There’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Cyan Racing unless you’re a fan of the World Touring Car Championship. However, its former name may cause ringing: Polestar Race. Before the road show, its business items were sold to Volvoand therefore long before that business is in turn spun off into one tram brand, Polestar has developed and promoted racing cars. Now called Cyan Racing, it has also had a string of successes, as they are the defending champion in the WTCC series with five titles to date. Somehow, they found the time to create something completely different: the Volvo P1800 Cyan.
As the name implies, it is based on the P1800 coupe produced between 1961 and 1973. Readers of a certain age will associate that car with Roger Moore as Godbefore he became James Bond. The P1800 has always been an anomaly in the Volvo line. Its classic shape comes from studio Frua / Ghia in Italy and even though it never had sport car credentials, the P1800 has a small but loyal following. So loyal that the P1800S holds the Guinness World Record for the 3.25 million miles driven by its original owner.
Despite the P1800 Cyan’s undeniable resemblance to the original Volvo coupe, it’s a completely different monster. The only items left over from the 1964 donor’s original car are the steel chassis, hood, handbrake and windshield wipers. High-tensile steel has largely replaced the substructure and the body has been recreated in carbon fiber.
Under the hood is a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine derived from Volvo S60 TC1 racing car. It makes a surprising 420 horsepower and 336 pound-feet of torque at 6,000 rpm. Mated to the block is a five-speed Holinger manual transmission that sends power to the rear wheels. The P1800’s stock direct axle is replaced by an independent rear axle with fully adjustable double wishbone front and rear suspension. The 18-inch custom wheels are wrapped in Pirelli P Zero rubber: 235 wide front and 265s rear. All of this results in a curb weight of 2,180 pounds. Let’s just say it again for effect: 2,180 lbs. It’s lighter than a Miata, friends.
At this point, the P1800 Cyan is absurdly great, but wait, there’s more to it. Hans Baath, general manager of Cyan Racing proudly admits that Singer Car Design was a huge inspiration for this project, and if you’ve ever seen Singer Porsche directly, you can get an idea of what’s next.
Attention to detail is best described as fanatical or obsessive. The bodywork is so perfect you’d never guess it’s carbon fiber and all the glass is custom made. Then there’s all the delicious chrome trim. There are no waves or dents in any of the trim as they’re made from billet aluminum, including the giant D-shaped side window arches. Just imagine how big and thick that sheet of metal was before the surround was carved out of it. The same is true for the door handles, bumpers, mirrors and light trim. To our knowledge, only Pagani go to these extremes.
The engine compartment is similarly treated, starting with the hood covered only on the passenger side, to draw heat away from the turbocharger. That turbocharger is neatly hidden under the exhaust manifold, instead of being garishly prominent. A row of three fluid reservoirs is aligned with haunting perfection, and stiff lines are curved to perfectly match the internal fenders and firewalls. Even the steering ratio adjustment is assisted electronically instead of hydraulically to clean the front of the engine.
Then there’s the furniture. With the satisfying click you can get from a Zippo lighter, the doorknob button gently but firmly releases the latch to reveal a beautifully finished latch. You have to shield the roll cage’s bevel, which is made of titanium underneath the leather, because of course it is. The deep Recaro racing trunks are a great fit, but as reassuring as you’d imagine a hug from Mario Andretti would feel. The five-point Momo belts give you that last bit of stage, although they’re limited by design (you’ll want to close the door before putting on the strap as you may not be able to access it later).
Yes, even the interior door panel is something to behold. It’s dominated by a raw wool fabric framed from top to bottom with some very fine leather details that make you look and feel something you’ll find on a new Alpina BMW. Hans was also keen to point out that they had toured Alpina’s operation – they must have taken a lot of notes. The leather door handles and removable straps are nicer than the ones found in most wardrobes, and the two metal toggle switches operate the windows.
Wool fabric is used in the inner panels and surrounds the analog meters and switches with very attractive results. The dashboard looks original at first, but then you realize the red line on the tach at 8,000 rpm and the speedometer hits 270 km/h. On top of the dash is a small egg-shaped, jade-like mirror. Behind the seats are some small parcel shelves, also of that delicious wool, though it takes quite a while to get anything in or out of there. The trunk is mainly occupied by a fuel cells and is topped by a gorgeous chrome side flap, but you’ll be able to tuck some small pockets around the sides. That should make this P1800 practical enough.
Before getting an impression of the drive, it is important to note that only three of these P1800 Cyans have survived so far and each has its own personality due to the wishes of the owner. If you’re successful enough for $700,000 admission, the car will be tailored just for you. You can skip the racing seats and roll cage door bars for easier access, and tweak the engine, transmission and suspension to your liking.
We met project manager Cyan Hans Baath (pictured above) and chief engineering officer Matia Evensson at the Angeles Crest freeway facility early Friday morning. When we tore that wicked path to the Good The herd of monks The breakfast club gathers at Newcomb’s Ranch at the top, the P1800 Cyan’s best personality shows through.
With the touch of a tiny metal key, the rough four-cylinder springs come to life. The engine and exhaust combine for an inspiring note reminiscent of the projection and transformation of a tenor trombone. It’s not as rough as a typical racing engine when idle, nor is it as obnoxious as the engine Honda Civic with a loudspeaker. It’s pleasant without being jarring, and has an addictive turbo hiss and wheezes to keep you motivated. Obviously plenty of power, but very manageable when you just want to travel.
After 5,000rpm, that masculine sportiness turns into focused aggression when the turbo uses full Dyson mode, eliminating the draft that blows through open windows. The tach hand rotates rapidly from midday to three o’clock enough that you need to be aware of excessive rewinding. Shifting from first to second gear is easier than you think, especially if you let the slim gearshift do what it wants. There’s also a fun click with each change reminiscent of the first generation Audi r8manual gate.
The saddle won’t be forward enough for a 5-foot-10 driver to easily press the clutch into the floor, but classic heel-toe deceleration maneuvers can still be performed with just the edges of the right shoe. . The brake unsupported and also not anti-lock, but AP Racing-sourced calipers and rotors should help the P1800 decelerate quickly without drama. The hard brake pedal slides easily with delicate precision and high enough effort to get you through a long day at the gym.
Steering is as direct as a Lotus and it is clear that the car is now being tuned towards racing. There’s no sense of centering, as the track’s straight line is rarely that long, resulting in slyly fast turns with minimal steering input. Handling is excellent as the corners have bright blue streaks with minimal body roll, but there’s still enough initial compliance to relax on mid-corner bumps.
As head of engineering Matia Evensson suggests, the P1800 Cyan is truly at home both on the track and on roads like the Angeles Crest Freeway. They want the direct feeling and effort that shows it’s a race car without being physically demanding or punishing. By all accounts, they succeeded. If that were our 3/4 million creation, we’d tweak the front wheels to regain some of the feel in the center of the highway and remove the race seats and door bars for easier access. Otherwise, it can be kept as is.
We arrived at Newcomb’s Ranch as crowds of cars were filling the grounds. The P1800 Cyan certainly found the right crowd to take notice and we even scored a spot right next to a heavily modified one. Volvo V60 Polestar with its owners, Jeff Reebwho unequivocally proved that yes, the high-performance Volvo subculture still abounds.
The Volvo P1800 Cyan will spend the summer in the United States, eventually ending up in Cuckoo in Monterey car week on August 19. We were lucky to get early access, but you’re sure to see a lot of these cars online. Since Cyan uses Singer as a target, we can confidently say that this P1800 has hit the uptrend. Instead of perfect, done Porsche 911Cyan’s hilarious, little-known choice makes it even more personal. Calling either of these a restomod is a disadvantage. They’re tripods in the same way that the DaVinci notebook is just a collection of doodles.
