Proteus Sports & Racing Cars

Copycats (1982–1987) ; Proteus Reproductions (1987–1991) ; Proteus Cars (1991–1999) ; Enduro Cars (2005–2006) ; Proteus Cars (2006–2008) ; Proteus Sports & Racing Cars Limited (2008–2019)
legal form	Limited
founding	1982
resolution	October 2019
Seat	Bolton , UK
management	Tony god
Branch	Automobile manufacturer
Website	www.proteuscars.co.uk

Proteus Sports & Racing Cars Limited , previously Copycats , Proteus Reproductions , Proteus Cars , Classic ERA and Enduro Cars , was a British manufacturer of automobiles .

Company history

Jim Marland founded Copycats in Bolton in 1982 . He started producing automobiles and kits . The brand name was initially Copycats . 1987 changed due to a change of name in Proteus Reproductions the brand name in Proteus . From 1991 the company was called Proteus Cars . From 1999 the independent company Classic ERA produced the vehicles. The next owner was Enduro Cars in 2005 , renamed Proteus Cars in 2006 and closed in 2008. From 2008 the company name was Proteus Sports & Racing Cars . This company was dissolved in 2019.

A total of over 260 copies were made.

vehicles

Below is an overview of the models, periods, approximate production figures, manufacturers and brief descriptions.

model	Period	number of pieces	Manufacturer	Brief description
Proteus 300 SLR	1993-2019	7th	1993-1999 Proteus Cars 1999-2005 Classic ERA 2005-2006 Enduro Cars 2006-2008 Proteus Cars 2010–2019 Proteus Sports & Racing Cars	Replica of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR racing car , no longer as a kit since 2010 .
Copycats C-Type Proteus C-Type	1982-2019	220	1982-1987 Copycats 1987-1991 Proteus Reproductions 1991-1999 Proteus Cars 1999-2005 Classic ERA 2005-2006 Enduro Cars 2006-2007 Proteus Cars 2008–2019 Proteus Sports & Racing Cars	Replica of the Jaguar C-Type . Initially based on the Jaguar Mark 2 with an aluminum body . From 1987 a wider version with a body made of fiberglass was available based on the Jaguar XJ 6 . For several years now, the vehicle has been offered in the wider version with an aluminum body. The six-cylinder engine with 3800 cm³ displacement and manifold injection comes from Jaguar Cars . In 2011 the new price for a complete vehicle was from £ 87,000 , while kits were no longer available.
Copycats D-Type Proteus D-Type	1982-2007	40	1982-1987 Copycats 1987-1991 Proteus Reproductions 1991-1999 Proteus Cars 1999-2005 Classic ERA 2005-2006 Enduro Cars 2006-2007 Proteus Cars	Replica of the Jaguar D-Type . Initially, the model was only available as a complete vehicle with an aluminum body. Between 1991 and 1999 it was also available as a kit with a fiberglass body.
Proteus Norseman Van	1992-1994	3	Classic Commercials	Classic Commercials was part of the company that made a 1930s-style van based on the Leyland Sherpa van .
Proteus P 90	1992-1999	2	Proteus Cars	Replica of the Jaguar XJ 13 . A semi- monocoque with a spaceframe structure formed the basis. The open body consisted of either fiberglass or aluminum. The twelve-cylinder engine came from the Jaguar XJ 12 .

One source states that replicas of the Jaguar XK-SS were also on offer from 1987 onwards .

literature

Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter Proteus.
George Nicholas Georgano (Ed.): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile . Volume 1: A-F . Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , pp. 333 (English).
Steve Hole: AZ of Kit Cars. The definitive encyclopaedia of the UK's kit-car industry since 1949 . Haynes Publishing, Sparkford 2012, ISBN 978-1-84425-677-8 , pp. 61 and 200 (English).

Web links

Commons : Proteus Sports & Racing Cars - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

The manufacturer's website (English)
Allcarindex zu Copycats (English)

Individual evidence

^ Companieshouse.gov.uk . Retrieved May 16, 2020.
↑ Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter Proteus.
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f George Nicholas Georgano (Ed.): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile . Volume 1: A-F . Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , pp. 333 (English).
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Steve Hole: AZ of Kit Cars. The definitive encyclopaedia of the UK's kit-car industry since 1949 . Haynes Publishing, Sparkford 2012, ISBN 978-1-84425-677-8 , pp. 61 and 200 (English).

[1] Companieshouse.gov.uk . Retrieved May 16, 2020.

[Die_Internationale_Automobil-Enzyklopädie-2] Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter Proteus.

[Beaulieu-3] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f George Nicholas Georgano (Ed.): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile . Volume 1: A-F . Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , pp. 333 (English).

[Kit_Cars-4] Steve Hole: AZ of Kit Cars. The definitive encyclopaedia of the UK's kit-car industry since 1949 . Haynes Publishing, Sparkford 2012, ISBN 978-1-84425-677-8 , pp. 61 and 200 (English).