Puritalia 427 Roadster Prototype Has Arrived

by Jay Traugott / Comments

Think of it as a Mazda MX-5 on steroids.

The last bit of news we heard about the custom-built and handmade Puritalia 427 roadster was well over a year ago. At that time, the company founder Paolo Parante stated that "We decided to design and engineer the 427 simply because a similar car doesn't exist. It is unique in design, in style, and most importantly in the way we build it." Just a few Photoshop images of the car were released then, but we very much liked what we saw.

Puritalia

It's pretty much a modern day Shelby Cobra powered by a mid-mounted 5.0-liter V8 rated at 493 horsepower and 391 lb-ft of torque. A supercharged version with 605 hp is also planned. The car's curb weight is a scant 2,400 lbs. Fortunately, the company has provided a brief update on the car's progress with the release of these prototype images. So at least we know the 427 is on the way, but Puritalia has yet to reveal any details regarding the status of its testing and eventual on sale date. Also no word yet on pricing, but something like this will no doubt be out of the price range for most Mazda MX-5 buyers.