New 'Ginetta-esque' Dare on the way
New classically curvy Ginetta G40 rival to come from the folks who originally founded Ginetta Cars
new car will evoke the style of 60s originals
It'll be a mid-engined coupe designed for the road first and track second, powered by Ford's terrific 2.0-litre Ecoboost turbo and making 250bhp. The car will be badged Dare, the company the Walkletts founded in 1991 after selling Ginetta in 1989.
DZ is Dare's most recent offering
The cars were most associated with racing, but this as-yet-unnamed coupe will be more road-focused to sell against cars like the Lotus Elise.
The fiberglass-bodied car will even come with electric windows and air-con, according to Tom. But despite that the target weight is 750-800kg and the cost around £30,000.
Confusingly the Walkletts still make the classic G4 and G12 Ginettas, mostly for the Japanese market, despite Ginetta operating as a successful entity in its own right. In fact the new Dare-badged car will go head-to-head with the Ginetta G40, which also costs from £30K. Tom reckons there's a clear distance between the two, however: "The G40 is a race car they've put on the road. We've designed this from the offset as a road car."
Ford's turbocharged Ecoboost engine has given Dare a new lease of life. Because it's rated EuroV on emissions, it means cars can be easily type approved.
In fact, the company has already stuck Ecoboost engines into two road-legal G12 cars for UK customers (previously they were track only) and Tom foresees this side of the business taking off. The G12 Ecoboost costs around £40,000.
He's also got his eye on Ford's 1.0-litre three cylinder turbo Ecoboost engine. "We have thought about it. What in, I don't know. Ford has said they're happy to sell it."
Either Ecoboost (especially the 2.0-litre) in a lightweight body designed by the masters of attractive specialist sports cars gets us very excited indeed.
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