Improving perfection is never easy, Lamborghini with the stunning Miura gave transmissions their first proper taste of exotic mid-engined styling, and the automotive world hasn’t looked back since.
Perhaps it is time to look back in reflection to see what was done before? What worked and what didn’t? Perhaps the following curiosities wouldn’t adorn the media pages with unpleasant styling and technical problems? The same creative source responsible for kickstarting the entire mid-engine Supercar Genre has also spawned some less aesthetically pleasing ideas. Motorsport also has a long association with the superior weight distribution that comes with putting the engine in the middle. Cooper Racing adopted the layout with great success in the late 1950s.
It goes without saying that the weight in the middle is better for balance, but it’s not all positive. The engineers face immense challenges in locating the engine and transmission in the middle and still leaving the driver enough space to sit.
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DC come on
About the wallpaper cave
We really wanted to like the DC Avanti, India’s first fully self-produced supercar – which at first glance looks like a real deal. If you take a longer, closer look, it becomes clear that there is something wrong with the proportions, the rear looks wider than the front, or is it perhaps the rear wheels pushed into the extremities?
Via Pinterest
Then we come to the biggest topic, despite a 310 hp 2-liter turbo Renault sports engine nestling directly behind the cockpit, DC Design did something curious about the Avanti’s performance. Electronics cuts in over 120 mph on anything, and this unusual choice also hinders acceleration sprints, reaching 60 mph in a 6-second pedestrian. The question arises, why do powerful engines fit into a lightweight steel and composite material just to limit performance?
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Mosler Consulate GTP
About Bring A Trailer
To be honest, the Consulier GTP was originally built for the racetrack, where appearance is not always in the foreground. What is hard to understand is that with advancements in design and more powerful engines, nobody thought of making it a bit more aerodynamic.
About Bring A Trailer
Through several changes and renaming, Consulier made way for the Intruder and Raptor monikers, which got more wing channels and a strange split windshield design reminiscent of VW’s RV. It certainly wasn’t nice. At least progressive updates gave the GTP more power, the last copies were equipped with LT1 V8 engines with 450 hp tuned by Lingenfelter.
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Lamborghini Egoista
Via Wallpaperflare
As the king of supercars and an early adopter of the mid-engine layout, Lamborghini has produced dozens of stunning supercars since the 1960s, and even the less-selling models were works of art. Proof that any maestro can have a bad day surely has to go in with the Egoista 2013 reveal as one of those rare days off.
Via Wallpaperflare
The recipe is simple, take the wonderful Gallardo, remove its body, then screw on that single seat F1 racer slash fighter jet body and show it to the world. Behind the canopy-style entry, the 5.2-liter V10 from Lamborghini offers 600 hp, with all four wheels being powered. The name of the Egoista means selfish, given the weird Top Gun inspired design, we think Ego Trip is more appropriate.
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McLaren X-1
About CarPixel
At the gates of the McLaren technology center in a nondescript industrial area, McLaren Special Operations is busy creating custom creations of the brand’s supercars. If you have a vision and enough money, anything is possible.
About CarPixel
This brings us to the X-1, a special, one-off customer creation for the 12C super sports car. Remove the Batman meets Jetsons styling package, and the same carbon fiber tub setup remains unchanged, as does the 3.8-liter, 616-horsepower twin-turbo V8. We admit it’s unique, but we will stand.
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Mitsuoka Orochi
Via Reddit
Any manga-loving gear head will immediately feel at home in Mitsuoka’s curious orochi supercar. The appearance of one or the other grille and headlight must surely have come from the head of a Japanese teenager ?!
Via Wallpaperflare
Despite the undeniably quirky looks under the skin, the Orochi is a true supercar based on Honda’s first-generation NSX platform. Instead of Honda Power, Mitsuoka opted for the 3MA 3.3-liter V6 from Toyota with an output of around 240 hp. Unimpressed by the lack of success, the following special editions appeared, including Zero, Gold, Seven-Eleven and The Final Edition.
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Aixam mega track
Via Reddit
At some point during the development of the Aixam Mega Track, we suspect that a simple employee made a mistake on the route and got into a truck instead, which is how the strange mixture of super sports car and SUV can be explained. Granted, we like this one, who doesn’t want a supercar that can handle bumpy terrain?
Via Reddit
The size could be a problem here, however, along with its monstrous Mercedes 6-liter V12 with 400 hp adds the awkward 13-inch ride height to which the Mega Track rides on 20-inch alloy wheels. It’s not discreet, but with only 12 examples produced, it’s unlikely to see one in the city or in the country.
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Weber faster
About FavCars
Faster in name, faster by nature, that is the unlikely result of a Swiss-based super sports car manufacturer. The Weber Faster One claimed to reach a top speed of 248 mph while overtaking 60 mph in 2.7 seconds. That’s the best in terms of speed and power.
About FavCars
Driven by a 900 hp Chevrolet LS7 V8 with compressor drive and drive on all four wheels, Weber claimed at the time that his bizarre creation was the fastest production super sports car with all-wheel drive. Thankfully, since its unveiling, several cosmetic changes have given the Faster One a more pleasing look in place of the curious, mustache-adorned front end of the prototype.
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Lamborghini question
Via HD Walls Box
Lamborghini faced another challenge for the craziest mid-engine super sports car at the 1998 Paris Motor Show with its unique Pregunta special model. From a technical point of view, it was a breathtaking piece of engineering, equipped with a revised 5.7-liter V12 with 530 hp.
Via HD Walls Box
Now the bad news, the pregunta vaguely resembles a tuber walrus in late pregnancy: it is not exactly pretty. Gone are the wedge-shaped lines of the Diablo, in their place strange bulges, channels and ventilation openings, crowned by several spider-imitating headlights, which is a little too strange for us. Surprisingly, Lamborghini actually found a buyer for the Pregunta.
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Tramontana XTR
About NetCarShow
AD Tramontana is a little-known Spanish supercar manufacturer that pretty much no one outside of Europe has ever heard of. Even Europeans are likely to say Tramon, who? Inspired by single-seat F1-style racing drivers, the XTR keeps bodywork to a minimum, with a tandem two-seater layout and little more.
About NetCarShow
A couple of carbon fiber fenders on the front and rear give a clue of what the XTR is all about – maximum performance. Just inches behind the cockpit and bolted directly to the chassis, a 5.5-liter V12 made by Mercedes produces 710 horsepower in a package that weighs just 2,800 pounds.
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Panther 6
Via Wallpaperup
We’re not entirely sure what to make of the Panther 6, which has all the references of a proper mid-engined supercar on paper without the sleek agility you’d normally expect. First, another six-wheel design modeled on Covini’s C6, which itself was inspired by the unfortunate Tyrrell F1 racing car.
Via Wallpaperup
Under the enormous rear deck, a Cadillac 8.2-liter V8 engine sends 600 hp to the rear axles via a three-speed car, with the Panther reaching a top speed of 300 km / h. Unfortunately only two were completed, so the high ambitions of a top speed of 240 mph with the right gear ratio went untested.
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About the author
Jason Garbutt
(349 published articles)
Growing up in a car-obsessed environment from an early age generated a keen interest in everything to do with cars. primarily an F1 fan, but also an avid fan of other motorsports. Professional background who has worked closely with an established UK supercar manufacturer over the past few years.
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