AscariEcosse

01

Origins

Dutch businessman Klaas Zwart bought the rights to honour Alberto Ascari's memory, and the Ecosse of the mid-1990s launched his English marque: a mid-engined coupé developed from Lee Noble's original design work, carrying BMW V8 power in a composite body over a spaceframe, built in tiny numbers at Blandford Forum. It was fast, obscure and sincere — reviewed respectfully, bought rarely — and it established the pattern of a company that existed primarily to go racing and to supply its founder's considerable personal speed. The Ecosse's real function proved preparatory: the lessons and licences led to the KZ1 and the marque's GT racing programmes, while Zwart built the Ascari Race Resort in Spain as the brand's true monument — a private circuit outliving the cars.