Autoblog

Click above for high-res gallery of the Arash AF10

Britain's history is punctuated in no small part by the proliferation of its cottage industry. And while the industrial revolution may have taken care of that to a large degree, it's still alive and thriving in the realm of the supercar. Small independent exotic automakers abound, including names like Ascari, Ultima, Noble, Farboud, Farbio and Arash, to name just a few. Trying to keep track of them all is enough to make your head spin, especially when the same guy is behind the latter three. After selling off Farboud, the new owners changed the name to Farbio and founder Arash Farboud started a new outfit under his first name. What you see here are the first proper images of his latest creation, the Arash AF10.

The carbon-fiber body, which (aside from the adjustable front wing) bears a startling resemblance to the Ferrari Enzo, is laid over a carbon fiber chassis for a sprightly low curb weight of 1,200kg (about 2,600 lbs). Power is provided by the 7-liter pushrod V8 out of the Corvette Z06, tuned from the stock 498 hp up to 530 thanks to new intake and exhaust systems, driving the rear wheels through a manual Graziano gearbox and kept in check by AP Racing brakes. The supercar is expected to sell for about 170k pounds sterling – a fair bit less than the £220k a Lamborghini Murcielago will cost a British customer – and begin delivery sometime next year. A sequential gearbox is expected to join the catalog, as well as the potential for dropping in the supercharged V8 from the Corvette ZR1 a year and a half down the line. In the meantime you can check it out in the gallery below.

[Source: Arash]

The closest most of us have come to a Farboud sports car is driving a digital version of the company's GTS in Project Gotham Racing 3. Regardless of his obscurity in the U.S., the maverick Brit Arash Farboud will be displaying his company's AF10 supercar at the British Motor Show next month.

The AF10 will use a Corvette Z06-sourced 7.0L V8 mated to a six-speed Graziano transmission and hope to reach a top speed in excess of 200 mph. The car employs a steel and carbon fiber tub with an all-carbon fiber body.

Supposedly the party at the Farboud display is the stuff of legends, so we'll keep our ears and eyes open for news of when the AF10 debuts next month at the British Motor Show.

[Source: Autocar]