Gumpert Apollo Enraged

Gumpert Apollo Enraged at a glance

The Enraged ("angry") is not a new model but the final, most extreme road version of the Apollo, a two-seat mid-engined coupé with gullwing doors that Gumpert built in small numbers from December 2005. The idea was simple and unusual: a car designed for the racetrack first, yet able to pass type approval for public roads. The Enraged kept that brief and pushed it further than any earlier Apollo.

More of the brand's background is in Gumpert's history, and the standard car is covered on the Gumpert Apollo page.

Who built it: Roland Gumpert and the Apollo project

Roland Gumpert, a former head of Audi's motorsport department, proposed a new kind of sports car in 2000. After more than three years in China, where he had worked on sales and dealer development for Audi and Volkswagen, he returned to Germany at the end of 2001. Designer Roland Mayer asked him to help build a prototype, and Audi approved his involvement on one condition: the result had to become a series product rather than a one-off.

Gumpert registered the company in Altenburg in 2003–2004 (sources give both years). Marco Vanetta drew the first designs, and the team made a 1:4 scale model in 2001. The Technical University of Munich and Ingolstadt University of Applied Sciences helped with computer simulation, structural work and wind-tunnel tests. The team built two prototypes, and series production started on 21 December 2005.

Engine, gearbox and performance

The Apollo's engine is based on Audi's 4.2-litre V8, but with internal parts developed for the car. It has a 90-degree vee, dry-sump lubrication, five valves per cylinder, four overhead camshafts and two turbochargers with intercoolers. For the Enraged, Gumpert raised the output to 574 kW (780 PS); the old 1cars text gives the peak at 6,000 rpm.

Power goes to the rear wheels through a CIMA six-speed sequential gearbox. Gumpert did not publish separate acceleration figures for the Enraged; the base 478 kW (650 PS) Apollo already reached 100 km/h in 3.1 seconds and 200 km/h in 9.1 seconds, so the lighter and stronger Enraged sits at the very top of the family.

Chassis, body and weight saving

The Apollo uses a tubular frame of about 200 chrome-molybdenum steel tubes, with a 23 kg carbon monocoque cell and fibreglass or optional carbon-fibre body panels. On the Enraged, Gumpert used more composite material: carbon fibre and glass-fibre panels reinforced with chromoly components. According to the old 1cars text, this cut the dry weight from the 1,200 kg of the Apollo Sport to 1,175 kg, and the stiffer structure also reduced vibration from the engine.

The extra power brought stronger brakes. The old text describes 396 mm ventilated, drilled carbon-ceramic AP discs with six-piston monobloc calipers, plus ABS, traction control (ASR) and electronic brakeforce distribution.

How the Enraged looks different

The basic Apollo shape, drawn for downforce rather than beauty, stayed. The Enraged gained revised air intakes in the front bumper, new LED lights and a large griffin graphic on the body, taken from the Gumpert badge. Gumpert showed the launch car in black, on its stand in hall 2 of the Palexpo next to the Apollo R.

Records and the Apollo R

The Apollo's reputation rests on lap times. On 13 August 2009 an Apollo set a Nürburgring Nordschleife lap of 7:11.57 for the German magazine Sport Auto, then a record for a road-legal car. On the Top Gear test track the Apollo S lapped in 1:17.1, a time that stood for two years until the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport beat it.

The Apollo R, shown at the same 2012 show, was the racing sister of the Enraged. Higher boost, revised ignition, new intake ducts and a racing exhaust gave up to 633 kW (860 hp) on high-octane race fuel. It had a dog-ring gearbox operated by paddles, no clutch pedal and a stripped interior, and was offered for open GT events.

Rivals in 2012

The Gumpert was not the most powerful car of its time, but it was one of the lightest in this group and the most track-focused car that could still be registered. Put it next to other cars in the 1cars comparison tool or check where it stands in the fastest cars ranking.

Prices, production and what happened to Gumpert

Gumpert never published a price for the Enraged. The standard Apollo started at 198,000 EUR before tax in 2005, and according to German sources the list price later rose to 301,600 EUR before VAT. Most sources give total Apollo production as 44 cars between 2005 and 2012; German sources speak of 40–60, because the company never released exact records.

Sales were slow, and the company filed for insolvency in August 2013 after an investor withdrew. In January 2016 the Hong Kong consortium Ideal Team Venture bought the business and renamed it Apollo Automobil GmbH. It showed the Apollo Arrow concept with 735 kW (1,000 PS) in March 2016 and the V12 Apollo Intensa Emozione at Goodwood in 2017. Roland Gumpert was no longer involved by late 2016.

Who the Enraged suits

With three cars planned, the Enraged is a collector's object rather than a car anyone can choose from a showroom. It suits a buyer who values a hand-built German track car with racing records over brand prestige. Anyone looking for a usable Apollo will find the standard or Sport version easier to locate; check the history, the gearbox condition and the availability of parts, because the original company no longer exists. More of the most powerful road cars are collected in the most powerful supercars list.