The 1990s was a great decade for the proliferation of supercars. Suddenly, all sorts of manufacturers big and small decided to produce cars that were previously built by a small group of Italian companies. For every McLaren F1, there was at least two more that languished in obscurity
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1
Panoz Esperante GTR-1
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
The front-engine Panoz Esperante GTR-1 is one of the most unusual race cars of the 1990s. Panoz produced two road cars to homologate the GTR-1 for racing, though the company will apparently build you a new one for a little under $1 million.
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2
TVR Speed 12
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
How much is too much? The TVR Cerbera Speed 12 was deemed too fast to sell to the general public, so only one road going prototype was produced. Its V12 produced around 800 horsepower and EVO magazine called it "terrifying."
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3
Nissan Skyline GT-R NISMO 400R
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
You might not consider the NISMO 400R a supercar in the same way a Lamborghini Countach is considered a supercar, but it's serious performance merits inclusion on this list. Its 2.8-liter straight-six was massaged to produce 400 horsepower and featured aerodynamics like Nissan's Le Mans race cars.
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4
Aston Martin V8 Vantage Le Mans
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
For a brief period in the late-1990s, Aston Martin built the most powerful car in the world, the V8 Vantage Le Mans. The company added two superchargers to its familiar V8 to produce 600 horsepower, and added all sorts of racing inspired chassis upgrades. As powerful as it is bizarre.
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5
Jaguar XJR-15
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
Despite its flaws, the Jaguar XJ220 has become an icon, but it's not the only supercar Jaguar produced in the 1990s. The XJR-15 was based off the Le Mans-winning XJR-9 Group C race car and shared its 6.0-liter V12. Very much a race car for the street.
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6
Dauer 962 Le Mans
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
Everyone knows about the Le Mans-dominating Porsche 962, yet the road going version built by Dauer relishes in obscurity. That's odd, because this street car allowed Porsche to win Le Mans in 1993 with a Dauer 962, thanks to a loophole. Perhaps people associate that victory with the older 962.
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7
Mosler Consulier GTP/Intruder/Raptor
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
The Mosler Consulier GTP and its Intruder and Raptor variants are some of the strangest supercars ever built. Even though it looks like a cheap kit car, it has a carbon kevlar body and handles beautifully.
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8
Lister Storm
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
Another oddball from the GT era in sports car racing is the Lister Storm, which brought back the famous Lister name for a race car and a handful of matching street cars. Just four of these Jaguar V12-powered four-seaters were built.
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9
Vector M12
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
For the followup to its W8 Twin Turbo, Vector turned to Lamborghini for an engine and this is the result, the M12. If a Diablo is too common for you, and you really want your supercar with Miata turn signals, the Vector M12 is the way to go.
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10
Cizeta-Moroder V16T
Bear Grylls//Digital Spy
No, what you're looking at above isn't a badly modified Lamborghini Diablo. It's the Cizeta-Moroder V16T, a 16-cylinder Italian oddball. A bit of trivia, the T doesn't stand for Turbo, as many suspect, but it stands for Transverse, as that's how the engine was mounted behind the driver. The reason it looks like the Diablo is because it was designed by the same man, Marcello Gandini. And yes, it was partially funded by legendary producer Giorgio Moroder. It doesn't get more supercar than this.