Steve Cropley of Autocar reports Melling Sports Cars has unveiled its new £45,000 Wildcat V8 two-seater. The company aims to deliver the first Wildcat production cars to the UK buyers from its factory in Rochdale, Lancashire, by the end of the year.

The Wildcat, which is described by creator Al Melling as “the car the TVR Griffith should have been” will also be made in a new factory in Las Vegas.Transatlantic deliveries should begin next spring. When both plants are working, volume is planned at 15 to 20 cars a month.

The Wildcat, sister car to the Hellcat prototype Melling has already shown, is slightly longer and about four inches wider than a TVR Griffith.Its traditional design has been kept delibrately simple and robust to give owners opportunities to modify it to their own specification.

Melling intends to offer chassis and power upgrades. As standard the Wildcat gets a tuned, 460bhp GM ‘small block’ V8, driving through a six-speed manual gearbox. The chassis is an all-new, box-section steel structure, with built-in roll hoops and side-intrusion protection.  

Suspension is by double unequal length wishbones in front and there is a coil-sprung live rear axle, with four locating links. Dampers both ends are adjustable, and the brakes, front and rear, are large ventilated discs with four-pot calipers.