The fight to build the fastest car in the world has been going on for decades. Brands invest millions of euros in building spectacular machines that reach astronomical speeds and that, certainly, will rarely or never come true once they reach the hands of customers.
Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300, SSC Tuatara, Koenigsegg Agera RS, Hennessey Venom F5, Bugatti Veyron Super Sport, Rimac Nevera… These are some of the fastest supercars in the world that are best known. The evolution of the firms is constant. So much so that it is expected to exceed the 500 km/h barrier in a short time.
Manufacturers build ever more sophisticated cars to claim the crown of speed. A prestigious badge within the reach of very few, but that in the 90s someone wanted to show off. Specifically, it was in 1991 when a member of the Dubai AI Maktoum family set out to own the fastest and most powerful road car in the world. And so the Lotec C1000 was born, a machine as spectacular as it was unknown to some.
Now, the luxury car dealer Curated, located in Miami, has taken over this valuable piece and intends to auction it, although it has not yet revealed the price for which it can be bid. Despite the fact that only one unit of this example was produced, the spectacular supercar has not yet found the right buyer and has been seen at various auctions in recent years.
His story is one more example that with enough money you can get -almost- anything. This Arab sheikh was willing to spend whatever was necessary to achieve his goal of having the fastest car in the world, so he contacted Lotec, a German brand that specialized in manufacturing chassis and bodies for competition, and commissioned him to this car for the modest price of $3.6 million (about $7.2 million today).
And so this unique car began to be built in an artisanal way, piece by piece, which was presented in 1995. Carbon fiber was used for the construction of both the chassis and the body, which allowed it to obtain a weight of just 1,080 kg. . Also in other parts, such as the transmission, this lightweight material was used. Likewise, the Lotec C1000 presents some very aerodynamic lines, among which the deeply sunken hood stands out, necessary to achieve a higher top speed.
Powered by a Mercedes-Benz 5.6-litre MF117 V8 engine, the C1000 was additionally fitted with Garrett turbochargers. The result was no more and no less than 1,000 horsepower to power the exclusive supercar, a staggering number in 1995. All that power was transferred to the rear via a Hewland five-speed manual transmission. All in all, the manufacturer recorded that it could go from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.2 seconds, from 0 to 200 km/h in 8 seconds and reach a top speed of 431 km/h.
Inside, you can see exposed carbon fiber, along with text that reads "powered by Mercedes-Benz." Interestingly, Lotec, the manufacturer that was founded in 1962, went on to produce parts for Mercedes and even Ferraris in the first half of the 1980s, so the connection to the German marque dated back long before the C1000 was commissioned. .
Although it has never been verified that the Lotec C1000 reached the top speed of 431 km/h, the different owners will have had few opportunities to verify it, since the odometer shows just 2,756 kilometers traveled.
Curated, the dealership putting the C1000 up for auction, plans to document the history of this special car on its YouTube channel before it goes on sale. We will see if, contrary to what has happened on recent occasions, this time it finds a buyer. What has been shown is that it is not worth as much as the original $3.6 million that was paid for it.
