The Lotec C1000 is one of the most extreme road cars ever built, essentially a road-going interpretation of the Group C Sauber-Mercedes race cars. The project began in 1991 when Sheikh Ahmed bin Nasser Al Thani of the Dubai royal family commissioned a car that would be faster and more outrageous than anything else on the road. He turned to Kurt Lotterschmid, founder of Lotec, a German tuning and race engineering company known for supplying parts to Mercedes and Ferrari during the Group C era.
Working closely with Mercedes-Benz and Sauber, Lotec developed the C1000 over four years. The car was powered by a 5.6-liter Mercedes M117 V8 fitted with twin turbos, producing 1,000 horsepower—making it the first road car to reach that figure. Its chassis used a full carbon monocoque with carbon composite panels, borrowing directly from motorsport technology. The design reflected pure Group C influence, with an aggressive diffuser, wide stance, and massive rear wing that made it look more like a spaceship than a road car.
An owner’s manual accompanied the car—just eight pages long—with a warning that pushing the turbos to 1.2 bar would unleash 1,200 Nm of torque but void the warranty. Naturally, that’s how the car was driven. With a straight-cut five-speed transmission, it wasn’t designed for comfort but for raw speed, reportedly capable of 268 mph.
Check out the unique story of the Lotec C1000 in this video from Petrolicious as they explore the origins of this one-of-a-kind road car and learn more about its groundbreaking design and performance.
