Donkervoort JD-70

It is to be crazy! Whichever direction you drive out of Lelystad, you will not find a curve anywhere. And no incline either. And certainly not both together. Because Lelystad is in the province of Flevoland, that part of the Netherlands that the Dutch have wrested completely from the sea. That's why the landscape there is even flatter and the roads are straighter than they are with our north-western neighbors.

Everyday Ferrari

And here, of all places, Joop Donkervoort builds a sports car that yearn for curves and crests than any other car. Because since the former DAF engineer saw a Lotus Seven, he's been on fire for this driving machine. At least in principle. Only that he has made the construction - well - a little more suitable for everyday use and raised it to Ferrari level over the years. Comparing a Donkervoort D8 GTO with a Lotus Seven is therefore a bit like comparing a Porsche 911 with a Beetle. Both contoured on the same principle, but worlds apart. And with the new JD70, the differences are even greater. Because to stay in the picture, it's something like the 911 GT2 RS. Or actually the Dutch answer to Ferrari, Lamborghini or McLaren. The only difference is that the Donkervoort, limited to 70 copies, is more exclusive than most Italians and British - and still costs less with a base price of 198.000 euros.

Holland is not and has never been such a big automobile nation. But now Donkervoort has become the “last man standing” in Holland. Because DAF no longer exists and Spyker is broke. Only in Lelystad have they bravely been building cars for more than 40 years, and at least they make about one car a week. And because the boss is celebrating a milestone birthday, they have once again put their hands on the D8 GTO and turned it into the JD70 for the seventieth.

A beast without tuning

As it should be on such an occasion, the car is something very special. Because with a maximum lateral acceleration of over 2G, it offers more lateral support than any other road sports car. And that without special tuning. You just have to get in, tighten the harness, accelerate and pull the steering wheel - and you put the physics to a heavy test. At least in theory. Because in practice you would need a few curves for that. And just chasing through the many roundabouts around Lelystad is boring in the long run, even in a Donkervoort.

Where other sports cars need wings as large as the counters for the fries so popular in Holland for such lateral forces, the mechanical grip of an extremely thick chassis and the adhesive power of Nankang tires are sufficient for the Donkervoort. Yes, it too has a fully clad underbody. And now that the Dutch allow themselves sidepipes for the exhaust again, there is still space for a large diffuser at the back. But otherwise the dugout canoe, which looks dangerous for a lizard, is naked, stretches its bow without wings into the wind and looks just as it always does with its free-standing wheels.

light as a feather

Why is that easy for the JD70 anyway? Because the car is light. The car weighs less than 700 kilos, which consists of little more than a 60 kilo lightweight lattice tube frame on which a few carbon panels are glued. Every Fiat 500 is heavier, and even the lightest Ferrari weighs almost twice as much. Otherwise, if the Dutch are to go around in their heavy wooden shoes, this is Brother Leichtfuß.
Oh, if only there were a few curves here!

But thankfully the lightweight construction not only helps with lateral acceleration, it also makes the Dutchman the perfect sprinter. And that with a comparatively modest engine. Because under the long hood - the only body part made of aluminum instead of carbon - is the legendary 2,5-liter from Audi, which the Bavarians install in the RS3 or TT RS. Except that the JD80 isn't even half as heavy. Instead of a Quattro and a dozen driving dynamics computers, there is honest rear-wheel drive and nothing else - except for the mandatory ABS. And where Audi installs a double clutch, the engine in Donkervoort is tamed with an extremely crisp and ultra-short five-speed gearbox. Each Steptronic, on the other hand, has endlessly long shift travel.

Skin you in the seat

Of course they can only laugh at the 422 hp and 520 Nm in Maranello or Woking. But with this power-to-weight ratio, the smile quickly gets stuck in your throat. After 2,7 seconds to be exact. Because the JD doesn't need longer to get to 100 km / h, 200 km / h is reached after 7,7 seconds and if you dare to find a lonely road behind the dike, you can go up to 280 km / h at full throttle. On paper, that may be less than with Ferrari or McLaren. But in practice the holes have long since blown out of the cheese, that's how fast the Donkervoort feels.

Although the JD70 is lighter than all other cars, puristic and radical, it is not a frugal waiver in the style of a Caterham or a Lotus Elise. There is fine leather, there is neat carbon fiber and there is a loving cockpit that is more reminiscent of an old fighter than a racing car. They could learn a bit from that for themselves at Audi. But when the roof is down and the pace is up, you feel more like a pilot than a driver. Welcome to the Flying Dutchman.

Lots of space for a small car

The JD70 is also a purist car, in which nothing dilutes the fare. Therefore, apart from an ABS, there are no electrical helpers. But the Donkervoort not only surprises with an astonishing amount of residual comfort, which even turns it into a touring car. It's not for nothing that two large travel bags fit behind the seats. But for the seventieth time, company boss Joop Donkervoort is gentle on old age and at least grants the wimp among his customers the option of power steering. Of course, he himself continues to drive without - especially at home, where he hardly has to steer anyway. Because although he knows his homeland better than anyone else, he hasn't found many corners either.