The Czinger 21C Blackbird is inspired by the world’s coolest spy plane

Cars and planes just go hand-in-hand so well, don’t they? We’re thinking of things like the bonkers Lamborghini Reventon, the Spyker C8 Aileron and the Vector W8, but also pretty much all of Saab’s marketing from the 80s and 90s. Oh, and the movie Planes which was a spin-off of Pixar's Cars.

Anyway, in this instance it was the aircraft that came first, because as you might be able to tell the new Czinger 21C Blackbird is inspired by the iconic Lockheed SR-71 reconnaissance
plane.

Now, the bonkers 21C actually took inspiration from the Blackbird right from the very beginning, hence the 1+1 seating position and Czinger’s ultra-techy 3D printing approach to as much of the car as possible (no, the plane wasn’t 3D printed, but it was innovative and Czinger reckons its tech can reinvent the supercar industry). 

So, this one-off special edition brings the 21C story back to the start and goes all-in on the spy plane style, with a jet-black exterior combined with an SR-71 inspired livery. There’s more black inside too (very stealthy) with a contrasting backing that we’re told is ‘afterburner orange’. That’s pretty cool.

The Blackbird edition also gets special wheels with spokes that ape that legendary top view profile of the plane. Plus, the hybrid powertrain has been given a handy boost too. Where the standard car’s 2.9-litre twin-turbo V8 and two electric motors combine for 1,233bhp, we’re told that the SR-71 spec ups that to 1,350bhp.

Top speed should be rather impressive, although it’ll still be some way off the Blackbird’s Mach 3.2 (around 2,200mph at 80,000ft) top end. Perhaps with an ECU flash the next Czinger special edition will get a little closer…