Another Dare

Posted by John Mellberg September 17, 2021

Another Dare

The name Ginetta is a familiar one to many kitcar and motorsport enthusiasts, especially those partial to British marques. The company was founded in 1958, by the Walklett family, and quickly gained a reputation for building quality sports and racecars with excellent performance and handling. It was run by the family successfully until 1989, when they elected to sell the concern to a group of outside investors.

It was the beginning of a short-lived retirement from the car business. However, it was not to last and very soon Ivor Walklett was planning a new sportscar aimed at competition like the Lotus Elise. A weight of 750Kg was targeted and a retail price around £30,000. Walklett's new company, founded to produce this new offering, would be called "Dare" and his new product was named the "DZ".

The Dare TG Sport

The Dare DZ featured futuristic-looking GRP bodywork like nothing else on the market at the time. It made its debut at the 1998 Motor Show in Birmingham and at the Brooke Kensington dealership in London. At release, it sold for £35,000 which sat pretty well in the middle of its range of competitors. Despite its solid pedigree and distinctive styling, the DZ didn't find a market and only 10 examples were ultimately produced.

This certainly wasn't the end of Dare, though, and their next product was a more traditional, front-mid-engine, track and fair-weather toy in the vein of the Lotus 7. This new model was created by Trevor Walklett and his son Mark and was based on various mechanical elements of the classic Ginetta G4, repurposed for this new application. It made its debut in 2000 and was called the "TG Sport" and was considerably more marketable. Sadly, it would be Trevor's last work before succumbing to cancer.

The Dare TG Sport's Ford Zetec motor

The Dare TG Sport was powered by a 2.0-liter Ford Zetec inline-four paired with a five-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential. It also featured an integrated roll bar, double-wishbone suspension, a battery kill switch, leather seats with harnesses, a Mountney steering wheel, coil-overs, and 15″ wheels.

The body was finished in gel coat and featured a matching driver-side exhaust cover. As a concession to regulations, some examples had a third brake light affixed to the chrome roll bar. The TG Sport also sported cycle-style front fenders, and optional dual side mirrors. Braking is handled by discs at all four corners, and the double-wishbone suspension features Spax coil-overs. The seat buckets were trimmed in black leather and equipped with four-point harnesses.

The Dare TG Sport's cockpit

The TG would be produced from 2000-2006, but exact numbers are hard to find. At least a handful made it to the US, in left-hand drive no less!

However, Dare returned to its roots eventually, producing new versions of classic Ginetta cars like the G4 and G12. This would carry them well into the 2000's.

Sources:
Dare UK