America’s lost supercar was decades ahead of its era but it bit off more than it could chew

A long-forgotten American supercar developed during the late 1980s was light-years ahead of its time, but sadly, it didn’t stick around.

During the 1980s, American carmaker Vector Aeromotive Corporation began developing a supercar. 

The car was made using advanced materials and had a powerful 6.0 liter V8 engine. 

However, despite the car’s impressive specifications, it never made it into mass production and today is largely forgotten – here’s where it all went wrong for the Vector W8.

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The American supercar was made using carbon fiber and Kevlar

The Vector W8 is thought by many to be America’s very first supercar. 

Designed by  Vector Aeromotive Corporation chief Gerald Wiegert, the W8 had a futuristic-looking wedge-shaped design complemented by scissor doors.

Although it was built back in the 1980s, the W8 was made using the same sort of materials you find on modern supercars, with carbon fiber and Kevlar body panels over an aluminum honeycomb monocoque. 

Inside, the car was given a luxe interior with leather and suede upholstery, and wool carpets and mats. 

The Recaro leather seats were electrically adjustable, and the car was given an air conditioning unit, while the dashboard display was similar to the sort you’d see on a fighter jet. 

And the American supercar didn’t just look good, it was also an absolute beast.

It was powered by a 6.0-liter twin V8 engine paired with a three-speed automatic transmission. 

The V8 engine was advertised as producing 625 horsepower, but during testing, this got closer to 700 hp and 649 lb-ft of torque – an impressive amount of power for its time. 

All that power translated to speed, and the Vector W8 had an advertised top speed of 242mph, although the maximum speed recorded was 218mph, and it could do 0-60mph in just 3.8 seconds. 

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Where did it all go wrong for the Vector W8?

Now, we know what you’re thinking, ‘If this American supercar was so good, how come I’ve never heard of it?’ 

And the answer to that doesn’t lie with the car, but with its creator. 

Vector Aeromotive Corporation was ambitious when it launched the W8 – a bit too ambitious. 

The W8 was a big ask for a small company, and it proved to be too big for Vector. 

During its short but sweet production run, Vector Aeromotive Corporation is thought to have created just 22 W8 models, including 17 that were delivered to customers and some pre-production cars. 

Unfortunately, in 1993, the company went into receivership, and America’s first supercar was dead in the water.

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