Iconic Auto Sports SP40 Turns a 1930s Ford Speedster Into a V8 Restomod

Restomods usually look to the muscle-car years, the air-cooled era or the boxy performance icons of the 1980s.

The Iconic Auto Sports SP40 goes much further back, drawing its character from one of the most elegant American speedsters of the pre-war period.

It isn’t an old car with a few sympathetic upgrades, either. This is a newly built machine with vintage proportions, modern materials and a Ford V8 sitting under that impossibly long bonnet.

At a glance

A rare Edsel Ford idea brought into the present

The SP40’s reference point is the 1934 Edsel Ford Model 40 Special Speedster, a one-off personal car created for Henry Ford’s only son.

Edsel Ford had a very different instinct from his father’s engineering-first approach, and he helped push Ford design beyond the purely functional shape of the Model T.

The original speedster was designed by E.T. “Bob” Gregorie, Ford’s first designer, with a low windscreen, roofless aluminium bodywork and Ford’s then-new Flathead V8.

Its story took several turns after Edsel Ford’s death in 1943, including repainting, mechanical changes and later rediscovery by Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance founder Will Warner.

After restoration, it returned to its original gunmetal finish and Flathead V8 configuration before selling at RM Auctions in 2010 for USD 1.76 million.

Today, the car is part of the collection at The Ford House in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan, the former home of Edsel Ford.

Iconic Auto Sports and the art of the recreation

Iconic Auto Sports is based in San Isidro, Argentina, near Buenos Aires, and was founded by Arturo Arrebillaga and Francisco Orden.

The company has built its name through hand-crafted recreations of important classics, including the Mercedes-Benz SSK “Count Trossi” and Alfa Romeo 8C-inspired projects.

Its workmanship has earned attention at Autoclásica, where it received awards in successive years with a Mercedes-Benz SSK recreation, an Alfa Romeo Disco Volante Fianchi Stretti and a one-to-one recreation of the Edsel Ford Model 40 Special Speedster.

The SP40 takes that experience and moves it into a more contemporary space.

Rather than attempting to duplicate a museum piece, it keeps the visual drama of the 1930s speedster and gives it the mechanical attitude of a modern performance car.

Carbon bodywork with a Ford Coyote V8

The SP40 is built around a tubular steel space frame chassis and wears carbon fibre bodywork shaped around the original speedster’s defining gestures.

The long bonnet, louvred engine cover, separate cycle fenders, narrow speedster windscreen and tapered boattail rear are all present.

The proportions are recognisably pre-war, but the execution is sharper and more technical, with larger wheels and LED lighting making it clear this isn’t a restoration.

Under the bonnet sits a 5.0-litre Ford Coyote V8 producing about 480 horsepower.

Power goes to the rear wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox and a limited-slip differential, which gives the SP40 the sort of mechanical simplicity that suits its appearance.

With a dry weight of just under 1,200 kilograms, the car should feel seriously lively without needing exotic complexity.

Brembo brakes are fitted all round, while exposed side pipes add the kind of theatre that feels entirely appropriate for a low, open speedster with modern V8 power.

A minimalist cabin with modern usability

The interior keeps the visual language simple rather than trying to imitate a 1930s cockpit outright.

There’s a three-spoke steering wheel, a wooden dashboard and a restrained set of gauges, giving the cabin a clear and unfussy character.

The leather-trimmed seats appear more supportive than anything the original car could have offered, and they fold forward to open access to the luggage area in the boattail rear section.

A four-point racing harness brings the cabin firmly into modern performance territory.

That mix is really the point of the SP40. It’s not trying to be a delicate period replica for gentle lawn appearances, but it also doesn’t discard the elegance that made the Edsel Ford speedster so memorable.

Details & Specifications

The appeal of the SP40 is less about nostalgia than it is about a rarely explored design era getting the restomod treatment.

For collectors drawn to pre-war shapes but unwilling to live with pre-war limitations, Iconic Auto Sports has built something with a very specific charm.