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Czinger 21C VMax: The Alien Technology Driving Experience For years, the automotive world has anticipated the arrival of the Czinger 21C VMax—the hypercar that represents not just the future of performance, but utter mechanical madness in its most refined form. As an expert with over a decade in the field, I can say with certainty that few vehicles have captured the imagination like this Southern California creation. When the opportunity arose to drive the 21C VMax on a multi-day road rally, I didn’t just see a chance to test a car; I saw a glimpse into the bleeding edge of what’s possible in automotive engineering. Yes, there are track stories to tell. The notion of pushing a 3D-printed, alien-tech, seven-figure hypercar to its limit is always compelling. But the real question—and the heart of this experience—is: what is a center-steer, tandem two-seater actually like when subjected to a 500-mile journey on the open road? Factory Fresh: The Dawn of Divergent Tech My journey began not at a traditional dealership, but inside the headquarters of Divergent Technologies, the parent company behind Czinger. This is where the magic happens, and it’s a place unlike any car factory I’ve ever entered. To gain access, I actually needed a U.S. passport, a testament to the highly classified nature of the work being done there. Divergent Technologies doesn’t just build cars; they engineer advanced components using artificial intelligence and massive 3D printing systems. This process allows them to design and manufacture incredibly light and strong mechanical parts, many of which are supplied to the Department of Defense. While I couldn’t see all the military hardware, catching a glimpse of one piece that resembled a rocket launcher was certainly surreal. I was given a tour by Lukas Czinger, the young CEO of both companies, and what I saw was deeply impressive. Peeking inside one of the massive 3D printers felt like stepping into a science fiction movie. Instead of traditional assembly lines, the facility uses more than a dozen lasers to fuse powdered aluminum into automotive parts that resemble intricate bird bones. It’s a jaw-dropping spectacle that highlights the revolutionary nature of Czinger’s approach. Lukas explained that Divergent’s technology reaches the “Pareto optimal” point—the moment where adding or subtracting even a single gram becomes a performance negative. Consider the creation of a rear suspension damper reservoir bracket. An engineer defines the available space and the forces the part must withstand. The software then iterates through hundreds of thousands of designs until it finds the single strongest, lightest possible shape. It’s like biological evolution accelerated to hyper-speed. Beyond their military contracts, nine automotive OEMs utilize Divergent’s 3D printing technology. While Aston Martin, Bugatti, and McLaren publicly acknowledge the partnership, the control arms on the Ferrari F80 look suspiciously like products of the same process. Under the Carbon Fiber: A Tale of Two Hypercars Czinger produces two versions of essentially the same car. The first is the high-downforce track monster, the 21C (named after the 21st century). The second, the wingless long-tail, is the VMax. For the inaugural Velocity Tour—a 500-mile road rally through Central and Northern California’s wine country—I found myself piloting a silver VMax. I use the term “piloting” purposely. The cabin feels less like a car interior and more like a jet fighter canopy. Czinger itself markets the experience this way, and I can attest to the similarity. I once rode inside an Extra 330LT stunt plane, and the sensation is uncanny. There’s glass less than a foot away from both sides of your head, offering unparalleled visibility. The process of getting in and out of the car, however, is ridiculous. You sit with your legs facing outward on the massive sill, pull your knees up to your chest, pivot your body, and tuck your feet into the footwell, then slide your head under the roofline. One reason the sills are so large is that they’re packed with batteries. The 21C VMax is a hybrid hypercar, with each sill containing 2.2-kWh of power for a 4.4-kWh total. This isn’t a plug-in hybrid; a motor powered by the mid-mounted V-8 engine keeps the pack charged. These batteries can deliver 500 horsepower to the front axle, which features a separate motor for each wheel. The combustion engine is a Czinger-designed 2.9-liter twin-turbo V-8, rated at 750 horsepower on California’s 91-octane premium fuel. Dump 100-octane race fuel into the tank, and the output increases to 850 hp. The small but mighty V-8 can also run on ethanol and produce even more power, though Czinger hasn’t released those figures (we predict a 10% boost). The gas engine drives the rear wheels through an Xtrac single-clutch automated semi-sequential gearbox. This is similar to the seven-speed Pagani Utopia uses, but Czinger not only 3D-prints the transmission case but also incorporates small 48-volt electric motors to execute shifts more quickly at lower speeds. This eliminates the jerky, surging feeling that plagues other automated single-clutch transmissions in city driving. The twin-barrel actuators perform flawlessly, as I was relieved to discover. Navigating gas stations, restaurants, and hotel parking lots felt almost normal. Seriously, bravo. Track Time: A Speed Demon on the Pavement What never felt normal was the presence of the driver sitting behind me for the entire day. As is standard practice with certain high-dollar hypercars (think Bugatti and Pagani), Czinger assigned a professional driver, Evan Jacobs, to ensure I didn’t drive the $2.5 million machine off a cliff. Thankfully, Jacobs later assured the team I posed no threat and was permitted to drive solo for the remainder of the rally. We stopped by Laguna Seca for some parade laps, but non-Czinger employees are prohibited from driving the VMax on racetracks, even at the sluggish pace permitted during the rally. As I have learned the hard way, even if you can’t drive, always take the ride. I squeezed into the bizarre rear seat. The first thing to note is that if you have large calves or feet, the experience isn’t pleasant. My XXL calves were literally wedged between the carbon fiber tub and the seat, and my feet were cramped. However, the visibility through the side glass is extraordinary. Once again, it reminded me of a stunt plane, offering a uniquely novel way to experience a track—something I’ve done more than 1,000 times. This was particularly evident when Jacobs and I convinced the Skip Barber Racing School staff (whose track day we crashed) to let him take the VMax for a couple of “6/10ths” hot laps. The most impressive ride I’ve ever experienced was in an Aston Martin Valkyrie LMH race car, where I could feel blood pooling in my extremities under braking. The Czinger 21C VMax is now second on that list, and remember, Jacobs never pushed to the limit. Even at less than full throttle and without the massive rear wing, it was easy to understand how the Czinger 21C achieved the “California Gold Rush.” This feat involved setting five production car track records—at Thunder Hill, Sonoma Raceway, Laguna Seca, Willow Springs, and the Thermal Club—in just five days, driving between each circuit. Later, Czinger returned to Laguna Seca to not only break its own record but to reclaim the throne from the track-special Koenigsegg Jesko Sadair’s Spear. The resulting lap time, a ridiculous 1 minute, 22.30 seconds, is faster than the fastest MotoAmerica Superbike lap ever recorded at Laguna (1:22.56). Czinger claims a vehicle weight of approximately 3,600 pounds, which is remarkably light for a 1,250-hp hybrid. To put that in perspective, the Ferrari SF90 Stradale Asseto Fiorano—the highest-performance version of a three-motor twin-turbo V-8 PHEV making only 986 hp—weighs 3,839 pounds. The new Lamborghini Temerario, another three-motor, twin-turbo V-8 (though with less power than the Czinger), pushes past the two-ton mark at 4,185 pounds. Now is a good time to mention that the SF90 and Temerario are the two quickest-accelerating gasoline-powered cars MotorTrend has ever tested (the Ferrari for 0–60 mph and the Lambo for the quarter mile). If Czinger’s weight claim proves accurate, the unorthodox Southern California startup has managed to outperform two Italian legends right out of the gate. That’s remarkable on its own, but especially noteworthy considering that Los Angeles is known for many things, but not exactly for a deep well of supercar building expertise. In other words, L.A. isn’t exactly Modena. On the Road: The Unfiltered Hypercar Experience The chosen route for the rally consisted mostly of true back roads. Tight, winding, and poorly maintained asphalt—not the kind of surface hypercar dream trips are made of. Plus, there was a lot of following the pack, navigating to lunch and coffee stops, and hanging with the camera car. At the