The news of an Afghanistan-made supercar went viral on the internet, garnering appreciation from Afghans and Pakistanis alike.
Dubbed “Mada 9”, the sportscar is still a social media sensation mostly due to its Bugatti-inspired looks. However, in terms of its mechanics, ENTOP — the company that made the car — has opted for a simple approach.
The company’s recent video on social media shows Mada 9’s beating heart — a Toyota-sourced 4-cylinder engine. While the exact details are unknown, the engine in the video looks like Toyota’s 1.8-liter 4-cylinder 1ZZ-FE unit.
It is the same engine that Toyota used in the 2005-11 (E140) Corolla Altis 1.8. Interestingly, a famous British sportscar maker, Lotus, also used the same engine in its Elise model from 2001 to 2011.
Given that it is a Toyota product, 1ZZ-FE’s reliability is legendary. Without a turbo or a supercharger, 1ZZ-FE can make up to 132 horsepower (hp) and 171 Newton meters (Nm) of torque. With Toyota’s factory-fitted supercharger, it can make over 170 hp.
The development videos and photos show that Mada 9’s body is made from lightweight composite materials. The car is based on a tubular frame chassis, has F1 style pushrod suspension, and a mid-engine layout — where the engine sits behind the driver.
While an ambitious project, Mada 9 earned Afghanistan a lot of praise from various nationalities and entrepreneurs.
Which engine do you think Mada 9 has in the video and which engine it should have had? Sound off in the comment section below!
Lotus Elise had a Toyota 2ZR-FE engine which is basically a 2ZZ-GE but with a rear wheel differential. It never came with a 1ZZ. and 2ZZ makes around 193bhp or so and with a TRD Supercharger it claimed to make 230bh[ or so. And wit custom turbo setups the engine has managed to pull around 400bhp so yeah that part is not correct.
In 2008, the European market got an Elise S variant with a 1ZZ-FE engine mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox. That same year, the Elise R came out with a 2ZZ-GE and the SC came out with a supercharge 2ZZ-GE unit.
The Series 2 Elise (the one in the photo) also briefly had a Rover K-Series engine, which was later replaced by Toyota’s 1.8-liter engines.
Well it should at least had v10
High-horsepower V10 engines are not easy to source and are a nightmare to tune, maintain, and even install. But the idea of a screaming V10 is definitely enticing.
A big block V8 would have been perfect for this car.
Yes, it would. Even Toyota’s UZ V8 would have given this car a fantastic sound, performance, and character. Plus they’re very reliable engines so… there’s that too.
That’s dumb.. They should have used a powerful block.. Like a v8.. Or smthin like that… That car shouldn’t be ruined with these smaller blocks.. Like it’s a miata in the body kit of Bugatti 😂