Lanzante, the Petersfield-based specialist behind the F1-engined Porsche 911 TAG Turbo, will build a three-seat supercar with a whopping 700bhp per tonne.
Codenamed Project 95-59, it has been conceived as a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the company’s victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The name references the year in which it won (1995) and the number 59 worn by the triumphant McLaren F1 GTR.
Lanzante said it will be a limited-run model based on an existing McLaren platform.
It is most likely to be the structure which underpins the current 750S, but with extensive modifications to accommodate an F1-style cockpit.
Alternatively, the 95-59 could be based on McLaren's most recent three-seater, the Speedtail. Coincidentally, that car's 1055bhp hybrid powertrain (with 747bhp 4.0-litre V8 and 309bhp motor) and 1499kg kerbweight give it a similar power-to-weight ratio, at 704bhp per tonne.
The supercar has been penned by Paul Howse who, during his time at McLaren, oversaw the exterior design of the P1, 570S, 720S and Artura. He was also responsible for Lanzante’s P1 Spider and the Thorney Kelham European GT, a Jaguar XK120 restomod.
Lanzante said it would reveal more in the coming weeks, ahead of the car’s public debut at July’s Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Project 95-59 will be the firm's first car anchored by its own brand: the 911 TAG Turbo is, of course, based on a Porsche, and the majority of its previous work has been closely linked to historic McLarens.
Its arrival will fulfil boss Dean Lanzante’s ambition to “stand on [his] own”. Discussing the plan with Autocar last summer, he explained: “A lot of people have said: ‘You’ve done a Porsche project. Are you going to do another?’
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