The Limit of Performance: A Journey in the Czinger 21C VMax
For years, automotive enthusiasts have tracked the development of Czinger Vehicles, a Southern California firm attempting to fuse cutting-edge additive manufacturing with hypercar performance. When the opportunity arose to drive the Czinger 21C VMax, the high-downforce variant of the 21C, a 1,250-horsepower, $2.5 million hybrid machine, the invitation was impossible to refuse. While the track-focused 21C has captured the headlines with its staggering performance, the focus of this review is on the road-going VMax—a 500-mile exploration of what this unconventional, center-steered, tandem two-seater feels like in the real world.
Factory Fresh: A Glimpse into the Future
Before even setting foot in the car, I was escorted to Divergent Technologies, the parent company of Czinger. Unlike traditional automotive manufacturers, Divergent relies on artificial intelligence to design and produce incredibly light and strong mechanical components. This isn’t just a sales pitch; Divergent supplies parts to the Department of Defense. After signing the necessary paperwork, I was granted a tour of the facilities by CEO Lukas Czinger. Stepping into the additive manufacturing workshop was like stepping into a science fiction film. Massive 3D printers worked with powdered aluminum, fusing it into automotive parts that resembled organic, bird-like bone structures. It was a truly surreal experience.
Lukas explained that Divergent’s approach is guided by the concept of “Pareto optimality,” where the goal is to reach a point where removing or adding even a gram of material becomes detrimental to performance. The process begins with an engineer defining the requirements for a part, such as the need to hold a remote reservoir for the car’s rear suspension dampers. Using this target, the software iterates through thousands, if not millions, of designs to find the optimal balance of strength and weight. It is the evolutionary process accelerated by AI. In addition to military applications, Divergent supplies 3D-printed components to nine automotive OEMs. While Bugatti (Tourbillon), Aston Martin (DBR22 Roadster), and McLaren (W1) have publicly acknowledged Divergent’s involvement, many believe the Ferrari F80’s control arms are also products of this technology.
Under the Carbon Fiber
Czinger builds two versions of essentially the same car: the high-downforce, track-focused 21C (named after the 21st century) and the VMax, a wingless, long-tailed version. Technically, it is the 21C VMax, but the 21C designation is rarely seen on the car itself. For the inaugural Velocity Tour, a 500-mile road rally through the vineyards of Central and Northern California, I was assigned a silver VMax.
I use the word “piloting” intentionally, as the cabin feels far more like a jet fighter canopy than a standard car greenhouse. The manufacturer emphasizes this parallel, and having experienced a ride in an Extra 330LT stunt plane, I can attest to the similarity. The glass is positioned less than a foot from both sides of the driver’s head. Visibility is exceptional, but the process of entering and exiting the car is anything but ordinary. You must sit with your legs facing forward, carefully pull your knees up and spin your body as you tuck your feet into the footwell, and then slide your head under the roof.
One reason the sills are so substantial is the placement of the batteries. The 21C VMax is a hybrid hypercar, with each sill containing a 2.2 kWh battery pack, for a total of 4.4 kWh. The car is not a plug-in hybrid; instead, a mid-mounted V-8 engine keeps the battery charged. These batteries power the front axle, which is equipped with independent motors for each wheel, providing a total of 500 horsepower. The combustion engine, a Czinger-designed 2.9-liter twin-turbo V-8, produces 750 hp on California’s 91-octane premium unleaded fuel. Using 100-octane racing fuel increases horsepower to 850. The compact engine is also capable of running on ethanol, potentially delivering even more power, although Czinger has not released official figures.
The gasoline engine drives the rear wheels through an Xtrac single-clutch automated semi-sequential gearbox. This is similar to the seven-speed Xtrac unit used in the Pagani Utopia. However, Czinger not only 3D prints the transmission casing but also incorporates small 48-volt electric motors to facilitate quicker shifts at low speeds. This innovation eliminates the jerky, surging feel that plagues other automated single-clutch gearboxes in city driving. The twin-barrel actuators perform as advertised in low-speed scenarios, a fact that I was grateful to discover during the rally. Navigating into gas stations, restaurants, and hotel parking lots felt almost normal—a remarkable achievement for such a focused performance machine.
Track Time
What never felt normal, however, was the presence of the professional driver sitting behind me for the entire first day. As is standard practice with high-end hypercars like those from Bugatti and Pagani, Czinger provided a professional driver, Evan Jacobs, to ensure I did not damage the $2.5 million vehicle. Thankfully, Jacobs later assured the Czinger team that I was not a threat to the car and that I was permitted to drive solo for the remainder of the rally. We stopped by Laguna Seca for some parade laps, but for reasons unknown to me, non-Czinger employees are not allowed to drive the VMax on racetracks, even at the extremely slow pace required by the rally.
As I have learned the hard way, even if you are unable to drive the car yourself, you must at least take a ride. I scrambled into the unconventional rear seat. The first thing to note is that if you have large calves or feet, the experience in the back seat will be uncomfortable. My XXL calves were wedged between the carbon fiber tub and the seat, and my feet did not fit well. However, the visibility through the side windows is incredible. It reminded me of a stunt plane and offered a truly unique perspective on track driving—something I have experienced more than 1,000 times previously.
This was especially apparent 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 hot lap I have ever experienced was in the passenger seat of an Aston Martin Valkyrie LMH race car, during which I could feel the blood pooling in my extremities during hard braking. The Czinger VMax now holds second place, and remember, Jacobs was not even pushing the car to its limit. Even at less than full throttle and without the significant downforce from the rear wing, it was easy to understand how the Czinger 21C achieved what the brand calls the “California Gold Rush.” The car set five production car track records—at Thunder Hill, Sonoma Raceway, Laguna Seca, Willow Springs, and the Thermal Club—in just five days and drove between each track. Czinger later returned to Laguna Seca to not only break its own record but to reclaim the throne from a track-special Koenigsegg Jesko Sadair’s Spear. That lap time, a staggering 1 minute, 22.30 seconds, is quicker than the fastest MotoAmerica Superbike lap ever recorded at Laguna, a 1:22.56.
Czinger claims a vehicle weight of approximately 3,600 pounds, which is surprisingly light for a 1,250-hp hybrid hypercar. For context, the Ferrari SF90 Stradale Assetto Fiorano—the highest-performance version of a three-motor twin-turbo V-8 PHEV that makes only 986 hp—weighs 3,839 pounds. The new Lamborghini Temerario, another three-motor, twin-turbo V-8 (also making less power, but offering a useful comparison), exceeds the two-ton mark, coming in 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 holds the 0–60 mph record, and the Lamborghini holds the quarter-mile record). If Czinger’s weight claims are accurate, the unconventional California startup has managed to outperform two Italian legends with its first production car. This achievement is remarkable in its own right, especially considering that while Southern California is known for many things, it does not have a deep pool of supercar building expertise to draw from. In other words, L.A. is not exactly Modena.
On the Road
The route chosen for the rally consisted mostly of genuine back roads. These were tight, winding, and weathered stretches of asphalt—not the smooth, flowing ribbons of tarmac that typically define hypercar dream trips. Additionally, there was a lot of following the pack, navigating to lunch and coffee stops, and driving in formation with the camera car. While I was perhaps a bit disappointed at the time, in retrospect, I gained a much better understanding of what most owners will experience when living with a Czinger.
To my surprise, the VMax handled mostly like any other hyper-exotic. You must empty your pockets as the seats are tight, drink your water before you get in as there are no cupholders, and become accustomed to the fact that almost everyone else on the
