower,and that was only during qualifying.If they ran that set up duringa race, it would explode.5,000 seemed like suchan arbitrary number,and it was 4,000 horsepower morethan any production car ever made,even if it did have 16 cylinders.But, Devel claimed theywere going to buildan entirely new engine,which for an enginewith half the cylinders,would be a grandiose claim.Add to that the claim zeroto 60 time of 1.6 seconds,and a top speed of nearly350 miles per hour,and it becomes literally unbelievable,not just hyperboly, buta full-on nuthouse claim.First of all,where do you even drivea car 350 miles per hour?The 5,000 horsepowerversion of the Sixteenwas only intended to be a track car,but name a trackthat you could even getup to that speed on,aside from that crazytesting strip that VW usedfor the Bugatti Chiron.Needless to say,there was a healthy amount ofskepticism in car enthusiasts,myself definitely included.But not even two years later,a video came out that put alot of that negativity to bed,nighty night, baby boy, Ihope you like turbo noises.(upbeat music)(engine revving)In 2015, a few years afterthe Devel Sixteen prototype debuted,the company released a videoon their YouTube accountthat showed the mythicalV16 team doing a dyno pull,that's right, this was real.There it was with it'sfull quad turbo glorysilencing the naysayers.(engine revving)The engine in question wasa sort of Frankensteined LS,actually two LSs fused togetherby Michigan high-performanceengine builder, Steve Morris,and I gotta say this videochanged my mind a little bit.Steve Morris buildsaround a hundred bespokehigh performance engines a yearwith (beep) a load of power,so much power, baby, that theyboast that they have a dynothat can read power valuesover 4,500 horsepower.This is not your grandpappy's dyno, that's for sure,unless your grandpa's is Steve Morris,in that case, sick.The engine Steve Morrisdeveloped for the Develwas a 12.3 liter billet block machineout of a single hunk of metal.Each of the four turbos area massive 81 millimetersand made specifically for this engine.Actually, a lot ofcomponents on this enginewere made specifically forthis engine by Steve Morris.That means the headers, the block,the one piece crankshaftand one piece camshaft,air intakes, et cetera.So yeah, when people say this thingis just two LSs bolted together,it's true that this enginedoes use specific componentsfrom the LS, but that'sa gross understatement,and honestly, kind of a dis.The level of creativity and precisionthat went into making this bespoke engineis a monumental engineering achievementon the part of Steve Morris and his shop.And the proof can be seen in the videoas the V16 teen spools upand hits an amazing 4,515 horsepowerand 3,519 foot pounds of torqueat 36 pounds of boost, good gracious.It actually made more power,but the dyno could onlymeasure up to 4,500 horsepower.So if the engine is real,and we've known this for six years now,why does the Devel Sixteenstill catch so much flak?Well, having a workingengine is one thing,but power is only as good asthe car that can harness it,and that's when thingsget a little cloudy.The first production model debutedat the 2017 DubaiInternational Motor Show.This time around,the model looked a lot morerefined than the concept car.The swooping lines and sloping tailwere much more refined than the concept,and it actually looked like a fighter jet,which is what thedesigners were inspired by.The over the top dualexhaust was dialed back a bitand resembled more ofPagani style exhauststhan a plastic tumblerfrom Batman rip off.The production modeldoes look pretty bad-ass,I have to admit.The interior was dialed back as well.The concept version had tonsof futuristic dials and gauges,racing seats with colorfulleather and ventilation rings,and even a leather lined floor.For the production model,everything is way moresensible and minimalistic,and fits with othermodern supercar interiors.The only note I have for the interioris that the steeringwheel kinda looks weird.Everything else on theSixteen seems legitimate,it's a carbon fiber monocoque mountedon an aluminum chassis,which is par for the coursefor supercars nowadays.It also has electronicallycontrolled suspensionwith three different modesand varying ride heights,that's kind of what you want.The 5,000 horsepowerversion of the Sixteenis actually just the toptrim level of the carmeant for the track only,and it costs a staggering $2.2 million.The other tiers aren't nearly as crazy.The lowest trim leveloffers a turbocharged LS V8tuned to 1500 horsepowerand it costs $1.6 million.The next level up isa street legal versionof the turboed V16, but tunedto make 3000 horsepower,this model goes for a relativebargain at 1.8 million.Double the horsepower for only $200,000?Sign me up, it's like going to the moviesand buying a small popcornwhen you could be getting alarge for only 50 cents more,with refills included.In theory, this hypercarchecks all the boxes for beingone of the most excitingproduction cars ever built,but in practice, that's wherethings start to fall apart.- This is the most insanecar I've ever seen.- The firsttime we ever got to seethe Devel Sixteen move under its own powerwas November 1st, 2018,when Supercar Blondiebecame the first person,who didn't work forDevel, to drive the thing.It was, for the mostpart, a little uneventful.We got some cold starts.(horn honks)(engine revving)We got some rolling footage,we got to see the interior, nice.But the problem for a lot of viewersis that we didn't get tosee those 5,000 buff horsesunleashed on a Dubai highway.But as we'll learn later,there is a very good andvery valid reason for that.Instead of giving skepticsa big old spoonfulof shut the hell up juice,the exclusive first driveonly made the chorusof haters sing louder.And just to be clear,none of this is Supercar Blondie's fault.If Devel gave us therights to the first drive,we would've jumped on thatopportunity in an instant,in fact, Devel, if youwant to send us a Sixteen,I'd love to drive it.That company got anotherbig marketing boostwhen it was reportedthat Drizzy, AKA, Drake,ordered one of the firstSixteens off the production line.But that's about all theinfo there is about thisand it really hasn't been verified.A Devel Sixteen did make acameo in the "I'm Upset" video,but it wasn't rolling, andyou can only see half the carfor about one and a half seconds,which led to some commenters to theorizethat the monumental insurancecosts for driving this carwere too much for the Degrassi star.It was also reported that Snoop Doggwas in talks to buy one as well,but again, not a lot ofinfo, so, I'm not sure.(car engine revving)After almost a full decadeof teasing supercar fans,we have yet to see the DevelSixteen make it to production,so, will we ever?Surprisingly, it actually might.The Devel Sixteen wassupposed to go into productionabout a year after it debutedat the 2017 Dubai Auto Show.It still hasn't, and wehaven't gotten a lot of updatesfrom the company.Why?Why has the companythat claims to have madethe fastest car in the worldbeen so slow to respond?Well, it goes without saying,well, making a completelyoriginal hypercar from nothingis difficult.Us armchair engineers can commentall we want on social mediatalking smack about this car,but what do we know really about designinga quad turbo-charged 16cylinder track monster?I don't know anything.Many of the claims that Develis made about performanceare actually backed up by science.The lead engineer on the projectis an Italian name Paolo Garella,and he seems really cool.You might've heard of someof the other projects he'sworked on, like the SCG 003,a 700 horsepower track toythat weighs just a few hundredpounds more than a Miata,or the Apollo IE, a V12beast of a supercar.Both of these cars are 100% real,and have been driven and tested,so why hasn't theSixteen come to fruition?Paolo loves a challenge,which is why he accepted the positionas lead engineer on the Devel Sixteen.In an interview with Roadand Track, he said, quote,"I mean, to have the possibilityto work on something likethis, it's really unique,but I guess I'm starting toget a reputation among peoplefor taking up crazy challenges."Many of the challenges thatthe team has had to deal withduring the developmentof the car have to dowith the insane forces acar is under at high speeds.To get a car to travelat 300 miles per hour,you need at least 1500 horsepower,but to get it to go any faster,you need exponentially more horsepower.We're talking 1,500 more horsepowerto get it up to 350 miles per.Jeremiah did a really coolbumper to bumper on this,check it out, it's about getting a carto go 1,000 miles per hour.It's a lot harder than it sounds.Actually, it sounds pretty hard.But even after you drop in a power plantthat's able to get youto 350 miles per hour,you're only halfway there.Devel engineers are strugglingto find a transmissionthat can handle all that torque.The transmission they're currently usingon the lower trim levelsresults in a 500horsepower mechanical loss.Also, fluid aerodynamics become crushingat speeds that high,and it's one thing that'sbeen a major headachein the development of the Devel Sixteen.Vortexes form underneath thecar that can destabilize it,air gets trapped towards the rearthat doesn't dissipate fast enough.These are all things thatcould tank the reputationof the Devel Sixteen if thecar goes into productionbefore it's ready.On top of all that,you have to wonder if thetechnology is already outdated.I mean, think about it,this car has essentially beenin development since 2006,that's 15 years.Whatever technology is in this carhad to go multiple revisionsto remain state-of-the-artand maintain its edgeover modern supercars.The video game equivalentof the Devel Sixteenis Cyberpunk 2077.That game was indevelopment for nine yearsand when it finally came out,it was pretty disappointingto say the least.Now, imagine if you spent $2.2 millionon your copy of Cyberpunk,try getting that refund back.The bar is extra high, notonly because of the claimsthat Devel is puttingout about their hypercar,but also because everyone'sbeen anticipatingthis car for so long.The hype surrounding thiscar has gotten so out of handthat it eclipses the actualcar it's going to be.I'm not sure the Devel Sixteenwill actually make it to production,but if it does, I'm suresome of those claimswill be dialed back just a little bit.It's also pretty telling that the companyhas already announced a second modelbefore the first one hasrolled off the production line.(car engine revving)That's right, the Devel Sixtyis a six by six off-road brutepowered by a 6.7 liter turbo diesel V8.But unlike the Sixteen,this warthog has already been tested,and it smoked them MercedesAM GT in a drag race.(car engine revving)Here that turbo dieselpeel out in third gear?Maybe I should start believing the hype.Thank you very much forwatching Wheelhouse,I've been wanting to talk about this carfor a long, long time,and I honestly hope it works out for 'em.I want to believe thatsomething like the Sixteenis possible, that's exciting to me.If you haven't seen our videoon the Lykan HyperSport,another crazy supercar from the UAE,click the link right there.Check out the D-list right here.Follow Donut on allsocial media @donutmedia.Follow me if you want @nolanjsykes,TikTok, Instagram, Twitter,it's all there for you.Be kind, I will see you next week.