Zenos Cars

Last updated

Zenos Cars
Private limited company
IndustryAutomotive
Founded22 May 2012;8 years ago (2012-05-22)
Founders
  • Ansar Ali
  • Mark Edwards
Headquarters
Wymondham
,
United Kingdom
Key people
Mark Edwards (Managing Director) [1]
Products Sports cars
BrandsZenos
Website zenoscars.com

Zenos Cars is a British automotive company that produces high-performance, light-weight sports cars. Based in Wymondham, Norfolk, UK, the company designs, manufactures and sells three variants of the Zenos E10 car. In January 2017 Zenos went into administration [2] with staff made redundant but the assets were purchased by a consortium in March 2017. [3]

Contents

Background

The company was founded in Norfolk in 2012. [4] [5] The founders, Ansar Ali and Mark Edwards, had worked together before at Lotus Cars and later at Caterham Cars. [6]

Edwards and Ali believed there was a gap in the market for lightweight, contemporary high-performance sports cars that were affordable to purchase and to run. [7] Before the company’s first product line, the E10 series, was designed, the founders agreed on a price point that would be attractive to potential customers, and determined if a clean-sheet design could be produced and sold at such a level. [8]

The development phase of Zenos’s first series of models included driving days with deposit-holders and potential customers, with the aim of ensuring that drivers and passengers would be both comfortably accommodated and fully engaged. [8]

Matt Windle, Operations Director, joined the company in October 2015, bringing production expertise gained during a seven-year spell as Principal Engineer at Tesla, [9] as well as through his role as Chief Engineer, Body at Caterham Technology and Innovation (CTI), and positions at Lotus Cars, Nissan, Volvo and Daewoo. [10] Chris Weston, Head of Development, played a key role in engineering the car and readying it for production. [11] [12]

On 16 January 2017, following a string of cancelled export orders, Zenos was placed into administration. Begbies Traynor (London) LLP, the administrators, stated they are open to speaking with parties interested in securing the future of the company, [13] and in March 2017 a consortium led by Alan Lubinsky's AC Cars acquired the company and assets. [14]

Name

The name Zenos is said to be a combination of ‘zen’, representing purity, and ‘os’, which is loosely Latin for 'vertebra' or spine – reflecting one of the key architectural elements of the company’s products. [15]

Partners

Zenos Cars has used a number of partners in the design and development of its products. They include: Drive – exterior and interior design; [16] [17] Multimatic Technical Centre Europe (MTCE) – chassis design; [17] Ford and Hendy Power – powertrain package supply; [18] Specialist Control Systems – ECU development; [19] Avon Tyres; [20] Alcon Components – brakes and clutches; [21] OZ Racing – wheels; [21] Titan Motorsport – design and production of key components; [22] Bilstein – shock absorbers; [17] and Tillett Racing Seats. [23] Zenos Cars has also received support from the Niche Vehicle Network, [24] and from the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership through the Growing Business Fund. [25]

Factory and production

Zenos Cars are hand-produced in the company’s factory in Wymondham, Norfolk, UK. [10] Production of the Zenos E10 and E10 S began in January 2015. [26] The Zenos E10 R was announced in November 2015, with production starting in January 2016. [27] In September 2016, the company announced that it had built its 100th vehicle, which was an E10 R finished in custom Soul Red colour. [28]

Following the reorganisation of the company in 2017, production ceased in the UK and is planned to move to South Africa [29] and the engineering centre remaining in Norfolk.

Sales and network

Zenos sports cars are currently sold in the UK, USA, France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Switzerland and Italy. [30] Non-UK markets account for 50% of Zenos production. [31]

Models

Zenos produced the E10 between 2015 and 2016.

See also

Related Research Articles

Lotus Seven

The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight two-seater open-top sports car produced by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars between 1957 and 1972.

Wymondham Human settlement in England

Wymondham is a market town and civil parish in the South Norfolk district of Norfolk, England, 9.5 miles (15.3 km) south-west of Norwich off the A11 road to London. The River Tiffey runs through. The parish, one of the largest in Norfolk, includes rural areas to the north and south of the town, including the hamlets of Suton, Silfield, Spooner Row and Wattlefield. It had a population of 14,405 in 2011, of which 13,587 lived in the town.

Sports car Performance-oriented car class, generally small or light-weight with good handling

A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, or thrill of driving. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by many manufacturers around the world.

Automobiles Alpine Racing car manufacturer

The Société des Automobiles Alpine SAS, commonly known as Alpine, is a French manufacturer of racing and sports cars established in 1955. The Alpine car marque was created in 1954. Jean Rédélé, the founder of Alpine, was originally a Dieppe garage proprietor who began to achieve success in motorsport with one of the few French cars that were produced just after the Second World War, the Renault 4CV. The company has been closely related to Renault through its history, and was bought by it in 1973. The Alpine competition department merged into Renault Sport in 1976 and the production of Alpine models ceased in 1995.

Lotus Cars

Lotus Cars Limited is a British automotive company headquartered in Norfolk, England. It manufactures sports cars and racing cars noted for their light weight and fine handling characteristics.

Caterham Cars is a British manufacturer of specialist lightweight sports cars established in Caterham, Surrey, with their headquarters in Crawley, Sussex. Their current model, the Caterham 7, originally launched in 1973, is a direct evolution of the Series 3 Lotus Seven designed by Colin Chapman. In the 1990s the company made the Caterham 21, a two-seater soft top alternative to the MGF and Lotus Elise,. A track-only car, the SP/300.R, a joint project with Lola was released for customer testing in 2010 and was scheduled for release in 2013. On 27 April 2011, Team Lotus owner Tony Fernandes announced that he had purchased Caterham.

Caterham 7

The Caterham 7 is a super-lightweight sports car produced by Caterham Cars in the United Kingdom. It is based on the Lotus Seven, a lightweight sports car sold in kit and factory-built form by Lotus Cars, from 1957 to 1972.

Mike Gascoyne

Michael Gascoyne is a British Formula One designer and engineer.

Sports sedan

A sports sedan — also known as "sports saloon" — is a subjective term for a sedan/saloon car which is designed to have sporting performance or handling characteristics.

Ariel Atom sports car

The Ariel Atom is a road legal high performance sports car made by the Ariel Motor Company based in Crewkerne, Somerset, England, and under license in North America by TMI Autotech, Inc. at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia.

Ariel Motor Company

Ariel Motor Company Ltd is a low-volume performance motor vehicle manufacturing company in Crewkerne, in Somerset, England.

Lotus Evora Sports car by British car firm Lotus

The Lotus Evora is a sports car produced by British car manufacturer Lotus. The car, which was developed under the project name Project Eagle, was launched as the Evora on 22 July 2008 at the British International Motor Show. The Evora S was launched in 2010 with a supercharged 3.5-litre V6. A facelifted and more powerful Evora 400 model was unveiled at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show, followed by a more powerful variant, the Evora GT430 which was unveiled in 2017.

Caterham Racing is the practice of racing Caterham Seven-type sportscars.

Team Lotus (2010–11) Former Anglo-Malaysian Formula One constructor

Team Lotus, originally Lotus Racing, was a Malaysian licensed Formula One racing team and constructor, based in Hingham, Norfolk, UK, which competed during the 2010 and 2011 Formula One seasons. The team scored no championship points in the two years it competed.

Caterham Group

The Caterham Group was formally announced on 27 November 2011 at the Brazilian F1 Grand Prix. Caterham Group, formerly known as Team Lotus Enterprise (TLE) is the holding company incorporated in the UK and owned by Tony Fernandes, Kamarudin Meranun and SM Nasarudin that provides the platform for the future expansion of the Caterham brand across a variety of industries. Caterham Group is the parent company name for the range of automotive, motor racing, technology and innovation companies that sit within a single group business under the stewardship of Group CEO Riad Asmat. Graham Mcdonald is new Group CEO taking over Riad Asmat position.

John Iley is a motor racing aerodynamicist, who was formerly the technical director for the Caterham F1 team.

David Brown Automotive is a British manufacturer of limited edition automobiles in Silverstone, England, belonging to British businessman David Brown. The company began in Coventry in 2013 and moved to a new 18,000 sq ft dedicated build facility and headquarters at Silverstone Park in April 2017.

Zenos E10

The Zenos E10 is a mid-engined sports car designed and produced by the British manufacturer Zenos Cars. First announced to the press in September 2013, pre-production car was made available to the press in October 2014.

Abbey Panels

Abbey Panels Ltd., originally The Abbey Panel & Sheet Metal Co. Ltd., was a Warwickshire-based coachbuilding company founded on Abbey Road, Nuneaton in 1941, initially assembling Supermarine Spitfires for the ongoing war effort. The original partners were Edward Loades, Les Bean, Bill Woodhall and Ernie Wilkinson. As the business grew they expanded to Old Church Road, Coventry before having their main manufacturing plant on the well known Bayton Road Industrial Estate in Exhall. In 1967, Ted Loades listed the business on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and it became known as Loades PLC, with Abbey Panels its main brand, alongside Albany Zinc (castings), Loades Dynamics (machining) and Loades Design . The company specialised in producing handmade prototype car bodies and did so for many notable car companies including: Bristol Cars, Lea Francis, Jaguar Cars, Rover, MG, Healey, Rolls Royce, Buick, Lincoln, Volvo and BMW amongst others. They fashioned the bodywork of cars such as the Le Mans winning Ford GT40, numerous Jaguars, the original Mark I Land Rover Station Wagon, Jim Clark's Lotus 38 and Stirling Moss's 1957 Pescara Grand Prix winning Vanwall. They also produced many specialist parts for the aerospace industry, particularly for Rolls-Royce plc, such as the Rolls-Royce Pegasus engine duct of the Harrier Jump Jet.

BMW X2 (F39)

The F39 BMW X2 is a subcompact luxury crossover SUV produced by BMW. It was first released as the BMW Concept X2 at the 2016 Paris Motor Show, with a production version unveiled in October 2017. Sales commenced in March 2018.

References

  1. ↑ "The Team". Zenos Cars. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  2. ↑ Vijayenthiran, Viknesh. "Zenos sports car startup goes bust". Motor Authority. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  3. ↑ Shields, Mark (24 March 2017), "Deal unveiled to save Norfolk's Zenos Cars - but 25 jobs are lost", EDP24, retrieved 28 March 2017
  4. ↑ "New Zenos E10 sports car to create jobs in Norfolk". BBC News. BBC. 30 July 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  5. ↑ "Zenos Cars launches £750,000 funding round with Seedrs". Business Matters. Capital Business Media. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  6. ↑ Sutcliffe, Steve (7 October 2014). "Zenos E10 driven - is this a Lotus beater?". Autocar. Haymarket Media Group. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  7. ↑ "Zenos E10 news, price and specs" . Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  8. 1 2 "Zenos E10 driven - is this a Lotus beater? | Autocar". www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  9. ↑ "Matt Windle | LinkedIn". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  10. 1 2 "Zenos Cars gearing up on road to success" . Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  11. ↑ "Zenos E10 S review: 2015 first drive | Motoring Research". 17 March 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  12. ↑ "British-built Zenos E10 to take on Ariel and Caterham" . Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  13. ↑ Wiseman, Ed (19 January 2017). "Norfolk sports car manufacturer Zenos goes into administration". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  14. ↑ "Zenos saved from administration by AC Cars-led consortium". Autocar. 24 March 2017. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
  15. ↑ "Zenos E10 driven - is this a Lotus beater? | Autocar". www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  16. ↑ "Drive Design and Zenos Cars ‹ Drive Automotive Design". www.drivedesign.co.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  17. 1 2 3 "Zenos E10 sells out in first year as company plans follow-up models | Autocar". www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  18. ↑ "Zenos Cars - Hendy Power". www.hendypower.co.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  19. ↑ "Specialist Control Systems LTD". www.scs-delta.co.uk/. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  20. ↑ "The Zenos E10S : Decibellisimo!" . Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  21. 1 2 "Meet the Zenos E10". 3 October 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  22. ↑ "Zenos E10". www.titan.uk.net. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  23. ↑ "Tillett Racing Seats - Quality Comes 1st". www.tillett.co.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  24. ↑ "Energy Efficiency - innovateuk". connect.innovateuk.org. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  25. ↑ "Zenos Cars | New Anglia LEP for Norfolk and Suffolk". www.newanglia.co.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  26. ↑ "Vroom Vroom: British Designer & Manufacturer Zenos Cars Seeks £750,000 Through Seedrs For New Vehicles". Crowdfund Insider. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  27. ↑ "Zenos E10 R Production and Sales Update - Just British". 10 February 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  28. ↑ "Zenos sells 100th car | PistonHeads". www.pistonheads.com. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
  29. ↑ "Autocar". 20 September 2017. pp. 54–57.
  30. ↑ "Zenos Cars dealers, Uk and international" . Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  31. ↑ "Car Obsession". Car Obsession. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.