When it put out its last production model, British supercar maker TVR — which celebrates its 70th anniversary this year — paid no attention to EU rules requiring all cars to be fitted with antilock braking systems and front airbags.
Why? An ex-designer’s belief that those features promoted overconfidence and were therefore unsafe. That car, the 406-HP Sagaris, had a top speed of 185 MPH and could do 0 to 60 in 3.7 seconds.
In fact, the British marque has always had a rebellious streak, responsible for some of the most insane supercars Great Britain and the world has ever seen, especially during its heyday in the 1990s.
And while no one can be sure TVR’s just-announced, yet-to-be-named 2017 model will thumb its nose at any EU safety guidelines, considering it’ll be powered by a five-liter V8 developed by Cosworth and top out 15 MPH faster than the Sagaris, we kind of hope it does.
Engineered in partnership with Gordon Murray, the front-engined two-seater will be “British in every way,” boast a manual transmission and be “breathtaking in appearance and performance.”
Since Murray is involved, it’s a lock that the car will be built using his “iStream Carbon” production process, a carbon fiber chassis construction system that “brings Formula One materials and technology within reach of the everyday motorist.” Here’s how it works.
“We know that a new TVR has to be better than just good — it has to be outstanding,” said TVR chairman Les Edgar in an interview with Top Gear. “From the outset we only wanted to work with the best partners in the business, and both Gordon Murray’s and Cosworth’s track records within motor sport and high performance car design and engineering speak for themselves.”
There’s no way to know exactly how the car will look (the main image above is just a guess), but there’s a good chance gullwing doors will be involved.
And maybe — just to cover all the bases — some airbags.
This article was featured in the InsideHook newsletter. Sign up now.
