Panoz has built cars before, but in extremely limited numbers and only in two main models: the Roadster, which dates back to an Irish sports car developed in the early 1980s, and the Esperante, which was, for the most part, a Mustang Cobra with a serious penchant for road course work. They’ve fashioned themselves into an all-American boutique manufacturer of sorts, had one concept that pretty much disappeared (the Abruzzi) and have been pimping out the same two cars for the last twenty-plus years.

Panoz Esperante

Don Panoz, the money behind the operation, has indicated that there may be a third option, and one that will be unconventional, to say the least. If he gets his way, the DeltaWing, the strange narrow-nosed race car that was designed as part of a group that included the All American Racers, Nissan (which turned into one serious legal mess), and Ben Bowlby, will be coming to market soon as a road car. The DeltaWing that has been raced is normally run with a sub-2.0L four cylinder pushing about 350 horsepower backed by a five-speed, but if this comes to fruition, expect a turbo four to come from most likely partner Ford instead of the Élan or Nissan engines used in the past, and expect the opening cost to be a fairly reasonable (for a boutique manufacturer, anyways) $60,000 or so.

Also expect this thing to handle. Panoz owns Road Atlanta, so there is no reason for the car to be anything less than magical when it comes to corners, especially with the DeltaWing’s race history and Panoz’s backgrounds in other racing formats. And if Don Panoz can be believed, the DeltaWing shape tested to have a 42% increase in efficiency and the potential for up to 70 miles per gallon, which we will believe only when we see it. Take what you will from his claims, but the company has been able to sell cars. Time will only tell if the narrow-nosed DeltaWing will translate into a legitimate sports car or not.

(Courtesy: World Car Fans)