Noble Automotive - Noble M15

Noble M15

Production of the M15 was planned to begin in early 2006, but has not taken place. The Noble M15 was intended to appeal to a far broader market and compete directly with the Porsche 911 Turbo and Ferrari F430. As a result the Noble M15 was expected to have a number of features not previously found on Nobles such as Sat nav, traction control, electric windows and ABS. The Company has issued a press release about the M15, and the M15 will be produced after the introduction of the M600. The M15 of the future will be different than the car shown in 2006.

Despite increased comfort and usability compared to previous Noble cars press releases stated that Noble expected the M15 to be significantly quicker than the M400 around a race track. It is able to accelerate from 0-60 mph (0–97 km/h) in 3.3 seconds and has a top speed of 185 mph (298 km/h).

The car was based on a brand new platform with a longitudinally mounted engine connected to a bespoke gearbox created by Graziano. The double wishbone suspension is a development of the system mounted on the M400. Mounting the engine longitudinally allowed the designer to increase cooling flow to the engine which allows the 3.0l twin turbo V6 to produce 455 bhp (339 kW; 461 PS). The engine was designed to meet emissions regulations and the new steel/aluminium space frame was designed with a view to passing crash test regulations around the world. The M15 was planned to be the first Noble which gains European and US type approval.

The designer's opinion: “The M12 is a great car, but it’s very focused and I wanted to produce a supercar people could use everyday,” said founder Lee Noble. “It was time for Noble to take a big step up in terms of refinement, practicality and style.”

The M15 appeared in Top Gear and presenter Richard Hammond was very impressed. It was a lot quicker around the Top Gear-track than the old Noble. According to Richard this has to do with the new, stronger gearbox which enables Noble to allow more boost and let the same engine produce more power. The Stig managed a lap time of 1:22.5 which is currently 26th on the powerlap board.