Fighter jet pilots tend from time to time to give their work vehicles a visual makeover meant to frighten the enemy or at least send a message of some sort. They call this nose art, and it has been around more or less ever since humans became capable of taking to the sky. It only seems fitting, then, for a sports car named just like a fighter jet to be painted in all the colors of the world.
Depending on where you are with your knowledge of the automotive industry, you may or may not know the name Donkervoort. It's a moniker that has been the talk of the race track ever since 1978 when the company was established in the Netherlands by a guy named Joop Donkervoort.
The company has been in the business of making rare and niche sports cars ever since, even if the total number of vehicles sold over the years is not that great (but may make the company even more special still) - 1,500 units.
Donkervoort became famous in some circles of racing aficionados in 1988, when a vehicle called D10 set the world record for acceleration. At the time, the thing hit 62 mph (100 kph) in just 3.8 seconds using a Ford-sourced engine.
The achievement secured it a place in the history books and, according to the company itself, prompted German carmaker BMW to use "parts of it in the development of the Z1 sportscar."
The next record-breaking Donkervoort was the D8 270 RS. This one was born closer to our time, in 2005, and it managed to set a record lap at the world-famous Nürburgring track. It was powered by an Audi engine and managed to lap the German circuit in seven minutes and 14 seconds, faster than the Porsche Carrera GT.
Photo: Donkervoort
Both the cars mentioned above can still be had, as Donkervoort still makes them, but the undisputed star of the present-day lineup must certainly be the F22. And it too is a record holder.
The car was unleashed in production form at the end of 2022 as a sports car aimed at taking on supercars. Powered by a five-cylinder engine sourced from the same German carmaker Audi, it develops a staggering 500 hp. And by staggering I don't necessarily mean the power levels themselves, but the fact they push forward a vehicle that weighs just 1,653 pounds (750 kg).
The above allows the F22 to accelerate from a standstill to 62 mph in just 2.5 seconds. The lack of a speed limiter allows it to hit a top speed of 180 mph (290 kph).
But speed and acceleration are not necessarily the car's strong points. That honor falls to just how much lateral acceleration it can take – and it is here where the F22 holds a record.
At the end of last year the car was taken out for a spin on the Zandvoort track, the place where the Dutch GP Formula 1 race takes place. Behind the wheel was the company's head honcho, Denis Donkervoort (the son of the man who founded the carmaker), who literally drove it into the history books.
As per the official specifications, the Donkervoort F22 can withstand 2.15 gs of lateral acceleration, but during last year's run, instruments recorded 2.3 gs, significantly higher than the previous record. That one also belonged to a Donkervoort vehicle, the D8 GTO-JD70, a vehicle described as the first "supercar to cross the 2G cornering threshold."
Photo: Donkervoort
Granted, the company did not say if the new lateral acceleration record was properly noted by an overseeing body, but the reality remains.
I went through all of the above numbers and accomplishments so you can get the idea that the F22 is not a car to be messed with, and even less so one that could be transformed into a piece of artwork. And yet that's exactly what a Dutch guy and longtime Donkervoort fan named Cees Lubbers did with his F22.
Enter the first Donkervoort Art Car, a sports car that retains all the native traits of the F22 but displays them in a very colorful manner by using a paint scheme no other vehicle of its kind ever had on.
A Dutch artist by the name of Anneke Wilbrink (winner of the Royal Dutch Award for painting in 2006) is responsible for the artwork, but we're not told exactly what it's meant to represent.
Officially called the F22 Art Edition, the vehicle will now be displayed at Cees Lubbers' gallery, among works of art, as well as other unique and rare motorcycles. It's unclear if this version of the car will ever make it to the track, as the man uses a D8 GTO JD70 R for this kind of shenanigans.
The cost of the project was not disclosed, but a regular F22, if there ever was such a thing, usually goes for around $270,000.
Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies. Full profile
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