Donkervoort P24 RS: The ultimate antidote to the digital sportscar

In a world where sports cars are becoming heavier, quieter and above all more computer‑controlled, Donkervoort does what Donkervoort always does: the exact opposite.

The new Donkervoort P24 RS is not a car you simply stumble upon. It is a car you choose because you want feedback, because you want control, and because you are done with driving sensations filtered through software. This is Donkervoort’s new definition of a driver’s car: ultra‑light, extremely fast, and built on the philosophy that the driver should be the brain, not the car.

780 kg: the foundation of everything

The most shocking number of the P24 RS isn’t the horsepower, the downforce or the zero to two hundred time. It’s the weight. Seven hundred eighty kilograms dry. That is far below one tonne at a time when some so‑called sporty EVs creep toward two thousand five hundred kilograms.

Donkervoort says it openly: the less mass you carry, the less you need to brake, rotate and accelerate again. It makes every component smaller, every movement sharper and every drive more intimate. This isn’t a marketing slogan. It is pure physics and the basis of what makes the P24 RS extraordinary.

Power To Choose: 400, 500 or 600 horsepower, whenever you want

Under the bonnet lies an all‑new three‑and‑a‑half‑liter twin‑turbo V6 with Donkervoort’s Power To Choose function. You decide whether you drive with four hundred, five hundred or six hundred horsepower. Peak torque reaches eight hundred newton metres, and the engine holds its six hundred horsepower from fifty‑five hundred rpm all the way to the seven thousand rpm redline. Donkervoort claims something unique here: the only street‑legal six hundred horsepower supercar under one thousand kilograms.

That freedom goes further than power alone. Traction control is adjustable but never mandatory. The car isn’t there to save you. It is there to let you drive.

Billet turbos and Formula One technology: zero lag, maximum feel

The turbos are exactly the kind of detail that separates Donkervoort from major manufacturers. They were custom‑developed with Dutch Formula One supplier Van der Lee and use billet turbines on ball bearings. No shared parts, no off‑the‑shelf components. Small, light at only four kilograms each and above all extremely quick to spool.

Donkervoort claims the delay is fully eliminated. Throttle response should feel instant right up to the limiter. Charge‑air cooling is equally exotic with three‑dimensional printed, water‑cooled intercoolers from Conflux, weighing just one point four kilograms each. The goal is an extremely short intake path to eliminate lag and inertia.

Power‑to‑weight that makes hypercars blush

Put six hundred horsepower into a seven hundred eighty kilogram body and you get numbers that push far beyond traditional sports car territory. Donkervoort quotes seven hundred seventy horsepower per tonne.

The P24 RS is expected to reach two hundred kilometres per hour in seven point four seconds and exceed three hundred kilometres per hour flat out. But Donkervoort stresses that this car is not built for straight‑line domination. It is built to make corners, feedback and control as addictive as possible. The result borders on absurd: two point three G of mechanical cornering grip.

Aero: downforce without drama, removable for those who want it

The standard car uses underbody aerodynamics for stability, but those planning track work can opt for a removable aero kit with corner wings front and rear. This set delivers up to ninety kilograms of balanced downforce at two hundred fifty kilometres per hour without destroying top speed. Titanium skid plates protect components when you push hard.

The best part? Everything is designed to be functional and user‑friendly. The wings are mounted with only a handful of bolts.

Fort‑Ex: crash structure as lightweight weapon

The biggest technical breakthrough sits at the front. Fort‑Ex is a nine kilogram Ex‑Core carbon subframe that acts as both crash structure and integration platform. The front suspension, cooling, aero and crash cones are all brought together into this single component. It is designed as a front clip similar to what you see in endurance racing: a subassembly with high precision, and most importantly stiffness without mass.

Donkervoort is using Ex‑Core increasingly to produce complex carbon structures that would be prohibitively expensive for major manufacturers.

Aero Blades headlights: pop‑up lights reimagined

Another typical Donkervoort touch. The P24 RS debuts swing‑out Aero Blades headlights. When not needed, they sit flush to reduce drag. When activated, they swing outward to guide airflow along the suspension. Daytime running lights and indicators sit on the carbon bonnet while the main beam is integrated into the grille. Dramatic and functional at the same time. Exactly the Donkervoort mindset.

Interior: digital where it helps, analogue where it matters

The P24 RS doesn’t aim for a tablet‑like cockpit. You get a digital instrument cluster, but the key functions remain physical switches and dials, keeping your eyes on the road. An optional iPad Mini mount is available for multimedia, but this remains a driver’s car, not a rolling smartphone.

The Recaro seats are bespoke, suitable for drivers up to two point zero five meters tall, and the six‑point harnesses are legal for road and track. The Twin Targa roof consists of two carbon panels around a central Ex‑Core bar. A practical surprise: there is two hundred ninety‑eight litres of luggage space, similar to a compact hatchback, making the P24 RS unexpectedly usable for weekend trips.

Exclusive, family‑run and already almost sold out

Donkervoort will build only one hundred fifty units and more than fifty have already been sold to customers in Europe, the United States and the Middle East. Deliveries begin April twenty twenty‑six.

The name P24 is not a random code. It refers to Phébe, the second child of CEO Denis Donkervoort. Family and heritage are not a marketing layer at Donkervoort. They are the foundation. The brand has existed since nineteen seventy‑eight and remains owned by the same family.

AutoNext verdict

The Donkervoort P24 RS is not a competitor to Ferrari or Lamborghini in the traditional sense. It is extreme in a different way. This is a machine for people who measure driving pleasure in feedback, braking feel and steering precision, not in screen size or driver assistance menus.

In twenty twenty‑six, it may be Europe’s most radical statement car. A supercar proving that the future does not have to be digital. The future can remain light, mechanical and emotional if you dare.