The Melling Wildcat is a V8 powered

sports car A sports car is a type of automobile that is designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as Automobile handling, handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving, and Auto racing, racing capability. Sports cars originated in ...

produced by Al Melling Sports Cars in

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

History

The Wildcat was conceived to fill the gap left by defunct British marques such as

TVR TVR Electric Vehicles Limited is a British manufacturer of sports cars. The company manufactures lightweight sports cars with powerful engines and was, at one time, the third-largest specialised sports car manufacturer in the world, offering ...

Marcos Marcos may refer to: People with the given name ''Marcos'' *Marcos (given name) * Marcos family Sports ;Surnamed * Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century) * Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer * Né ...

and others. Designed to strike a balance between high performance, low cost, and adaptability for possible future legislative changes, the first running prototype car was made in only nine months and appeared in Autocar in August 2008. Initially a proposed 150 units was supposed to be completed per year, with production starting in 2009; this did not happen. The Wildcat has been noted as sharing a resemblance to the

TVR Griffith The TVR Griffith, later models being referred to as the Griffith 500, is a sports car designed and built by TVR, starting production in 1990, and ending production in 2002. As part of a 2017 attempt at reviving the TVR brand, a new generation Gr ...

.{{cite web, url=https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/melling-wildcat-revealed, title= Melling wild at, a car the Griffith should've been, author= Steve Cropley, date= 7 August 2008, publisher=Auto Car, accessdate= 5 February 2018

Construction

The Wildcat has a variety of engine choices, but the standard fit is a 4.5 litre Melling V8; a modern, redeveloped version of the

AJP8 The AJP V8 is a naturally-aspirated V8 car engine designed by Alwyn Melling of the design consultancy MCD, and manufactured for road legal cars production (TVR introduced the Cerbera at the 1993 London Motor Show), from 1996 to 2003. The engine ...

used in the

TVR Cerbera The TVR Cerbera is a car manufactured by the British company TVR (car), TVR between 1996 and 2006. Its name is derived from Cerberus, the three-headed beast of Greek legend that guarded the entrance of Hades. It is a coupé with a hardtop roof ...

. Other engines can be specified including the GM LS-series,

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

V8s and the Dodge Viper V10. The Wildcat is available with a five or six speed

Tremec TREMEC (Transmisiones y Equipos Mecánicos SA de CV, formerly Transmission Technology Corporation, TTC) is a manufacturer of automobile transmission (mechanics), transmissions and drivetrain components based in Querétaro, Mexico. Company Torque ...

manual gearbox mated to a live rear axle with a rear limited slip differential; independent rear suspension may be specified when ordering. A 2.8:1 axle ratio is fitted as standard, but other ratios are possible. The driveline claimed to accept up to 1000 bhp. The chassis is a box section steel structure with built-in roll and side impact protection. The fully adjustable suspension includes front double unequal length wishbones, and a rear live axle with four locating links. Brakes are front and rear ventilated discs with four pot calipers. It has rack and pinion steering with 2.9 turns from lock to lock, and may be powered or unpowered.

Technical specifications

Top speed: 180 mph (2.65:1 final drive ratio) or 150 mph (3:1 final drive ratio)
0-62 mph: 3.2 seconds (3:1 final drive ratio), or 3.5 (2.65:1 final drive ratio)
Kerb weight: 998 kg
Engine: 4500cc V8
Installation: Front, longitudinally mounted, rear wheel drive
Power: 448 bhp at 7200 rpm
Torque: 407 lb ft at 5200 rpm
Gearbox: 6 speed manual
Wheels: 17in/18in alloy (front/rear)
Tyres: 245/25x17 (front), 255x490x18 (rear)
Price: £50,000 (base)

References

Cars of England