If new metal is your thing, then 2023’s Goodwood Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard won’t disappointed. The First Glance presented by HeyCar category gives show-goers the chance to see a whole host of new models in the flesh for the first time – and in action on the hill. Here are just some of the newcomers we were excited to see.
Video: The newest cars at the 2023 Festival of Speed
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MG has put itself back on the sportscar map after years of producing hatchbacks and SUVs. The Cyberster is the first all-new two-seater since the MGF of the 1990s, and it made its world debut at the 2023 Festival of Speed. The neatly-styled roadster has performance its most recent forebear could only dream of. Even in its lower-powered 313PS (230kW) form, the Cyberster will cover the 0-62mph sprint in around five seconds. There’s also a more potent 546PS (402kW) variant planned. We also witnessed the MG 4 X Power for the first time at the Festival of Speed, the family hatchback with a 3.7 second 0-62mph time.
Contrasting the sharp modernity of the Cyberster is another electric two-seater, the AIM EV Sport 01. Its swooping curves take inspiration from sportscars of the 1960s, but beneath the traditional looks lay two electric motors delivering 490PS (360kW) to the rear wheels. With an all-up weight of 1,500kg – relatively lithe by EV standards – you expect it to move well. Will it make it into production? That’s yet to be decided but the Japanese maker is currently conducting a feasibility study.
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Many of the new cars at the Festival of Speed are battery-powered, but we can take a break from electrons with the four-cylinder Lotus Emira. While it may look the same as the Toyota V6-engined car that made its public debut at the Festival of Speed in 2021, it packs a 365PS (268kW) punch thanks to its turbocharged Mercedes-AMG engine. This final ICE Lotus is also the most powerful four-cylinder sportscar in the firm’s history and reaches 62mph from rest in 4.4 seconds and goes on to 180mph.
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Alpine is branching out from its sports car roots, following up the A110 with the Renault 5-inspired A290_β. It appeared on the Hill at the Festival of Speed in concept form, but we have it on good authority that the styling is close to being signed off. Technical details are also scarce, but we’d expect the 220PS (162kW) of the Megane E-Tech to be a bare minimum for the power output. If this is the future of hot hatches, we’re on board.
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The Porsche 911 Dakar looks as though it would be just as happy on the Forest Rally Stage as it is on the 1.16-mile hillclimb. It’s inspired by Porsche’s win at the 1984 Paris-Dakar rally. The jacked-up 911, complete with skid plates and Pirelli Scorpion all-terrain tyres, looks ready for anything, its 480PS (353kW) 3.0-litre flat-six capable of propelling the car to 60mph from rest in 3.5 seconds and on to 149mph. But the raw figures only tell part of the story: this is a 911 like no other.
The 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway! You can watch every moment of the action by watching our livestream.
Photography by Jochen van Cauwenberge and Jordan Butters
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