Ginetta G50

Ginetta G50
Ginetta G50 in a GT4 series race at Spa Francorchamps
Overview
Manufacturer	Ginetta Cars
Production	2008-2014
Assembly	Leeds, West Yorkshire, England
Designer	Lawrence Tomlinson
Body and chassis
Class	Sports car
Body style	2-door coupé
Layout	Front-engine, RWD
Related	Ginetta G55
Powertrain
Engine	G50: Ford Duratec 3.5 litre V6, 300 hp (224 kW; 304 PS) or 340 hp (254 kW; 345 PS) (dependent on spec) G50 GT4: Ford Duratec 3.7 litre V6, 355 hp (265 kW; 360 PS) G50Z: Zytek ZG348 3.4 litre V8, 490 hp (365 kW; 497 PS)
Transmission	Quaife six-speed sequential
Dimensions
Kerb weight	945 kg (2,083 lb)
Chronology
Predecessor	Ginetta G20 (Race and Road versions
Successor	Ginetta G55 (Race version) Ginetta G60 (Road Version)

The Ginetta G50 is a specialist GT4 class-developed racing car, designed by Ginetta Cars. A road version of the car was planned, but did not enter wide-scale production; instead, the smaller Ginetta G40 was launched.

In late 2007, in what he later described as his Victor Kiam moment,Leeds-based businessman Lawrence Tomlinson bought Ginetta Cars 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.

Launched in 2008, the G50 was awarded Autosport National Car of the Year in its first year. With its own Ginetta GT Supercup one-make series, the G50 has also been undefeated GT4 class championship winner in every season of British GT Championship, and won the GT4 European Cup in 2009, beating Aston Martin, BMW and Porsche.

As a result, Ginetta Cars won "Small Business of the Year" from the Motorsport Industry Association in 2008, and in 2009 Tomlinson was nominated by the MIA for the "Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport" award.

The first Ginetta G50 road-registered car was shown in April 2008, and then took part in the Silverstone Supercar Tour. It features the same base set-up as the race car, with a proposed development of a V8 model with 520 brake horsepower (390 kW). 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.