This is how a man managed to build a supercar out of fighter jets

This man wanted to create an American supercar, so he made one out of fighter jets.

Back in the 1970s, Gerald Wiegert wanted to create the first bona fide American supercar, as an answer to European makes like the Ferrari.

Getting from the initial idea to the final product wouldn’t be smooth sailing.

But The Vector proved to be an ambitious project either way.

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The birth of an American supercar

Wiegert had an interest in automobiles from an early age.

His career in the industry began in 1970 when he began working as a design consultant at companies like Ford, Chrysler and General Motors.

But a year later, he went his own path and set up Vehicle Design Force.

He wanted to be the mind behind a supercar fit for the world’s superpower.

Wiegert admitted: “I always wanted to be a fighter pilot.

“But my eyesight was not naturally good enough, I wear contacts.

“So I translated my interest in aircraft into the idea [of] an aircraft for the street.

“An advanced tactical fighter for the street, for the guy that could afford it.”

There is something undeniably cool about the idea of blending a car and a fighter jet together.

And it’s not a passing phase either – Nissan were toying the idea as recently as 2023 with the Hyper Adventure.

The first concept car designed by Vechile Design Force was called The Vector.

After creating a foam model of the car, Wiegert met a man called Lee Brown, who owned a body shop in LA.

Brown saw the potential in the model and agreed to create the Vector GT, a prototype which would go on display at the 1972 Los Angeles Auto Expo.

The GT was built around a old Porsche chassis, and had no interior or engine.

But none of that mattered – this car was straight up science fiction and had no trouble standing out.

Wiegert stood beside his car and tried to sell his idea to anybody who walked by at the festival.

The GT would be powered by a 200HP rotary engine, and would only cost the customer $7,500.

That’s the equivalent of $40,000 in 2023.

Whilst a certain degree of buzz was generated, it ultimately didn’t materialize into an actual product.

Shortly after the Expo, Brown and Wiegert clashed and their partnership crumbled.

Since Brown had provided the Porsche that built the prototype, he was the one who got to take the GT home with him.

So it was back to square one for Wiegert – and he would work alone from here on out.

The Vector W8 – a fighter jet for the streets

Wiegert’s first operational prototype, the Vector W2, would be unveiled in 1978.

Nicknamed a ‘aeromobile’, the W2 would incorporate a huge glass cockpit window and a wide tapered rear end into the design.

Compared to the stockier cars of the era, the Vector was a streamlined blast from the future.

Even the display buttons inside the car were lifted from real planes.

In the car’s rear sat a Chevy V8 fitted with two turbos, capable of 600HP and 600 pounds of torque.

Combine that with low-weight materials, and you’ve got yourself a car that could crack highway speeds in four seconds.

This thing might as well have appeared in Top Gun – though it didn’t have the perk of sharing the aerospace team that made the jets in the 1986 movie, like this McLaren.

The W2 was a smash hit and found itself being featured in American magazine spreads, which lauded its innovative design.

It would evolve into the W8, which would enter production.

However, moving beyond the prototype would present more obstacles.

Production was hit hard by delays, mechanical issues and low output.

Only a few ended up being finished over the next few years.

Bad publicity followed after tennis player Andre Agassi got his hands on one.

Even though Wiegert asked him not to drive the pre-production model, Agassi did so anyway.

Smoke filled up the cabin and Agassi was left furious, demanding a full refund.

Sports stars and car misfortunes are nothing new and have happened since – just take a look at Marcus Rashford’s Rolls-Royce Mansory as proof of that.

On top of that, Vector wasn’t making enough money, even with an eye watering price tag of $500,000.

An Indonesian company Megatech would end up taking over Vector and ousting Wiegert.

Years of legal battles ensued and he eventually won back the assets, trademarks and copyrights to Vector Motors.

Wiegert would pass away on January 15, 2021 at the age of 76.