Small British sports car brands use parts from other manufacturers, that has been the case for decades. The Jaguar XJ220 has the rear lights of a Rover 200, the TVR Griffith the mirrors of the Citroën CX and the Morgan Aero 8 the headlights of the new Mini. So it’s no surprise that this Noble M500 has also taken a beating in the parts warehouse. Do you recognize the taillights?
Does Noble still exist? Yes, apparently yes. The Noble M600 has been on the market for twelve years, but it is not known whether copies will be delivered. The model – which broke down at the hands of Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond – will be joined this year by the Noble M500. In the back of the freshly designed sports car is the 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 of the Ford GT. Because the ranking between the Ford and Noble should be clear, the block does not deliver 670 hp, but slightly less than 550 hp. And those taillights … they come from the Citroën C4 Picasso / Spacetourer.
Noble M500 debuted already in 2018 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed
It has been four years since Noble unveiled the M500 as a study model at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The car has now reached the stage in development that the first tests on public roads have started. Noble hopes to be able to build fifty M500s a year in the future. The model is built around a tubular chassis, surrounded by a body made of glass-reinforced composite material. The prototype of the M500 weighs almost 1,400 kilograms. According to Noble, it should be possible to shave off another 150 kilos.
Noble M12 GTO had a Ford Mondeo V6 under the hood
Noble was founded in 1999 by Englishman Lee Noble. The Noble M12 GTO – with a twin-turbo Ford Mondeo-V6 – was a modest success. Several variants were produced on the basis of the lightweight sports car, such as the M400 aimed at track use. In 2004 Noble shows a prototype of the M14, which two years later develops into the M15 production car. Since 2010, the M15 has been known as the M600, with the 4.4-liter Yamaha V8 from the Volvo S80 and XC90 in the back. The engine produces almost 660 horsepower in the Noble. Lee Noble has not been involved with the company he founded since 2006.