BAC Mono manufacturer launches in US

Britain’s BAC, maker of the street-legal, single-seat Mono track car, now has an official presence in the United States.The Mono has been on sale in the U.S. since its 2011 launch, though until now the cars were sold through Sector 111 and other importers.Sector 111 is also the importer of one of the Mono’s main rivals, the Ariel Atom.

A new BAC USA division has been established in Sonoma, California and headed up by Mark Rayner. BAC USA will handle partial assembly of the cars as well as sales and maintenance services for customers in the U.S. No pricing details have been announced but Sector 111 was offering the cars from about $170,000.

BAC USA is also in the process of signing up dealers. It plans to add between eight and ten dedicated dealers across in the U.S. over the next 12 months. These will be located in or close to major cities, the company states.

“[The U.S.] is the biggest and most informed supercar territory in the world, which is why it’s at the very top of our global sales strategy,” BAC co-founder Neill Briggs said in a statement. “BAC USA is another string to BAC’s bow and we’re looking forward to sharing the Mono dream across the Atlantic even more.”

The latest version of the Mono is powered by a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-4 tuned to deliver 305 horsepower. The engine is mounted behind the cockpit and drives the rear wheels via a 6-speed sequential transmission.

Weighing just 1,278 pounds, it’s no wonder the Mono can dish out 0-60 mph times of under 3.0 seconds. It’s also proven substantially faster than the top supercars and even the McLaren P1 hypercar.