Dulmen, Germany - Boutique sports-car maker Wiesmann plans to unveil a muscular new sports car for 2016, only three months after being bought up by a British investment group.
“Deliveries are being pencilled in for 2017,” said company spokesman Andre Schmidt.
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The new vehicle is set to bear a strong resemblance to previous models from the brand, which stood for hand-made sports cars with retro styling and powerful engines previously supplied by BMW.
At the time of its closure three years ago Wiesmann was working on a new model - reportedly a less expensive roadster derived from the love-it-or-hate-it Spyder concept fiorst shown at the 2011 Geneva motor show. It seems likely that the new owners will start by putting a version of this car in to production, simply because it’s what they’ve got.
Whether it will still have straight-six BMW mechanicals, as did the first-generation Wiesmann cars, is a matter of conjecture.
RE-START
Wiesmann produced more than 1600 sports cars at its Dulmen plant near Muenster in northern Germany from 1988 until closure three years ago. The factory is being prepared for the restart and staff are being recruited, said Schmidt.
The company, founded by the Wiesmann brothers, engineer Martin and businessman Friedhelm in 1988, once employed about 100 staff making drophead and coupe models which retailed for more than €100 000 (R1.75 million) apiece.
The gecko bonnet emblem used by the firm emphasizes the roadholding prowess of Wiesmann cars, which are said to stick to the road like the reptile to a wall.
DPA