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20 Forgotten and Obscure Supercars

Vukasin Herbez September 7, 2017

9. Panoz Esperante GTR-1

If you are a 90s kid, you probably remember the Panoz Esperante GTR-1 from cult racing games like Gran Turismo or Midtown Madness. This American supercar was the talk of the racing community in the late 1990s. However, despite its promising start, Panoz built only a few racing versions and one street-legal example. The technology behind the Esperante was clearly for racing purposes. It had a space frame body structure, lightweight panels, and two seats. Also, they installed a front engine mounted toward the middle of the car for the best weight distribution. The characteristic front of the car was aerodynamically efficient, although it wasn’t that attractive.

Under the hood was a Roush-built, Ford-derived V8 with over 500 HP mated to a sequential gearbox. Panoz successfully raced the Esperante on numerous race tracks all over the world. However, they only managed to build only one street version. But, there is a rumor the company will build a new street-legal Esperante GTR-1 for approximately $1 million.

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8. TVR Speed 12

One of the craziest and rarest supercars is the TVR Speed 12. TVR based it on the mid-90s TVR Cerbera coupe. The Speed 12 was the ultimate version of a chassis and engineering exercise to test the limits of power and speed in the production car market. Back in the day, TVR had a lot of racing experience. So, the company wanted to see what they could do if they concentrated all their resources on a superfast racing/street model. They built the Speed 12 with FIA racing propositions in mind. Soon they presented the first and only prototype. It had a 7.7-liter V12 engine capable of delivering close to 1,000 HP.

The rest of the car was for pure racing with a lightweight chassis, sequential gearbox, and active aero package. The performance was terrifying. The Speed 12 could accelerate to 60 mph in less than three seconds and go well over 200 mph. Unfortunately, TVR canceled production for two reasons. First, the FIA changed the requirements for the racing class, making the Speed 12 obsolete. Second, company management was afraid the car was too fast for the street and drivers would get killed driving it.

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7. Jaguar XJR-15

This list has already included the fantastic, often misunderstood Jaguar XJ220 supercar. But, this wasn’t the only high-speed, low-production sports model from the famed British brand in the ’90s. The second one, the XJR-15, was much rarer and forgotten. Back in the late 1980s and early ’90s, Jaguar had much success in endurance racing and on Le Mans. To commemorate the winning car, Jaguar decided to produce a limited run of special sportscars with racing technology.

Soon, they presented the XJR-15. Again, it was a race car for the streets with a 6.0-liter V12. This was as close to a racing engine as it could get. Jaguar paired it up with a proper competition chassis, suspension, and drivetrain. The result was 450 HP and a 0 to 60 mph time of 3.5 seconds. Production started in 1990 and ended in 1992, during which time Jaguar built 53 examples at over to $1 million each.

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6. Bristol Fighter

In 2004, Bristol decided to introduce a new model with uncompromised performance and fresh design. And that is how the Bristol Fighter was born. They custom-built the chassis with a special body featuring gullwing doors and a long hood. Although the design of the Fighter doesn’t resemble other Bristol cars, it carries the tradition of using Chrysler engines.

But best of all, this sports car has an 8.0-liter V10 from Dodge Viper delivering 525 HP. With 0 to 60 mph acceleration times of around four seconds and top speeds of over 200 mph, it was one of the fastest cars at the time. However, Bristol’s policy and refusal to sell many cars ended in 2011 when the company closed. Allegedly, they built only 13 Fighters, delivering none of them to the U.S.

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5. Jaguar XJ13

Back in the mid-60s Jaguar wanted to go racing, but they needed a new, modern car. And, it had to be far more advanced than the E-Type sports coupe they offered at the moment. That is why they conceived the secret XJ13 project. Jaguar wanted to produce a mid-engine supercar with a V12 unit in the back. Also, it had to have aerodynamic styling and sublime performance.

Unfortunately, they only completed one car, so the project never got off the ground. But once the race regulations changed, the XJ13 became obsolete even before they were ready to race it. They scraped the plans for a road-going homologation version. Unfortunately, the XJ13 became known as the best “what if” story in Jaguar’s history.

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4. Lotec Sirius

The Sirius is one of the most obscure European supercars the Lotec Company produced in the early 2000s. However, the prototype caused much attention when they first showed it in 2001. But ever since, the news about this crazy supercar has been scarce. Some say they only made two of them. Yet others think the Sirius never progressed beyond the prototype stage.

However, the Sirius is still one of the most powerful and interesting machines out there. The heart is a twin-turbo Mercedes-derived V12 engine that develops around 1,300 HP. With a five-speed manual transmission and weighing just 2,800 pounds, the Sirius is unbelievably fast. In fact, a 0 to 60 mph sprint takes less than 3.7 seconds and the top speed is an amazing 285 mph.

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3. Dome Zero

You may remember this car if you grew up in the late ‘70s or early ‘80s. It was one of the first Japanese supercars with a memorable design. The Dome Zero was a small Japanese car company dedicated to producing expensive road-going and race models. Production started in 1976 and continued until 1986, but it is unclear how many cars they built.

The Dome Zero came with a 2.8-liter SOHC six-cylinder engine with 147 HP. Although that doesn’t sound like much, the car was extremely light, so the performance was respectable. Unfortunately, Zero never completed the homologation process, so their racing career was short and unsuccessful.

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2. Mitsuoka Orochi

One of the world’s most obscure supercars comes from Japan in the form of the Mitsuoka Orochi. It was a cool-looking two-seater with Lamborghini doors and a controversial design. The Mitsuoka company was famous for building resto moded cars based on regular models. However, in 2006 they decided to enter the supercar market with the highly exclusive Orochi.

They named the car after a mythical Japanese dragon with eight heads that influenced the design of the car. Even though they based the Orochi on the Honda NSX platform, it’s powered by a Toyota 3.3-liter V6 engine with 240 HP. This car is light and nimble, so the performance is satisfying, to say the least. They never intended to sell the Orochi outside of Japan or some selected Asian markets, especially not in the U.S.

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1. Tatra MTX V8

Defunct Czech car company Tatra produced luxury sedans behind the Iron Curtain. But in 1991, a group of young, talented engineers decided to make a supercar using race technology and a Tatra V8 engine. And they named the result the Tatra MTX V8. Tatra revealed the car at the Prague Motor Show. The MTX V8 received many orders, but production proved to be difficult, so they canceled the project. They only completed four cars, which is a shame. The MTX V8 never got a chance to race against Ferraris, Porsches, or Maseratis.

These are the 20 most forgotten and obscure supercars ever produced. If you love to drive fast and have the skills to handle a fast, powerful car, one of these vehicles could be for you. Each of them has a lasting legacy in the car industry.

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20 Forgotten and Obscure Supercars

9. Panoz Esperante GTR-1

8. TVR Speed 12

7. Jaguar XJR-15

6. Bristol Fighter

5. Jaguar XJ13

4. Lotec Sirius

3. Dome Zero

2. Mitsuoka Orochi

1. Tatra MTX V8

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