Rob Gray
Red Bull RB17
July 12, 2024
The RB17 is revealed at Goodwood Festival of Speed by Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal and CEO, Christian Horner, Group Chief Technical Officer, Adrian Newey and Red Bull Advanced Technologies Technical Director, Rob Gray.
Designed by Adrian Newey and Red Bull Advanced Technologies, the RB17 builds on the 20 years of innovation in Formula One that has resulted in Oracle Red Bull Racing winning six Constructors’ titles. The RB17 features a two seater carbon fibre monocoque chassis with a semi-stressed mid mounted naturally aspirated V10 engine that is red lined at 15,000 rpm.
Power is transferred to the rear wheels via a carbon fibre gearbox. Weighing under 900 kg and with more than 1,200 HP, the RB17 delivers F1-equivalent lap times and top speeds in excess of 350 kph, while remaining easy to own and operate.
From developing the initial concept through to the delivery of the finished RB17 to customers, Red Bull Advanced Technolgoies is responsible for the entire process of designing and building the Hypercar, of which there are only 50 that will be sold.
Each RB17 client is welcomed into the Red Bull family with a full customer journey, including a range of track events giving owners the opportunity to experience some of the world’s greatest circuits. One-of-a-kind driver development and tailoring of the car to suit individual driver’s needs is part of the unique experience. Each RB17 will be bespoke, with customers able to specify everything from the exterior paint colour to interior materials, and a whole host of smaller details.
We are excited to reveal the RB17 at Goodwood Festival of Speed, a project that is one of the most authentic and exciting that Red Bull Advanced Technolgoies has embarked upon to date. With 20 years of legacy in the world of F1 to draw from, and as a performance centred organisation, it only made sense for us to design our own Hypercar from the ground up. Combining technical innovation, achievement and emotional appeal, the RB17 is a landmark car. I’m very proud of the Team and am delighted to see it make its world debut. We expect the RB17 to be a future classic.
Christian Horner, Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal and CEO
Adrian Newey, Group Chief Technical Officer commented: “I had been mulling around the idea to take on the challenge to design our very own Hypercar, from concept to delivery, for many years and it has been a magnificent project and journey. For it to finally be the day we pull the covers off and see the birth of the RB17, is truly remarkable. The RB17 Hypercar embraces everything we stand for: undeniable power, speed and beauty. It is very adaptable in its abilities, and we made sure to design it as a two seater so that the thrill of driving at F1 speeds can be enjoyed with a friend or partner.”
Rob Gray, Red Bull Advanced Technologies Technical Director said: “The RB17 is an amazing project that we are privileged to work on, and has allowed Red Bull Advanced Technologies to showcase our engineering, design, and technical capabilities and solutions. We cannot wait to see the finished cars being enjoyed to the full on a racetrack by racing and automotive enthusaists alike.”
RB17 In Detail
The Game Changing Oracle Red Bull Racing RBS#01 Electric Scooter
March 26, 2024
NOW AVAILABLE
After two years of meticulous design and development, the gamechanging Oracle Red Bull Racing RBS#01 electric scooter is now available and ready to ship — the team’s first venture into the consumer product sector.
Available now in the US, the RBS#01 is a unique opportunity for the public to experience the engineering brilliance of F1 World Champions.
“The RBS#01 marks the launch of Oracle Red Bull Racing’s first consumer product,” said Rob Gray, Technical Director of Red Bull Advanced Technologies. “Our team of engineers have developed a trailblazing e-Scooter that aims to disrupt the market. Winning performance is at the heart of everything we do and through rigorous testing and the development of a full carbon-fiber chassis, the RBS#01 delivers a truly unique riding experience.”
Designed over the course of 2,500 engineering hours, the RBS#01 is the ultimate electric scooter. It’s a ground-up, pure bespoke design done by the world’s best F1 engineers when left to their own devices. Nearly no component is shared with any other product on the market.
Taking cues from the F1 car, the design team built the chassis out of primarily carbon fiber and chose oversized karting tires as the rubber of choice. The carbon construction is light and has incredible performance characteristics, while the oversized tires keep the scooter stuck to the ground at high speed and reduce the need for suspension. Power is provided by a 750W electric drive unit that makes 80Nm of torque, all fueled by a 760Wh battery concealed inside the deck.
To prove the design concept, Oracle Red Bull Racing subjected the scooter to a series of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) tests to ensure it would stand up to extreme use. In testing that included drop tests, jump tests, and free fall tests, the RBS#01 came away rated to withstand 2 tones of weight and 3G of load.
The RBS#01 is the only electric scooter on the market with a full carbon fiber chassis, redefining the definition of lightweight when comparative to size, coming in at a mere 50.7lbs and delivering a power-to-weight ratio a racing car would be proud of.
Cabling from the cockpit is channeled internally through the single-sided carbon steering column, giving the RBS#01 a sleek aesthetic.
ABOUT THE RBS#01
- Chassis: Carbon fiber construction
- Weight: 50.7 lbs
- Power: 750w
- Torque: 80Nm
- Range: approx. 40 miles
- Battery: 50.4V, 15Ah / 760Wh
- Charging Time: 5 hours
- Max Climb Angle: 25 degrees
- Brakes: 4-piston hydraulic disc brakes
- Wheels: One-piece high-grade alloy
- Tires: Semi-slick 11×5.5-6.0″
- IP Rating: IP65
- Warranty: Two years comprehensive
- Max Rider Weight: 265 lbs
Meet The Team
February 24, 2022
Meet the minds behind Red Bull Advanced Technologies
CHRISTIAN HORNER, CEO
The CEO of Red Bull Advanced Technologies began his motorsport career behind the wheel, working his way up to Formula 3000 before swapping the cockpit for a different driving seat – as the boss of his own team, Arden International. After guiding Arden to three team titles, Christian was brought in to lead the new Red Bull Racing Team following the Austrian drinks company’s decision to enter Formula 1 in 2005. Christian went on to take the team to four consecutive double world championship titles before creating Red Bull Advanced Technologies in 2014.
ROB GRAY, TECHNICAL DIRECTOR
Rob’s path to leading the team at Red Bull Advanced Technologies began trackside with the Jaguar Racing Formula 1 team in 2002. He joined Jaguar as a Structures Analyst before quickly stepping up to the role of Project Engineer following the team’s acquisition by Red Bull in 2005. As the Red Bull Racing team grew, Rob took on more responsibility, becoming Development Group Leader and Head of Drivetrain Engineering before rising to the position of Head of R&D Projects in 2009. After four years, Rob was appointed Deputy Chief Designer and a year later took up the post of Chief Designer, a task he fulfilled for six years. At the end of 2020, Rob moved across to Red Bull Advanced Technologies to run the division and oversee all of its current projects.
ANDY DAMERUM, COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OFFICER
Andy joined the Red Bull Technology family in 2005, first as a Performance Engineer with Red Bull Racing, a role that saw him work closely with the team’s drivers and engineers to turn feedback into real performance gains across the course of Grand Prix weekends. Throughout his time trackside Andy enjoyed major success with the team winning four consecutive double World Championships whilst Andy was also responsible for key factory-based work managing driver development and the activities within the team’s simulator. After 10 years trackside, Andy moved across to Red Bull Advanced Technologies to take on a new challenge and is now Commercial Development Officer of the division.
OLIVER HUGHES, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER
Oliver is responsible for bringing the high-tech solutions developed by Red Bull Advanced Technologies and its forward thinking partners to market and telling the story behind the cutting edge engineering that marks RBAT as a leader in its field. Oliver’s career started in 2006 with connectivity company Three before he moved to the world of video games in 2009 with digital interactive entertainment company Electronic Arts. After becoming Senior Director and Head of International Marketing, Oliver sought a new challenge and joined Red Bull in 2017.
Red Bull Advanced Technologies Takes To The Seas With Alinghi Red Bull Racing
January 31, 2022
Red Bull Advanced Technologies, the high-performance vehicle engineering division of Red Bull Racing, will support the newly formed Alinghi Red Bull Racing America’s Cup team with its engineering and design expertise derived from competing in Formula 1, the world’s fastest development cycle.
Red Bull announced a new partnership with double America’s Cup winners Alinghi in December last year to form Alinghi Red Bull Racing and challenge for sailing’s biggest prize by taking Formula 1 know-how and expertise from the circuit to the sea.
Located at the Red Bull Technology
Campus in Milton Keynes, UK, engineers and designers at Red Bull Advanced
Technologies will work together with Switzerland-based Alinghi Red Bull Racing
on specific areas where it’s believed F1 technology can add performance to the
AC75 Racing Yacht. In particular aerodynamics, simulation, composites and
systems design appear to have many parallels between the two sports and thus
offer opportunities to extract every ounce of performance possible from the
yacht.
Rob Gray, Technical Director, Red
Bull Advanced Technologies, commented: “We are delighted to work
together with Alinghi and their talented group of engineers to help develop the
AC75 Racing Yacht by taking inspiration from the same tools, techniques and
methods used in Formula 1 and applying these to the biggest competition in
international sailing. This new adventure will see the two worlds of
high-performance marine and Formula 1 engineering come together and with
Alinghi, we’re hugely excited to see what we can collectively achieve as a
result.”
Silvio Arrivabene, Co-General Manager
of Design and Construction, Alinghi Red Bull Racing, added: “Traditionally
a design competition arguably even more than a sporting one, the America’s Cup
has in recent times looked at the F1 teams as the expression of the level to
aspire to. To now have the opportunity to strengthen our design process with
specialties brought in from the F1 winning experience is a treat and a
privilege. The team values and spirit we naturally share with the Red Bull
family have created an exciting working environment that we look forward to
exploiting together with Red Bull Advanced Technologies.”
In conjunction with the America’s Cup, Alinghi Red Bull Racing will also field teams in the debut of the Women’s America’s Cup Regatta, as well as in the return of the Youth America’s Cup. Follow the link to visit their website:
Alinghi Red Bull Racing