- Doncaster launched its new sports car, the P24 Rs.
- The P24 RS is powered by a Ford V6, making 600 horsepower and paired to a manual.
- The car weighs just 1,700 pounds, giving it 770 horsepower per ton.
- The price of the Doncaster P24 RS is around $350,000 in the US.
Donkorvort may not be the first name that jumps to mind when you think of even the most niche car manufacturers, but for nearly 50 years, the Dutch automaker has been quietly producing small, light, foolproof performance cars for drivers who want something different.
As a small operation, Doncroft typically produces only one model at a time. Now, it’s finally a new one – the P24 RSS, the company’s most extreme car yet. At a glance, the P24RS follows a tried-and-tested formula: engine up front, driver in the driver, power in the rear. But quickly you realize it’s too much, Too much More than that
Dutch design, American power
Photo by: Alex Goy | Motor 1
Under the pleasantly long hood of the P24 RS is a turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 that produces 600 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. It is mated to a five-speed manual gearbox, with firepower at the rear wheel.
The P24 Rs takes less than 2.5 seconds to reach 62 mph, and just 7.3 seconds to reach 124. The car weighs a shade under 1,720 pounds. On the power-to-weight front, it’s safe to say it’s a bit much spicy 770 HP per tonne to play with. That said, you can adjust its output to suit your needs – 400, 500, or a full 600 HP beans are ready to roll at the flick of a dial. You can even adjust the traction control’s Tratec dampers and frussity to match the engine.
This powertrain is brand new for the company. Doncroft previously used Audi’s turbocharged five-cylinder under the hood, but in this case, the company looked to Ford. The P24RS uses the same V6 as in the previous Ford GT and various Raptors, but it’s been modified – the attached turbo isn’t standard. For the slower, Donkervoort looked to the van der Lee turbo system, which opened up a whole new world of possibilities.
“We have the option to not just use a turbo that’s off the shelf from Ford or Audi, but to make a completely bespoke, made-to-measure turbo for us,” CEO Dennis Doncrovert told us. “We said, we have this total weight under 800 kg, more or less 600 horsepower. But we want two things: no turbo lag, and very precise throttle response.”
No small ask.
But for a company so invested in lightweighting, jumping from a five-cylinder to a V6 seems counterintuitive, no? Denis Doncrovert says there’s a reason: “There was a clear demand (from customers): not to go down on the cylinders. So it made it easier.”
Photo by: Alex Goy | Motor 1
‘We want two things: no turbo lag, and very precise throttle response.’
Because the P24 RS is low, light and has exposed front wheel, it should go faster around ’round corners. If you’re determined enough, you can ping yourself at 2.3Gs, says Doncroft. That commitment is high for track rats, but in its natural state, the P24RS isn’t great for aerodynamics. That’s where removable wings come into play.
When it’s time to get serious, you can extend the P24’s nose and some visible spoilers on its rear end. After you’re done, just take them off (or keep them on because they look great).
Pretty much everything you see—including the wings—is carbon fiber, which not only adds to its exotic appeal, but also helps keep weight down and components strong. For good measure, there’s also a decent slug of 3D-printed metal—its wayfinding signs, for one thing, are made of the stuff.
Doncroft tapped a company called Ex-Core for most of the carbon bits. Rather than requiring a massive oven to cure its carbon, the former uses molds and foam. Tooling is fabricated into the desired shape, carbon fiber sheets are then layered on the inside, and the expanding foam is injected into a closed mold before heating elements are inserted into strategically drilled holes, heating the carbon, expanding the foam, and forming a solid piece.
The result is a single piece that can be fabricated (after tooling, of course), on a workbench. No autoclave required. The former cover isn’t exclusively Doncaster’s to play with either—the company has found its way onto luxury yachts and even Toyota’s latest race cars. The P24 RS’s removable arrow is a pre-Core creation, though, and it’s really only possible because of that fact.
On the face of it, the P24 RS is a pleasant evolution of Doncroft’s previous work. It’s long, low, wide and substantial in all the best ways. This time, though, the team had a problem: lighting.
The car’s tiny hood-mounted DRLs look the part, but lack the power of a conventional beam. Instead of enlarging the light cluster, bright beams now shoot out of the nose cone at the press of a button. Pop-up headlamps aren’t dead… they just are different.
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Source: Alex Goy | Motor 1
If you’re thinking that P24 is unworkable, you’re wrong. There’s an 8.8-cubic-foot trunk in the rear, so you can shop weekly if you like. Doncrovert’s founder, Joop Doncrovert, is a tall chap, and he built his cars to accommodate people of his height. It doesn’t matter.
People over 6 feet and 7 inches can fit in the cabin without its removable targa top without issue. That means there’s a spacious cabin, with quite a bit of room for… things.
For the first time, the company has switched to an electric handbrake and replaced it with a cubic hole. It doesn’t have a stereo – it’s not that kind of car – but its digital instrument display fires all the information you’ll ever need into your eyes in stunning high definition. Being something to use on the track, here is a built in GPS lap timer. While you’re in the circuit, keep tabs on how well you’re doing.
A valuable game
Doncroft P24 RSS Entry
Photo by: Alex Goy | Motor 1
Doncaster does not do large volumes, and only 150 examples of the P24 RS will be made. More than 50 of them are already spoken thanks to a loyal customer base. Tickets start at 8,298,500 (about $350,000) before taxes and options, a huge hit for the company.
The P24 RS is the first car to be fully developed under the guidance of Denis Doncrovert, son of the company’s founder. He took over in 2021 after working side-by-side with his father Jopp. While they may have slightly different perspectives, the P24 RS is still very much a donkervert.
The Doncaster P24RS is indeed headed to America, and it’s sure to cause a stir at your nearest cars and coffee shop… if you’re lucky enough to bump into one of the 150 units. , that is.
Take Motor 1: Doncaster has done it again, with another absolutely ridiculous sports car for P24 Rs. Packing a powerful Ford V6 with upwards of 600 horsepower and a light curb weight, we can only imagine what this sports car is like on the road. We will find out soon enough.
