Canada's answer to the Pagani Zonda
Lightweight, ultra-focused De Macross GT1 aims to shake up the supercar hierarchyCanada is best known for maple syrup, lumberjacks and winter sports, but to that list you can potentially add supercars as a puny Canuck company named De Macross Motors Corp (DMMC) plans to toss its hat into the ring with a giant-killing V8-powered coupe.
Pictured here is a 25 per cent scale model of the De Macross GT1, which its maker boldly claims is the equal of the Pagani Zonda in terms of raw performance.
The Le Mans racer-style GT1 was developed in cooperation with component manufacturer Multimatic and UK's Car magazine reports that the project was bankrolled primarily by Korean businessman Jahong Hur.
Hur -- no relation to Ben -- allegedly has a wide portfolio of business interests that have provided him with the cash resources to fund the GT1's development in earnest.
Rather than attempting to design a high-po V8 or V12 from scratch, the De Macross mob has opted to slot in a mid-mounted supercharged 5.4-litre V8 bolted together by Roush Yates Racing Engines, which provides the donks for Ford's Nascar vehicles.
The GT1 embodies classic racecar construction techniques with a carbonfibre/aluminium-laden spaceframe chassis and an inboard Multimatic Dynamic Suspension Spooling Valve with a "novel active ride height control system".
According to Car, the first full-scale GT1 is due to be completed in November and orders will be taken in 2011 after the requisite prototype testing. The company allegedly plans to sell up to 200 cars, but there's as yet no indication of pricing.
If they get anywhere near this figure it would be a remarkable achievement as the only other Canadian-designed sports car to even remotely make a mark was the quirky gullwing-doored Bricklin SV-1.
Built from 1974-76, the SV-1 (which stood for "safety vehicle one") was conceived as a safe and economical sports car, but its hefty girth meant it was no ball of fire -- even with Detroit V8 muscle lurking under its pointy beak.
Getting back to the De Macross GT1, Car reports that the supercar will be joined in due course by cheaper stablemates that will take on Aston Martin, Maserati and Porsche.
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