I had a chance to visit the FIVEPRIX office with DRIVERS, a local blog in Argentina. When we arrived, we stepped into a pitch-black room lit only by floor lights. I could barely see where I was walking.
The whole showroom felt like something straight out of The Incredibles, but instead of the Incredibile, I was looking at a 1967 Lotus Formula 1 car – just a bit smaller.
“It all began with slot cars,” said Mathias, the founder. “Back then, no one cared whether they were electric or not. We just jumped in, at least mentally, and raced them in our heads.”
Armed with years of experience in materials and a partner just as mad, they decided to build smaller-scale replicas of F1 cars from the sixties.
Now, you might ask: does an electric reinterpretation of one of the most beautiful F1 cars stab purists right in the eye? Probably. But Mathias compares it to sim racing – you know it’s not the real thing, but you want it as close as possible.
It embraces the fact of being a replica since you simply can’t own the real thing. “The name – FIVEPRIX – pays tribute to Fangio’s five world championships.” Far from a travesty, it’s a tribute with a curious vision into electric cars.
Obsessively detailed is an understatement. The chassis is scratch-built using tube framing and 3D printing; a painstakingly crafted illusion so convincing you forget what it’s made of. In fact, 90% of the car isn’t metal at all.
Strip off the skin and you’ll find a fully configurable electric system, with switchable driving modes, telemetry and remote parameters. You can even lend it to a friend and limit everything, so they don’t launch it into a wall.
The fuel cap? That’s actually a hidden quick-charge port.
Matías, the man behind the madness, has designed everything from zero – every rivet and every switch. The steering wheel alone took four years and more than 400 parts. Pick it up and it feels like it belongs in a Pagani.
While it looks like polished aluminum, much of it is textured plastic – clever trickery that completely fools your eyes.
Of course, the entire experience wouldn’t be complete without noise. A speaker system pushes a single-cylinder note through the exhausts, using a system similar to the latest sim racing games. Matías calls it a: “High-end rig, except here you’re not staring at a screen.”
Why not combustion? “It’s about sensation – and safety,” he says. Building a 1:1 replica is insanely expensive. Electric means lighter, smarter, and packed with possibilities. You can even control it from your phone like a massive RC car.
So is FIVEPRIX a toy – a scale model? Maybe it is… just one that doesn’t fit on your shelf.
“Stickers, logos and names may be subject to final approval.”
First look I thought this was a scale model but this is a real car? Wow I’m blown away with the quality of the build I mean look at those details! An electric F1 replica with an engine model just looks cool as heck shows how much Mathias wanted to keep it original. Gotta give props for having that commitment and dedication to the craft.
Just wow, is this thing even drivable, how does it drive? I went from here and looked all over Youtube but no video of it driving.