The Ginetta G50 is a specialist
GT4 class-developed
racing car
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...
, designed by
Ginetta Cars
Ginetta Cars Limited is a British specialist builder of racing and sports cars based in Garforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire.
History 20th century
Ginetta was founded in 1958 by four Walklett brothers (Bob, Ivor, Trevers and Douglas) in Woodbridge, ...
. A road version of the car was planned, but did not enter wide-scale production; instead, the smaller
Ginetta G40
The Ginetta G40 is a sports car which has been built by Ginetta Cars since 2010. It is available in two versions; a road-going version, named the G40R, and the race version, the G40, which is available in two specifications; one of which is the G ...
was launched.
Development
![Ginetta G50 GT4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Ginetta_G50_GT4.jpg)
In late 2007, in what he later described as his
''Victor Kiam moment'',
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
-based businessman
Lawrence Tomlinson
Dr Lawrence Neil Tomlinson is one of the UK's most successful entrepreneurs and innovative engineers. He is the founder and owner of the LNT Group and also the owner and chairman of Ginetta, an english motorsports manufacturer and race series ...
bought
Ginetta Cars
Ginetta Cars Limited is a British specialist builder of racing and sports cars based in Garforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire.
History 20th century
Ginetta was founded in 1958 by four Walklett brothers (Bob, Ivor, Trevers and Douglas) in Woodbridge, ...
from the group of enthusiasts, who themselves had bought it out of administration.
The G50 was developed to celebrate 50 year of production of Ginetta Cars. With base specifications penned by trained engineer Tomlinson, the car was developed in under six months.
Racing
Launched in 2008, the G50 was awarded
Autosport
''Autosport'' is a global motorsport publishing brand headquartered based in Richmond, London. It was established in 1950 at the same time as the origins of the Formula One World Championship.
Autosport began life as a weekly magazine in 1950 ...
National Car of the Year in its first year.
[ With its own ]Ginetta GT Supercup
The Ginetta GT4 Supercup is a one-make racing, Sports car racing series based in the United Kingdom, using identical Ginetta G50 and G55 sports cars. The championship currently supports the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC).
The cham ...
one-make series, the G50 has also been undefeated GT4 class championship winner record holder in the British GT Championship
The British GT Championship is a sports car racing series based predominantly in the United Kingdom. The series was originally created by the British Racing Drivers' Club in 1993 and, for its first two seasons, was known as the National Sports GT ...
(5), and won the GT4 European Cup
The GT4 European Series is a sports car championship created and organised by SRO Motorsports Group. It is a pro/am championship which followed a formula similar to the FIA GT3 European Championship, which was itself derived from the FIA GT Champ ...
in 2009, beating Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated with ...
, BMW and Porsche
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see #Pronunciation, below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany ...
.
As a result, Ginetta Cars won "Small Business of the Year" from the Motorsport Industry Association
The Motorsport Industry Association is the global trade association for the motorsport industry and is based in the United Kingdom. Most top-level motorsport constructors are based in the UK. Around 75% of motorsport research and development ta ...
in 2008, and in 2009 Tomlinson was nominated by the MIA for the "Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport" award.[
]
Road car
The first Ginetta G50 road-registered car was shown in April 2008, and then took part in the Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Towcester on the former A43 main road, from the M1 motorway junction 15A and about from the M40 motorway junction 10, Northampton, Milton Keynes and B ...
Supercar Tour. It features the same base set-up as the race car, with a proposed development of a V8 model with . Retail prices were estimated at starting from £45,000 ($72,549) for the V6, and £100,000 ($161,220) for the V8. However, due to the economic recession, Ginetta indefinitely shelved plans for general production of the G50, instead opting to produce the smaller, cheaper Ginetta G40
The Ginetta G40 is a sports car which has been built by Ginetta Cars since 2010. It is available in two versions; a road-going version, named the G40R, and the race version, the G40, which is available in two specifications; one of which is the G ...
.
G50 EV Prototype
In 2009, Ginetta, in conjunction with Zytek
Gibson Technology is an automotive and motorsport company based at Repton, Derbyshire, England. It was founded by Bill Gibson as "Zytek Engineering" in 1981.
In 1981 Gibson founded the "Zytech Group" with two main divisions: Zytek Automotive, ...
, built an electric
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...
version of the G50 named the Ginetta G50 EV Prototype. The car was fitted with a rear-mounted electric motor
An electric motor is an Electric machine, electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a Electromagneti ...
, with the regular petrol engine being removed. Ginetta gave an estimated range of between 150 and 250 miles. In November, former Formula 1
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
World Champion John Surtees
John Surtees, (11 February 1934 – 10 March 2017) was a British Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and Formula One driver. On his way to become a seven-time Grand Prix motorcycle World Champion, he won his first title in 1956, and followed with ...
drove the prototype through the Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel (french: Tunnel sous la Manche), also known as the Chunnel, is a railway tunnel that connects Folkestone (Kent, England, UK) with Coquelles ( Hauts-de-France, France) beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. ...
, with the car becoming the first production-specification car to be driven through the tunnel. However, production was cancelled following the company's failure to secure a government grant for the project.
G50Z
In 2008, the Ginetta G50Z was announced. Intended for GT3 class racing, the car featured a 4.0-litre Zytek
Gibson Technology is an automotive and motorsport company based at Repton, Derbyshire, England. It was founded by Bill Gibson as "Zytek Engineering" in 1981.
In 1981 Gibson founded the "Zytech Group" with two main divisions: Zytek Automotive, ...
V8 engine which was then down graded to 3.8-litres before the car was sold to privateer teams due to the mechanical problems. The engine produced in the highest trim. The car focused on improved handling and stability, a front splitter and a large rear diffuser aided in that purpose along with a large rear wing. The engine was coupled to a 6-speed Hewland
Hewland is a British engineering company, founded in 1957 by Mike Hewland, which specialises in racing-car gearboxes. Hewland currently employ 130 people at their Maidenhead facility and have diversified into a variety of markets being particul ...
sequential manual gearbox operated by paddles on the steering column which resulted in faster gear changes than the GT4.
References
External links
G50
at Ginetta Cars
Ginetta Cars Limited is a British specialist builder of racing and sports cars based in Garforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire.
History 20th century
Ginetta was founded in 1958 by four Walklett brothers (Bob, Ivor, Trevers and Douglas) in Woodbridge, ...
{{Ginetta Cars , state=collapsed
G50
Rear-wheel-drive vehicles
Sports cars
Cars introduced in 2008
2010s cars