Hulme Supercars is named after Denny Hulme - New Zealand's only Formula One champion, having taken the title in 1967 - and this is the Hulme CanAm.

Denny won a couple of CanAm series championships in 1968 and 1970 too (before dying of a heart attack at 56 while driving a BMW at full pelt in Bathurst), so the CanAm is a car that takes inspiration from one of motorsport's lesser known greats.

Whatever the foundations, it's truly one of those 'racing car for the road' things that slightly bonkers relative unknowns tend to come up with every now and again. This one looks really promising though - and, more importantly, like it might actually happen.

Initially seen as a prototype at 2006's Goodwood Festival of Speed - before heading off to the Middle East and China for a bit of feedback from rich folk - the CanAm is now slated for a 2010 release. So the stats?

This prototype weighs in at 'less than 1,000kg' and is powered by a hand-built 7.0-litre Chevy V8 that develops 600bhp and 443lb.ft of torque, channelled to the tyres through a six-speed close ratio 'box. The bodywork is a carbon composite tub - and it looks, well, insane.

It's early days of course, and the maker is predictably waxing lyrical about its driving prowess, but signs are good for New Zealand's finest. It had better be pretty special too, as the asking price will be in excess of £230,000. There'll be a coupé as well as this open-top version, but that's too distant for Hulme to even speculate about at this stage.

Mark Nichol - 16 Jan 2009