Nearly 200 of these hand-made cars have found homes since the Esperante was launched in 2001. Ultimately however, it is destined to be a world car, and Panoz is currently working on European and Japanese homologation, while searching for potential dealers.

The Esperante prototype we drove in 2000 had the basic ingredients of a potentially good car. Since then intensive development, including hundreds of laps on the Road Atlanta racetrack with the help of Panoz Le Mans drivers David Brabham and Jan Magnussen, have honed the dynamics of the production Esperante to near perfection. A bonus for us was the fact that the Panoz family owns Road Atlanta, so we were also able to get in some track-time ourselves.

The Esperante is designed to be a practical everyday sports car with room, refinement, reliability and a boot that swallows two golf bags. At first glance it seems familiar, and company boss, Danny Panoz, acknowledges that the car is inspired by the classics. 'A Brit will see Aston Martin in this car, an Italian will see Ferrari, while a German will see bits of BMW or Mercedes.' Generic it may be, but the Esperante also has its own stance. It has a unique construction, too, using a combination of advanced but simple design and high-tech materials for strength, low weight and durability.

'"Simplicity is best", is our construction mantra,' Panoz explains. 'We extrude, cut and bolt sub-assemblies together in big chunks, taking inspiration from racecars, which have to be fixed quickly. Assembly and minor crash repairs are easy.'

The Esperante is about 80 per cent aluminium; the body is formed from aluminium sections while the chassis is built from extruded aluminium box sections. Carbonfibre is used strategically for further stiffening.

Suspension is by double wishbones in front, with racecar-style inclined springs and dampers at the rear; the big four-pot brakes are also derived from track experience. The 4.6-litre 320bhp/315lb ft V8 Ford engine and accompanying gearbox and rear axle are off-the-shelf parts shared with the Mustang and covered by a full maker's warranty.
The V8 starts up with a healthy woofle, and on the empty country roads around the factory, its beefy torque curve wafts the 1360kg Esperante along with little effort. Gun it hard from rest and the motor takes on a Bullitt-like growl, slingshotting you to 60mph in a claimed 5.1sec after one gearshift.

On Road Atlanta's fast sweepers and changing elevations the power steering has just the right amount of assistance to complement the crisp turn-in. The chassis is set up with a tad of stabilising understeer, easily neutralised with your right foot. A fraction more throttle creates an easily balanced four-wheel drift; the onset of power oversteer is clearly cabled through the seat of your pants.

That meaty torque curve means you can carry speed into a bend in a high gear, making for fast laps with little stress. As a driver's car the Esperante impresses with the well-judged balance of its controls and handling. The driving position is spot-on, with an inspirational view down the long bonnet with its curved front wings.

Panoz has just announced a coupe version derived from its GTS one-make racer and its in-house tuning division is evaluating a 500bhp supercharged motor; the company is nothing if not confident.