The Homologation Special Fever Dream Tuthill GT One Is The Best New Car At Monterey Car Week

By now, it’s no secret that Monterey Car Week is the biggest auto show in North America, at least as far as prestige goes. While supercar makers were once content to trot out their new machinery in Detroit and Los Angeles, they’ve increasingly taken to Car Week to give the public what they want. This year, all the major supercar brands must bring their A-game, because a small British outfit may have just outdone them all. This is the astonishing Tuthill GT One and I just can’t stop staring at it.

If you built some of the most insane Porsches on the face of the planet, including an 11,000-rpm monster known as the 911K, and you were deep into rallying, wouldn’t you also wish to bring the golden era of GT1 back? I certainly would, although to be fair, not everyone’s familiar with some of the wildest cars ever to see Le Mans.

Back in the ’90s, the GT1 class consisted of wild small-batch low-downforce homologated borderline prototypes designed to be some of the fastest closed-wheel cars the world has ever seen. Cars like the McLaren F1 GTR, Porsche 911 GT1, and Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR. Capturing that spirit is exactly what Tuthill is doing with a modern scratch-built reinterpretation of the 1997 Porsche 911 GT1, and my word, is it ever spectacular.

Let’s start with the coachwork. Only two round-headlight 911 GT1 street cars were ever made, so Tuthill built upon that look by taking inspiration and then making everything sharper. The shoulders, the lighting, the quarter panel vents, the ducktail, everything’s just been punched up by about 20 percent, and it’s fabulous. Oh, and yes, this is the mystery car spotted at LAX a few days ago. The wait’s been worth it, don’t you think?

Underneath the rear clamshell, you’ll find a four-liter flat-six engine in either naturally aspirated or forced induction spec. The former ought to rev to the moon and produce more than 500 horsepower. The latter, more than 600 horsepower. Likewise, customers have a choice when it comes to the gearbox of either a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transaxle or a proper manual, so a lucky few can pick and choose whether they want ultimate performance, ultimate engagement, or something in-between.

Regardless of which powertrain configuration is chosen, all Tuthill GT One examples get double-wishbone suspension at all four corners, carbon ceramic brakes, an FIA-derived rollover protection system, and bodywork made almost entirely of carbon fiber. As a result, Tuthill is touting a curb weight of just 2,645 pounds. That’s 190 pounds less than a Subaru BRZ, but with the power of a brand new Porsche 911 GT3. That ought to go like shit off a shovel, yeah?

On the inside, the Tuthill GT One is nothing short of gorgeous. We’re talking about supple-looking hides, seats that seem like a cross between Eames and Recaro, a steering wheel that ascends to pure jewelry, and an instrument cluster binnacle reminiscent of old Porsche 911s, but with a modern digital screen in the middle. You could easily spend days lost in all the detail in here, such is the level of visual craftsmanship.

However, more captivating than the powertrain or the curb weight or the promises of the suspension setup is the fact that unlike actual GT1 cars, many of which were barely streetable, barely disguised race cars, the Tuthill GT One is designed to be pleasurable on the road above everything else. A high-downforce package for track work “may be developed” but that’s not the point of this car. The Tuthill GT One exists to make the dreams of 22 people come to life on the public highways. From where I’m standing, I have a strong feeling Tuthill will sell every last one of them.

(Photo credits: Tuthill Porsche)

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