Leonberg, Germany - Gemballa, the German tuning company that South African criminals almost sank by murdering its founder Uwe Gemballa back in 2010, is planning to create its own supercar.
This comes as the company searches for new investors for the first time since it was taken over by Steffen Korbach after the founder’s murder nine years ago.
“We’re planning a thoroughbred super sports car with a unique, aggressive design and engine power considerably over 800 bhp (597kW),” Korbach enthused.
“As part of this, we’d like to reference the existing Gemballa legends, and implement a range of innoRadovan Krejcirvative concepts. You can expect an uncompromising vehicle, radical, pure and luxurious,” he added.
The company is planning to present the first designs to clients shortly, while the first prototypes are expected to be revealed in 2020, ahead of production starting in 2022.
Gemballa is most renowned for its range of modified Porsches, such as the Avalanche, Mirage, Tornado and Mistrale, and the firm plans to continue producing “extreme” Porsche conversions, alongside small production runs of its own cars.
The company has risen from the brink, following the murder of founder Uwe Gemballa in February 2010, which led to German authorities seizing the factory. Then CEO Andreas Schwarz and current boss Korbach bought the rights to the company later that year.
Suspicion was rife that Gemballa had fallen foul of crime kingpin Radovan Krejcir. In 2016, two men, Thabo Mohapi and Garland Holworthy, were handed lengthy sentences for Gemballa’s kidnapping and murder.