HORACIO PAGANI HAD H shown that it could be done: the outlandish Zonda was proof that an unknown really could break into the supercar club previously the Lamborghini, Porsche and a small handful of others. Pagani proved that you didn't need decades of preserve of only Ferrari, heritage; you didn't need to go racing; you didn't even need to build your own engine. After the launch of the Zonda in 1999, the received wisdom no longer applied.
Enter, in the early 2000s, another successful, car-mad entrepreneur with a dream: Dutchman Klaas Zwart. Just like Pagani, Zwart's dream was to build his own mid-engined supercar. His too would be a purist driver's car, fully carbonfibre in construction and powered by a bought-in German engine: where the Zonda had its AMG V12, the KZ1 would have a BMW Motorsport V8, tuned to a nice round 500bhp. In a car with a claimed kerb weight of 1300kg, that was enough for Ascari to cite 0-60mph in sub-4.0sec and a 200mph top speed. Pagani territory...
Klaas Zwart certainly wasn't lacking in ambition or belief. There was a pristine new production facility and top engineering talent; a sales target was initially set at 100 cars a year, and there were plans to go GT racing. Acres of press coverage followed; there were memorable appearances on Top Gear. And then...
The sales simply never materialised. Ascari took the KZ1 racing, with some success, but road car sales never amounted to more than a trickle and after a few years the adventure was over, the production facility closed and sold. So what went wrong? We tracked down some of the key players to get their take. What we uncovered was a classic tale of what might have been.
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Denne historien er fra September 2022-utgaven av Evo UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Cupra Formentor Abt
It's farewell to the original Cupra Formentor with an Abt-tuned run-out package. It's a quietly excellent car; just a shame about the price...
Renault Sport Clio 200 Turbo
This misguided departure from the French brand's hot hatch heritage saw the Clio fall from grace
REBIRTH OF AN ICON
The Kalmar 9X9 is a modernday reinterpretation of Porsche's game-changing 959 supercar, with a carbon body and up to 917bhp. And evo is helping to develop it
Volkswagen Golf GTI
The underachieving Mk8 GTI gets a shot at redemption with the new, revised Mk8.5 version. Is it the leap forward it needs to be?
BEST BUYS
FAST FORDS FROM THE CORTINA TO THE ESCORT AND THE FIESTA, Ford is responsible for some of the most popular cars in British history. But alongside these everyday machines it has also produced a stream of desirable driver's cars.
HY AND DRY
The switch to electric power means an early exit for Hyundai N's brilliant ICE hot hatch duo. We go for a farewell drive in the 120 N
SEXY BEAST
The Vanquish name is back for Aston Martin's latest seriesproduction flagship, with a stunning new look and simply brutal performance from an 824bhp twin-turbo V12
THE JOY OF DRIVING
From mastering the everyday commute to unlocking the full potential of your performance car, our new series will help you become safer, more confident and ultimately more skilled behind the wheel
TINY DANCER
You haven't seen a Mini dance like this before, but then you haven't seen a Mini with a 4-litre M Power V8 under the bonnet and rear-wheel drive. Introducing Vini...
LAMBORGHINI GALLARDO
Grandaddy to the Temerario and the car that transformed Lamborghini was the brilliant, V10-engined Gallardo. We get reacquainted with a Lambo legend
