20 Forgotten and Obscure Supercars

Vukasin Herbez September 7, 2017

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

5. Jaguar XJ13

4. Lotec Sirius

3. Dome Zero

2. Mitsuoka Orochi

1. Tatra MTX V8

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