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Spyker C8 Preliator XXV Coupé signals the comeback of the Dutch supercar brand
Rohan Mehta | August 15, 2026 6:58 PM CST

Spyker is back. The green machine seen here is the Spyker C8 Preliator XXV Coupé, and the company is presenting it as the beginning of a fresh chapter for the Dutch carmaker. After years marked by bankruptcies, cancelled vehicle programmes, and several ownership changes, Spyker has returned to the spotlight and is aiming to make a major statement by unveiling a new car at The Quail, a Motorsports Gathering, during Monterey Car Week.

If the Preliator name and the XXV Coupé’s styling look familiar, that is because they are. Spyker first showed the Preliator and its Spyder counterpart in 2016 and 2017, positioning them at the time as the third-generation C8. Those versions never entered production, but the Preliator has now returned—and it already appears notably better resolved than the original concepts.

The spaceframe architecture beneath this new Spyker is completely new and, according to the company, engineered “entirely in-house.” Staying true to tradition, the body is hand-built from aluminium and shaped by Coventry Prototype Panels in the United Kingdom. Most striking of all, though, is the new powertrain fitted to the Preliator XXV Coupé.

As in the past, Spyker is once again turning to Audi for its engine. Mounted behind the occupants is Audi’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V-8, tuned to produce 800 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque. The only transmission offered is a Graziano Oerlikon-sourced six-speed manual gearbox. Drive is sent to the rear wheels through a limited-slip differential. Unsurprisingly, the performance figures are serious: Spyker claims 0-62 mph in just 2.9 seconds and a top speed of 217 mph.

The steering is expected to be one of the car’s highlights, as it uses a hydraulic steering rack. Spyker has also fitted a fully independent double-wishbone suspension layout, combined with a “dynamic damping” adjustment system. Four-piston Brembo brakes are installed at both the front and rear, while the staggered wheel-and-tyre setup features 20-inch wheels at the front and 21-inch wheels at the rear, all wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres. Kerb weight stands at a respectable 3417 pounds—and notably, Spyker continues to favour aluminium as its lightweight material rather than carbon fibre.

“While carbon fibre is rightfully celebrated for its technical virtues, we have always preferred aluminium, a living metal that can be shaped by the hand of an experienced craftsman, polished to perfection, its beauty only deepening with age, like a fine cabernet,” CEO Victor Muller said. “For Spyker, this is what modern ultra-luxury should feel like: rare, personal, and made by human hands.”

Because the C8 is hand-built, each car requires around 2100 hours to complete. The steering wheel alone is stitched by a single craftsman over four hours; the dashboard is made from turned aluminium and machined by a workshop established in the 1880s. Each chassis number is also hand-stamped into the aluminium spaceframe. The car shown here carries number 270, making it the latest of 255 Spykers built since 2000.

As you might expect, there are no conventional screens inside the cabin. A head-up display is the only clear sign of modern technology, although you can still pair your phone with the audio system to play music. Spyker says the specification of its show car includes rose gold brightwork and Tuscan Saddle leather, with the former intended to bring the rose gold flakes in the metallic exterior paint into the cabin. The Quail Green exterior colour also takes its name from the location of the car’s reveal.

From a packaging standpoint, Spyker says it has rearranged some key elements of the C8 for this new generation. The rear boot has been removed in favour of a larger front storage compartment, while the fuel tank has been relocated from the sills to an area behind the seats but ahead of the engine.

Spyker says it will build only 25 examples of the Preliator XXV Coupé. Every car will be created as a personal commission, a process the company says has been significantly expanded and improved for this model through new partnerships with the W Group, a European fintech organisation said to have far greater expertise in digital experiences than Spyker previously had. Even so, the carmaker says buyers need not worry about that technology filtering into the cars themselves, proudly stating that its vehicles “will remain analog.”

Spyker has not yet announced an official base price for the car, but it has disclosed that the rose gold exterior brightwork shown in the photographs costs an additional €58,000. If you want the upgraded Kharma Signature audio system, that adds another €50,000. The hope now is that this Preliator finally reaches production.


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