1959 Ascort TSV 1300
Continental Coachwork of Sydney received 57 pre-orders when the prototype appeared at the 1959 Melbourne Motor Show, but only 13 complete cars were delivered (19 bodies produced in total) before the company folded in 1961.
Czechoslovakian-born designer Mirek Craney envisioned an Australian alternative to European sports cars like the Porsche 356 and Volkswagen Karmann Ghia, combining elements from both into a distinctly styled four-seat coupe.
Built on a modified Volkswagen chassis, the fiberglass body featured a prestressed double-shell construction with bonded steel tubular reinforcement. The 1.3-liter Volkswagen flat-four received Okrasa performance components, boosting output from 36 to 54 horsepower at 4,300 rpm.
This modification helped the lightweight coupe (1,467 pounds (665 kg), roughly 200 pounds less than a Beetle) achieve a top speed of about 96 mph and 0-50 mph acceleration in approximately 12 seconds.
Priced at 2,250 Australian pounds, the Ascort positioned itself between more affordable British sports cars and premium German models in the Australian market, where the Karmann Ghia was not officially offered at the time.
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