Meet the real star of Furious 7: the Lykan HyperSport super car. At $3.4 million (Dh12,487,520), it’s the third most expensive car in the world and the single most expensive one to be used in the Fast and Furious franchise to date. True to the film’s reputation for chaotic chases and over-the-top stunts, it barely made it out alive.
29-year-old Ralph Debbas, founder and CEO of W Motors, the Lebanon-based company that produced the car, spoke to tabloid! at the Step Conference at Dubai International Marine Club on Tuesday, where the battered vehicle was being shown to the public for the first time.
“I just came back from Beijing a few days ago with all the actors, and we launched the movie in China. They have an incredible love towards this car,” he said.
“It’s the first time that they’ve done such a buzz about a car besides the Dodge Charger that Vin Diesel has driven for the past 15 years. It’s the first time he drives a second car, so it’s absolutely unique to watch the movie this year.”
Furious 7, which releases on April 2 in the UAE, dropped the word ‘fast’ from its title as a symbolic gesture towards leading star Paul Walker who died in a car crash in 2013. But the Lykan is the embodiment of speed, capable of going from 0 to 100km/h in 2.8 seconds. The first supercar in the Middle East, it has 420 diamonds in its headlights and 24 hour concierge service so that “wherever you are in the world, you have someone dedicated to you who can serve you.”
The Furious 7 Lykan is hanging onto its last breath as the sole survivor of the ten stunt cars used in the film. The film features a scene where the car flies out of one of the Etihad Towers in Abu Dhabi and into the other before hitting the ground.
“There’s no wind shield, the front is completely damaged, the doors are destroyed, the interior’s completely dead,” said Debbas, laughing. “But seeing it live — the first car they threw off a building, I had my eyes closed, I was running away, because I knew something bad was going to happen. But then we got used to it. We spent two nights with them, doing all the shoots. They destroyed nine cars in front of me, so it became normal, like, ‘Next!’”
The collector’s item — not for sale — will be kept at W Motors’ private warehouse as a memento, occasionally shown by appointment or travelling around exhibitions in Dubai.
As for the seven functioning Lykan Hypersport cars around the world, three remain unsold, with a new model set to arrive in November.
“Jason Statham loves the car. He’s a car fanatic,” said Debbas. “It’s a bit too small for [Vin Diesel], unfortunately, but he loves it. He was telling us that Paul Walker used to love the car, as well.”
Does Debbas think Statham will snap one up for himself? “I’m going to see him next week — let’s see.”
