Apparently, there is no shortage of upstarts who want to manufacture a supercar with looks that hark back to a more classic era of car design but based on modern underpinnings.
Napoli, Italy-based Puritalia Automobili goes by the motto “If you can dream it, we can build it”. Puritalia’s models are handmade in Italy under a customer-centric approach in which the client is “actively involved in the specification and building process of the car”.
On Tuesday, December 16 it launched its 427 roadster in Milan. The Puritalia 427 is, according to the company, inspired by iconic roadsters of the ‘60s, such as the Shelby Cobra, enhanced by an Italian touch – an “American muscles meets Italian design” concept.
It’s a light (2,535 lbs) two-seater that features an aluminum chassis with a carbon fiber body and a 50/50 front/rear weight distribution. Power comes from a front-mounted 5.0-liter Ford V8 with four valves per cylinder and variable valve timing that powers the rear wheels via a 6-speed manual gearbox and a limited-slip differential.
The 427 engine comes in two versions: a normally aspirated, with an output of 445hp and 530Nm of torque, and a supercharged that’s good for 605hp and 640Nm. The suspension features double wishbones all around, while the brakes are 380 mm and 345 mm Brembo discs at the front and rear respectively, with 6- and 4-piston calipers.
You can scroll down for the full specifications, photo gallery and videos of the Puritalia 427 launch.
DIMENSIONS L.171.259 in – W.76.850 in – H.49.409 in
Front Track 62.598 in – Rear Track 62.992 in
Wheelbase: 102.401 in
Weight: ~ 2535 Lbs (50/50)
CHASSIS TIG welded aluminium extrusions and panels
BODY Roadster 2 seats – composite and carbon fiber body panels
ENGINE Front mounted Ford V8 5.0L 32V DOHC Ti-VCT
HORSEPOWER Aspirated: 445Hp @ 6500rpm – 530Nm @ 4250rpm
Supercharged: 605Hp @ 7000rpm – 640Nm @ 4500rpm
TRANSMISSION 6 speed manual transmission
Twin disc hydraulic clutch
Limited Slip Differential
Aluminum driveshaft
Rear wheel drive
SUSPENSION Four-wheel Independent
Unequal length double wishbones – anti-dive and anti-squat geometry
Bilstein two-way adjustable mono-tube shock absorbers
Eibach springs
Tubular stabilizer bars – 32mm front – 29mm adjustable rear
BRAKES Hydraulically powered brake booster
Front: Brembo 380mm/32 6 pistons
Rear: Brembo 345mm/28 4 pistons
TIRES Pirelli Pzero
