Is the Vector W8 is the craziest supercar ever made?
Its fighter jet-inspired styling is only the beginning
In 1971, Gerald Wiegert, with an Advanced Fighter Aircraft Design Certificate from Northrop University, founded California-based automotive company Vehicle Design Force. The aim was to build a dramatically styled car - with the help of Lee Brown - to excite the general public and rival the design of exotic supercars. This car, known as 'The Vector', took a year and $50,000 to build. When Brown left the company in 1977, Vehicle Design Force became Vector Aeromotive.
The Vector W2
Credit: reddit.com
The Vector W2 was first shown to the public in 1978, with a fully-functional version coming the following year. The mad styling of this new, all-American supercar was far from subtle, and with the looks of a fighter jet, it wowed the public. This was not the Vector's only feature, and this would be clear as soon as you enter the cockpit.
Credit: reddit.com
You could easily mistake the interior for that of a spaceship, and you wouldn't be too far off. It was powered by a 5.7 litre Chevrolet V8, twin turbocharged to produce over 600 horsepower. Top speed was claimed to be in excess of 230 miles per hour, which would have made it the fastest production car at the time by a huge margin.
The Vector W8
Credit: silodrome.com
In 1989, the world stopped to marvel at the new W8. Vector Aeromotive's first production car was the final evolution of the W2. The jet-inspired design was further emphasised by many plane-derived dashboard controls and the use of 5,000 specification rivets during its assembly. Forget everything else: this was the most awesome supercar of the 1980s.
Credit: supercars.net
The Vector W8 is powered by an insane 6 litre Rodeck V8 racing engine. This powerplant was transversely mounted and, when connected to two turbochargers, it provides an insane 1,200 horsepower at maximum boost. All of this power goes to the rear wheels via a three-speed automatic gearbox. Admittedly, this was an odd choice for a supercar, but it was still very cool.
Credit: jalopnik.com
They must have ran out of room in the engine bay, as the driving position was slightly more central to make room for the transmission. There were comfortable and adjustable leather Recaro seats inside - large enough to seat two average Americans - and to the left of the steering wheel was an LCD display panel, with four screens showing information about the car.
Credit: silodrome.com
The price of the Vector was a sheer $448,000 at the time, leaving only the wealthiest of car enthusiasts and collectors the chance of owning one. Sadly, as a result of largely negative publicity, only seventeen Vector W8s were built for customers between 1989 and 1993 - with each of them hand-built to a high standard - before the company went into receivership.
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Comments (9)
Certainly up there for sure - nice piece.
Thanks 👍
I’ve seen one of the red ones in person, I think the one in the pics you used. It’s insanity on wheels. So low and so wide
So cool!
Interesting. Didn’t know there was such a car out there..... 🤔
Quite a lot of people don’t know about the Vector.
Yes.
Agreed 👍
Crazy I think so