Ascari Cars Ltd.
TypePrivate
IndustryAutomotive
Founded2 December 1994
Defunct2010
FateBankruptcy[1]
Headquarters
Banbury, Oxfordshire, England
Key people
Geoff Finlay ceo
ProductsAutomobiles
OwnerKlaas Zwart
Websiteascari.net

Ascari Cars Ltd. was a British automobile manufacturer based in Banbury, England, and founded by Klaas Zwart.[2] Zwart was the former chairman and majority owner of oil and gas company Petroline, which designed and manufactured its own downhole technology. Petroline was purchased by Weatherford in 1999.[3]

The company was named after Alberto Ascari (1918–1955), the first double winner of the World Championship of Drivers.[4]

The company filed for bankruptcy in 2010. Ascari's official site was also shut down and has not been updated since 2009.

History

Ascari Cars was established in Dorset in 1994. Its first limited-edition car, the Ascari Ecosse, was launched in 1998.

In 2000 Ascari Cars built a new facility in Banbury in northern Oxfordshire. Ascari Car's second car, the Ascari KZ1, was developed at Banbury, which also housed Team Ascari's racing assets. The premises are now occupied by Haas F1 Team.[5]

Due to declining sales of the Ascari KZ1 and a large amount of money to produce cars, Ascari suffered heavy financial losses before making the difficult decision to file for bankruptcy in 2010.[6]

Road cars

An Ascari KZ1 (foreground) and Ecosse on display.
Year Model Details
1995Ascari FGTInitial concept car created for racing
1998Ascari EcosseProduction version of the FGT
2003Ascari KZ1Production version of A410 Race car
2005Ascari KZ1-RRoad-going version of the KZ1-R GT3 race car
2006Ascari A10Upgraded version of the KZ1

Race cars

Year Model Details
1995Ascari FGTRacing version of the FGT concept, run in the British GT Championship
2000Ascari A410Le Mans Prototype
2002Ascari KZR-1Upgraded version of the A410
2005Ascari KZ1-R GT3Racing version of the KZ1, running in the FIA GT3 class

See also

References

  1. ↑ "10 Things We Just Learned About Ascari and Its Cars". 16 February 2022.
  2. ↑ "Ascari Cars, Beautiful beast". The Manufacturer. April 2006. Archived from the original on 14 December 2009. Retrieved 8 November 2009.
  3. ↑ "Weatherford International buys Petroline for #104m". The Herald. 3 September 1999. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "Here's What Everyone Forgot About Ascari Cars". HotCars. 21 August 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  5. ↑ Three Hundred Club - Cars With a Top Speed Exceeding 300 KM/H: Volume 1 - World's Fastest Production Cars. Dorrance Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4349-5564-7.
  6. ↑ "Ascari KZ1: The Forgotten British Supercar Powered by a Deafening BMW M-Tuned V8". AutoEvolution. 11 May 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
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