Espera Sbarro Eight Concept is the best student project car in history

Fri, 28 Sep 2012

Here's a showstopper. Tucked away in a corner of the Fourth Pavilion here at the 2012 Paris Motor Show was this carbon fiber hot rod from the Espera Sbarro Montbéliard School of Design. Known simply as the Eight, cribbed from the Maserati-sourced V8 engine, this machine was reportedly designed and built in just eight weeks. We also hear that it's powered by the impure thoughts of heathens, or maybe just gasoline.

The Sbarro Eight Concept was built to help showcase some of the latest technology available to automakers, including a driver-facing tablet computer that occupies the spot normally housing the dash. Applications such as navigation, internet, and Read & Go for books, Liveradio and Deezer for tunes and Cinéday for movies keep the driver connected while on the go. But hopefully not while actually, you know, driving.

The Eight also features a Parrot Asteroid Smart car radio powered by Android that features a 6.2-inch screen and can connect to the online Asteroid Market, cellular phones via Bluetooth, or display videos through auxilliary inputs. An onboard wireless charger and a mobile stereo system round out the tech package.

Though we truly love its distinctive style, this pony has the go to back up its considerable show. The aforementioned V8 engine spins out 360 horsepower to the rear wheels. We've got to hand it to the auto design students that penned the Eight – this is one concept that quite literally stopped us in our tracks. See our full photo gallery above.

By Jeremy Korzeniewski