The incredible one-of-two American supercar people have never heard of has been sitting since the ’90s

This American supercar has been around since the 1970s – but barely anyone’s heard of it before.

Casey Putsch, the founder of Genius Garage, was the man who rediscovered this remarkable vehicle.

He said that supporters of his company are very generous, not only with money, but with donating cars.

But when this car first came into his shop, he didn’t even know what it was – it was that rare.

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What was this mysterious American supercar?

At first glance, the car looks very cool.

With a grey exterior and rounded corners, it looks straight out of a 1970s cop movie.

So, what was this car called?

This is the Guanci SSJ.

Never heard of it? Join the queue, not many people have.

It’s always a nice treat to come across some makes that we’ve never heard of before – this dealership was filled with similar rare gems.

The Guanci SJJ is a mid-engine car from the late 70s that had been seldom seen since that period.

Putsch himself received the Guanci from the son of the car’s creator.

“I flat out didn’t know [about it]. I felt bad,” Putsch recalled in a video from VINwiki.

“I like to think of myself as knowing most cars, but every once in a while, there’s something rare.

“And this one had the coolest story.”

The backstory of the Guanci SJJ

The story begins back in 1977 when John Guanci decided that America needed to step up its game in the sports car department.

At the time, the third generation Chevrolet Corvette was eight years old and a mid-engined rotary engine powered Corvette had just been shelved.

The field was open, and Guanci wanted to participate.

Bringing Can-Am race car builder Bob McKee into the fold, Guanci set about making a car.

Practically every aspect of the car’s design was molded by a famous name within the automotive world.

The Guanci’s fiberglass body was designed by Chrysler designer, Mike Williams.

Dick Kleber, who would later work on the Vector supercar, was the brains behind the Guanci’s suspension and engineering.

The car would be powered by the Corvette’s 270HP L82 V8.

In a sweet touch, the SJJ in the car’s name came from Guanci’s own wife and son.

His wife was called Susan and his son was John Joseph – SJJ when put together.

A family touch to a car is always nice to see, just like this man whose family car had tons of sentimental value hidden in the glove compartment.

What was the fate of this car?

As reported by makesthatdidntmakeit, two Guancis made an appearance at the 1979 Chicago Auto Show, where they were a big hit.

However, the price of $54,000 was enough to make the most seasoned car buyer’s eyes water.

This also wasn’t a good time to be asking for such a high price.

In 1979, the US was hit with an oil embargo from Iran and gas prices wen through the roof.

With recession on the way, American consumers weren’t much in the mood for pricey new cars.

One of Guanci’s business partners died around this time and he struggled to get new investors on board.

As such, only the two cars shown in Chicago were made – one bought by a rich spectator, and the other kept within the Guanci family.

Fast forward to the present day, and the latter is now in Putsch’s care at Genius Garage.

Putsch said: “It won’t require silly amounts of work, it’ll mostly just be cleaning it up and making it look nice.

“It’ll be nice for the students to see something done back then that was cutting edge [in the 1970s] and still has relevancy today.”

To see the Guanci SJJ for yourself, check out the video over on VINwiki‘s YouTube channel.