Hofstetter Turbo

The Hofstetter Turbo is a Brazilian sports car created in the 1980s by Mario Richard Hofstetter. In 1980, Hofstetter started to draw a prototype of the car. The idea was to produce a domestically built sports car, since the Brazilian government had strict policies on importing foreign cars at the time. In 1982, he started to put the mid-engined car together with some other workers, and began the Hofstetter company in 1984. Hofstetter was only able to sell 18 cars between 1986–1991.

Performance

The Turbo featured a fiberglass body with gull-wing doors that were reportedly inspired by the Alfa Romeo Carabo concept car. The interior was upholstered in leather and featured an early digital dash. Early models of the Turbo were powered by a 1.8 L Inline-four engine from the Volkswagen Passat which was then equipped with a Garrett turbocharger and coupled to a 4-speed manual gearbox. These engines reportedly produced at 5,000 rpm, and would accelerate the car from in 9.3 seconds and reach a top speed of. Later models used a 2.0 L inline-four engine out of a Volkswagen Santana that was also turbocharged with a Garrett turbo. This engine reportedly produced and increased the top speed to.