Aussie Zonda-beater gains momentum

Having suffered from lack of funding since its world premier at the Melbourne motor show a couple of years ago, Australia’s first ever mid-engined supercar, by Joss Developments, is back on track. The company is finalising business agreements that will allow it to develop a pair of production prototypes.

Meanwhile, major changes have been wrought on the original ‘test mule’. Previously the Joss ran with an over-engineered steel frame chassis, but this is now replaced with a modular carbonfibre tub; the body panels are also carbon, produced by composite specialist Gurit. It’s claimed that the body/chassis package weighs just 130kg, while the total kerb weight should be as low as 900kg. With a 6.8-litre V8 producing 600 ‘emissions compliant’ bhp, predicted performance is a sub-3.0sec 0-60mph with a top speed of 200mph-plus. More details at www.joss.com.au