There are many ways to have fun on the road, and seldom has that been more true than now. The latest example of that comes from Wisconsin, in the form of the 7Fifteen Motorworks Troy Indy Special.
The result of John Kendall and his father’s hard work, the car is an attempt to recreate a classic hot rod known as the 1959 Troy Roadster. Lovingly reimagined for modern drivers, the Troy Indy Special can be purchased as a turnkey car.
Kendall says he and his father thought the Troy Roadster would be an easy one to recreate (which they now admit was hubris), so they bought the car and 3D scanned it in order to allow them to create a faithful, but modernized homage. The result is a surprisingly advanced little car that looks a bit like if Carroll Shelby had put his spin on the Lotus Super 7.
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Indeed, it’s powered by an American V8, which in this case is a GM LS3, and buyers are offered two power options, with the base engine making 495 hp (369 kW/502 PS). If that’s not quite enough oomph for you, the company will turn up the wick so that it produces 525 hp (391 kW/532 PS), but either way the engine is naturally aspirated.
Thanks to its aluminum bodywork and its minuscule proportions, the Indy Special tips the scales at just 2,200 lbs (998 kg) with a tank full of gas and all the fluids in it. That makes it a speedy little devil, indeed. Helping to slow it down are Wilwood brakes, and to keep everything under control through the corners, 7Fifteen Motorworks, has installed independent inboard pushrod coilover suspension at all four corners.
That makes the car quite the performer, while the exquisite workmanship means that the car can be sold ready to drive. Unfortunately, elevated workmanship, low weight, and high performance aren’t a cheap combination, and the Troy Indy Special starts at $195,000.
According to Jay Leno, though, who featured the car recently on his YouTube channel, it’s well worth the money. Not only does he think you’d struggle to make the car yourself for less, the result of 7Fifteen Motorworks’ efforts is a good car.
“You got plenty of torque no matter what gear you’re in,” says Leno. “When you’re going 40, you feel like you’re going 80.”