Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Retro-Cool V8 Powered SP40 Restomod
Recreating Edsel Ford's unique 1934 Model 40 Special Speedster, with a modern twist.
Looks can be deceiving, and this rather cool-looking SP40 Restomod might seem like a proverbial blast from the past, but in reality it’s a completely newly built car. It’s the latest discovery, for us at least, in what is an ever-growing line of restomods, where a company takes a classic car icon and turns it into a modernised version with beefed-up performance and comfort. This Iconic Auto Sports SP40 offers more of the same, yet taps into a whole different era for inspiration. And if you know your cars, you might even know what specific car the SP40 references…
Any idea? No? I can’t really blame you, as neither did I when I first learned of the project. Although it taps into many things as mentioned, the direct lineage is the 1934 Edsel Special Speedster, built by Edsel Ford, Henry Ford’s only child. Working closely with his father, Edsel Ford is actually responsible for bringing forward the design for Ford vehicles after the Model T that revolutionised the industry in 1908. Consider Henry Ford the engineer, focused on practicality and functionality, while Edsel Ford brought in the eye of a designer. One of his first efforts was to move the Ford Motor Company from the Model T to the more stylish Model A, introduced in 1927.
By the early 1930s, Edsel Ford’s affinity with sports cars and racing peaked with the creation of a unique personal car, the Model 40 Special Speedster. Designed by E.T. “Bob” Gregorie, Ford’s first designer, it had an aluminium “speedster” body (low windshield, no roof) design and Ford’s new Flathead V8 for power. After Edsel Ford’s passing in 1943, the Model 40 Special Speedster passed through several hands, was painted red, given a new engine at one point, and eventually rediscovered by Will Warner, the founder of the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. The car was fully restored, returned to the original gunmetal paint job and Flathead V8 engine, and auctioned off in 2010 by RM Auctions with a hammer price of USD 1,76 million. Today, it resides in The Ford House’s collection in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan, which happens to be Edsel Ford’s old house.
Iconic Auto Sports
If you’re also not familiar with the name of Iconic Auto Sports, you’d be forgiven once more. Iconic Auto Sports is a small-scale restoration specialist and manufacturer of hand-crafted recreation cars founded by Arturo Arrebillaga and Francisco Orden. Based in San Isidro, Argentina, near Buenos Aires, the company is known for top-of-the-line recreations of several iconic classic cars. Their work includes a remake of the famous Mercedes-Benz SSK “Count Trossi” as well as the legendary Alfa Romeo 8C. The work by IAS is considered of such high quality that the cars are eligible for classic events and concours, albeit with the mention that they are recreations, of course.
At the prestigious Autoclásica event in 2016, IAS won an award with their very first car, the Mercedes-Benz SSK “Count Trossi”. A year later, returning with the Alfa Romeo Disco Volante Fianchi Stretti, they won again. Then, in 2018, they brought something really special, a one-to-one recreation of the original 1934 Edsel Ford Model 40 Special Speedster, taking home the trophy yet again. This sparked the idea of taking the company and their work to the next level, using the Model 40 Special Speedster as a stepping stone, yet reimagining it in a slightly more modern style. The result of all that is what you see here: the SP40 Restomod.
The SP40 project
From the get-go, the SP40 radiates a completely different vibe from most other restomod projects. Where the majority take us back to the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, Iconic Auto Sports has gone back much further in time, to the age of pre-war European sports cars, American hotrods and early muscle cars. And actually, it dates back to a very specific one-off car, the 1934 Edsel Ford Model 40 Special Speedster. The result is quite unique, it must be said. It looks pure, analogue and a lot of fun to push on some winding B-roads in the countryside.
The SP40 is built upon a tubular steel space frame chassis with a carbon fibre body. It replicates the lines of the Model 40 Special Speedster, almost down to the letter, I might say, but takes a few creative and sometimes essential liberties here and there. The wheels are bigger, it has LED headlights (obviously), and the interior is vastly more modern than the original could ever have been. It still packs Ford-power, which I will get to in a bit, so the purists and fans of the original can have peace of mind (god forbid Iconic Auto Sports would have opted for an LS V8….)
Talking about its looks, the lineage is very obvious. The stretched-out profile, the vertical and horizontal front grille, the cycle fenders over the wheels, the louvres in the engine cover, the speedster windshield, the boattail rear section- it’s all there. Yet at the same time, it feels much more modern, sort of like a weird glitch in the loop of time. All the lines and elements are a little more enhanced, but very respectful to the original. It sort of reminds me of the cars Morgan makes, pairing old looks with new tech to create something modern yet vintage.
Underneath that very long, straight hood is a 5.0-litre Ford Coyote V8, producing about 480 horsepower. Paired with a dry weight of just under 1,200 kilos and the fact that it sends all the power to the rear wheels through a 5-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential, the SP40 is quite a potent machine! There’s no word of top speed or zero-to-100kph times, but my guess would be that it will be well over 200kph and around 5 seconds to hit a hundred on the speedo. Stopping, quite essential in a performance car, is done thanks to Brembo brakes all around. To add to the dramatic look of the car, the V8 engine breathes through exposed side pipes, which will always get Petrolheads’ hearts racing.
The minimalistic interior is decidedly “new school” when compared to the 1934 original, with a three-spoke steering wheel, a wooden dash and just a handful of gauges. The leather-clad seats look quite comfortable, and can fold forward to allow access to the luggage compartment in the boattail rear section of the car. The cabin is also where you will see the biggest leap in design and amenities compared to the original. You get a four-point racing harness, for instance, which is comforting given the potency of the car. It also comes with a modern handbrake, Bluetooth connectivity, a proper soundsystem, a wireless phone charger and so on.
Iconic Auto Sports states only 40 will be built, at a starting price of USD 500,000 (here we go again!). And as always, that’s without even adding a few bespoke options, which will only drive up the price tag even more. However, you do get something hugely original in return, built to the highest standards and with the finest materials. So it’s up to you really, what you want to turn up in for your next Cars ‘n Coffee. A showroom exotic, or something truly special like this SP40? Budget constraints aside, I know what I would do…
For more information, please visit SP40Restomod.com or IconicAutoSports.com.
