History
THE ONLY ONE IN AUSTRALIA
Ascari produced just nineteen examples of the Ecosse during a production run that lasted from 1997 to 2003. However, the company may have produced even less had Klaas Zwart not seen the Ascari FGT concept that first appeared in 1995 at the British Motor Show. Designed by Lee Noble, the FGT featured an elegantly understated Kevlar and fiberglass body, lightweight chassis and a mid-mounted Chevrolet V8 engine. Instead of purchasing a car for himself, Zwart, a professional racing driver and successful entrepreneur, chose to acquire the company as a whole and went on to race the FGT in the British GT championship in 1995, 1996 and 1997, whilst simultaneously developing the road going variant. This was subsequently launched as the Ascari Ecosse in 1997, in a nod to Zwart’s successful business ventures in Scotland.
To increase driveability and reliability, the Chevrolet engine was swapped out for a Hartge tuned variant of BMW’s 4.9-litre V8, which produced in the region of 500 bhp and endowed the 1,250 kg Ecosse with a top speed of 200 mph and a 0-60 mph benchmark in less than four seconds. These statistics, which are still relevant by modern day supercar standards, are all the more impressive given the fact that car was not a ‘racing car with number plates; the cabin was a fully appointed affair with air conditioning, yards of beautifully trimmed leather, a premium sound system and a carbon fibre dashboard that sparked off a trend that Ferrari, Lamborghini and other exotic brands all elected to follow.
This Ascari Ecosse is number 19 of 19 built. It is VERY RARE
