Who said the Australian automotive industry was dead? Brabham Automotive today unveiled to the world the Brabham BT62 coupe, a supercar with the potential of rekindling the Australian car industry. The launch was in London, but the car's production line is set to be in Adelaide. A price of £1m (nearly AU$2m) before any options or taxes and a production run of 70 units makes the BT62 a very exclusive investment.
Having driven, raced and won in a host of world-class cars during my 35-year racing career, I knew exactly what I wanted from the BT62.
- David Brabham, Twitter
David Brabham is the man responsible for the revival of the Brabham designation to an automobile. His father, Sir Jack Brabham, is of course the only man to have won the F1 championship driving a car he built - a feat unlikely to ever be repeated.
Believe it or not, the demise of the Australian car industry may actually have lead to the creation of the BT62! As local car production started to wind down, Australian specialised manufacturers with years of experience looked for other projects to focus their attention on - along came David Brabham and his team. While still producing parts for Holden, Ford and Toyota, the resources simply would not have been available. An Adelaide-based investment group formed by one of these manufacturers, Precision Components, has fully bankrolled Brabham Automotive.
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The engine in the BT62 is actually based on one found in cars already on the market, however it has been reworked so much they are able to call it a Brabham engine. The end result is a 522kW (700hp) naturally-aspirated 5.4L V8.
It's a car that spent more than two years in the making. Funding is secured, and they are ready to commence production almost immediately. Deposits are even being taken - this is happening!
David and the company will remain based in London, but that green and gold coat on the launch car is enough to make any Australian proud.
The Brabham BT62 will inspire, challenge and reward its driver like no other.
- Brabham Automotive
Despite being a car built exclusively for the track, director of manufacturing at the newly formed Brabham Automotive, Christian Reynolds, suggests road cars are in the pipeline - particularly exciting news for us at Melbourne Car Spotters!
Brabham Automotive is trying to tap into a relatively new niche market of extremely wealthy clients who want very, very fast cars produced in very, very low numbers. Think Pagani, Koenigsegg, even Bugatti - all successful manufacturers whose popularity has grown enormously in the past decade resulting in lengthy waiting lists. This new company with a deep Australian heritage has as much potential to succeed, especially with the backing of such a respected name in the field. This is exciting news indeed.