Argyll Turbo Cars Limited

 Automotive manufacturer of Lochgilphead , Scotland.Great Britain from 1976 to 1990.

 

 

Argyll Turbo Cars Limited was a British manufacturer of sports automobiles . The brand name was Argyll . 

History

The racing driver Bob Henderson, who already made in his company Minnow Fish Carburettors carburetor and turbocharger expert, founded in 1976, the company in Lochgilphead in the Scottish county of Argyll The name was re-used in 1976 by a new company who made a mid-engined sports car, the Argyll GT in Lochgilphead, Scotland.  The new car was named after the original Argyll of 1898, in honour of a grandfather of one of the investors who worked in the Argyll factory at Alexandria.

The model was the mid-engined Argyll Turbo GT which was based on a  box section chassis with space frame clothed in a 2+2 seat fibreglass bodyshell made next door to the old Arrol-Johnston factory in Dumfries by Solway Marine.

The 1976 prototype car featured a turbocharged Rover V8 engine . A version with a  2.0l turbocharged Saab engine was also made.The maximum speed was specified with 209 km / h for the version with Saab engine and 275 km / h, but not  built. The basis was a self-developed chassis tubular frame . The engine was transversely behind the seats in mid engine designmounted The  independent suspension came from the Triumph 2500 and the gearbox was a ZF 5-speed unit. By undoing 10 bolts, the entire rear end, suspension, gearbox and engine came away. Production versions of the car, had also had a turbocharged version of the Douvrin Euro V6 as used by Renault, Peugeot and others, together with a Renault 30 transaxle.

PERFORMANCE: 6 cylinder

• max engine rpm 6,500, 93.8
• max speed 140 mph, 225 km/h
• hp/l (69.1 kW/l)

A turbocharged V8 of 3.5 - 4.2 litres, together with the ZF transmission, was an option. Other cars used the Lancia Beta engine and transmission.

PERFORMANCE: 3,528 cc Rover, turbocharged

• max power (DIN): 250 hp (184 kW) at rpm
• max torque (DIN): 310 1b ft, 42.8 kg m (420 Nm)
• max engine rpm: 6,200
• 70.9 hp/l (52.2 kW/l)
• max speed: over 150 mph, 241 km/h
• power-weight ratio: 9.3 lb/hp (12.6 lb/kW), 4.2 kg/hp (5.7 kg/ kW)

Production capacity was stated to be twelve cars a year though Bob Henderson has never stated how many vehicles were actually built. With a expensive quoted price of £25-30,000 at launch, however, numbers were likely to be low. 

Around 1990, production ended.