A host of patent images of Dallara’s upcoming sports car have been published by the European Union Intellectual Property Office and they’re very promising.

First published by Auto Guide, the images confirm that the car will be dubbed the Stradale and that it’ll look significantly different than recently-spied prototypes.

Looking at the Stradale’s front-end, the similarities to the British-born Elemental RP1 are striking. The headlights are almost identical in shape, there’s very similar small windscreens and two prominent buttresses behind the seats. Elsewhere, the Dallara’s decklid and engine cover bear an obvious resemblance to the Porsche 918 Spyder with similar exhaust outlets and humps.

Based on the patents, it seems as though the Stradale will be offered as a speedster with no windscreen, a roofless sports car with a windscreen, as a hardtop and as a T-top.

No one knows for sure what will power the Dallara but it could make use of a 2.3-liter Ford EcoBoost with 400 hp. Whatever the case may be, it has the potential to be a class-leader, particularly considering the firm’s motorsport expertise which includes building the chassis’ used in IndyCar.

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