Italy is home to some of the world’s greatest supercar brands — Ferrari, Lamborghini, Pagani, and Maserati. However, for every mainstream icon from Maranello or Sant’Agata, there’s another machine quietly built in a tiny workshop, a forgotten prototype that stole the spotlight for one weekend, or a limited-run boutique supercar engineered by names only hardcore enthusiasts recognize.
They’re the spiritual successors to coachbuilt specials of the 1960s, but with modern technology. Some are one-offs built for billionaires, others were concept cars that should’ve made production, and there are even full-blown hypercars with outrageous performance… and somehow they stayed under the radar.
If you’ve never heard of these Italian exotics, you’re about to dive into the world of the rarest, weirdest, and most criminally overlooked Italian performance machines of the last decade. Here are some rare Italian sports cars you’ve (probably) never heard of, but absolutely should know.
2015 Maserati Mostro by Zagato
The Mostro is the result of Zagato celebrating Maserati’s racing history by resurrecting the spirit of the legendary 1957 450S. Only five were built, each with an all-carbon body draped over a rigid carbon monocoque derived from the Gillet Vertigo, bonded to a tubular steel rear subframe. Power comes from a Maserati-sourced 4.2-liter V8 pushing around 420–450 horsepower, sent to the rear wheels via a proper 6-speed manual or sequential race gearbox.
Double wishbones with pushrod-actuated coilovers give it true GT3-level handling, and the cabin is basically a minimalist race interior trimmed with just enough Italian leather to remind you it’s still coachbuilt art. The Mostro is wild, old-school, and raw, just how a modern interpretation of a 1950s racing monster should be.
2020 Ares Design Panther ProgettoUno
As its name suggests, the Panther is Ares Design’s carbon-fiber tribute to the iconic De Tomaso Pantera. It’s built on a Lamborghini Huracán platform but rebodied so aggressively you’d never guess its origins. Under the rear deck sits Lambo’s 5.2-liter V10, tuned to 650+ horsepower, paired with a dual-clutch gearbox and all the electronic wizardry you’d expect to find in a modern supercar.
Ares ditched almost everything but the chassis. The car now features hand-laid carbon panels, new suspension geometry, retro-style interior details, and quad-round taillights that scream old-school Pantera.
2014 Puritalia 427 Roadster
Imagine a modern Shelby Cobra, built with Italian craftsmanship and high-end engineering, and you have the Puritalia 427. This is a carbon-bodied, front-engine roadster based on an aluminum chassis, powered by a 427 cubic-inch (7.0-liter) Ford V8 making up to 445 horsepower in naturally aspirated form.
Later versions brought a supercharger, pushing power north of 600 hp, all moving barely 2,600 lbs. The 427 uses independent suspension all around, massive Brembo brakes, and completely bespoke bodywork with perfect old-school proportions. It’s one of the most beautiful modern interpretations of the Cobra formula, but built in Naples instead of Los Angeles.
2014 Maserati Alfieri (Concept)
It’s been more than a decade since Maserati first teased the Alfieri, and it’s still one of their best modern designs that never made it into production. Unlike their more conservative GT cars, the Alfieri concept was a compact 2+2 sports coupe built on a shortened GranTurismo MC Stradale chassis, with a high-revving V8 and a 50/50 weight balance. Named after one of the five Maserati Brothers, and built to celebrate the brand’s 100 year anniversary, we’d expect nothing less.
The sleek body featured deep character lines, floating fenders, and an aggressive rear stance, hinting at a Porsche 911 competitor Italy never got. Underneath, the concept used Maserati’s naturally aspirated 4.7-liter V8 with 460 horsepower, paired with transaxle architecture for ideal weight distribution. It’s still one of the greatest “what could’ve been” Italian sports cars.
2018 Ferrari SP38 Deborah
Ferrari’s Special Projects division builds one-off supercars for ultra-wealthy clients, and the SP38 Deborah is one of the wildest modern examples. Based on the 488 GTB, it uses the same 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 with 661 horsepower, but wrapped in entirely bespoke bodywork inspired by the F40 and 308 GTB.
The nose is lower and more aggressive, the rear features horizontal slats instead of a glass engine cover, and the whole car looks more like a prototype GT racer than a road car. The SP38 is a reminder that when Ferrari is allowed to go nuts stylistically, they still deliver some of the most stunning designs in the world… even if only one person gets to own it.
2018 Alfa Romeo Mole Costruzione Artigianale 001
This coachbuilt one-off was based on the Alfa Romeo 4C but redesigned so extensively that it barely resembles the donor car. Mole Automotive reshaped the entire body using carbon fiber, with a new grille design, muscular arches, sculpted lighting, and a widebody stance that transforms the 4C into a boutique Italian supercar.
The lightweight 4C chassis remains, along with the turbocharged 1.75-liter four-cylinder making around 240 hp, but the suspension was re-tuned and the interior completely reworked with handcrafted materials. Think of it as the ultimate form of the 4C, something that Alfa should’ve built.
2018 Italdesign Zerouno Duerta Roadster
The Zerouno Duerta is Italdesign’s open-top hypercar, a carbon-bodied missile powered by Lamborghini’s 602-hp 5.2-liter V10. Only five Duerta roadsters were built, each with fully exposed carbon bodywork, extensive aero channels, forged carbon elements, and a chassis setup tuned by engineers who also had access to Audi and Lamborghini’s development teams.
Expect 0–62 mph in 3.2 seconds and a top speed above 200 mph, but the real magic is the craftsmanship with hand-finished interior pieces, aerospace-style switchgear, and styling that looks like equal parts Lambo, Gundam, and Le Mans prototype.
2016 Alfa Romeo Disco Volante Spyder by Touring Superleggera
Of all the cars on this list, this one is probably the most famous. Touring Superleggera’s Disco Volante Spyder is a coachbuilt carbon-bodied masterpiece based on the Alfa 8C Competizione. Underneath sits the 8C’s glorious 4.7-liter Ferrari-derived V8 with 450 hp, paired with a transaxle gearbox and a tuned suspension that’s softer and more GT-focused than the donor car.
The body takes inspiration from the 1952 Disco Volante with its fluid curves, elongated fenders, and a split nose, but with modern aerodynamics and structural reinforcement. Only seven examples were made, each requiring more than 4,000 hours of hand craftsmanship. This is one of the most beautiful Italian roadsters of the 21st century.
2017 Mazzanti Evantra Millecavalli
Mazzanti’s Evantra Millecavalli is Italy’s answer to the Hennessey Venom and Koenigsegg Agera. This is a brutal hypercar with a twin-turbocharged 7.2-liter V8 producing 1,000 horsepower (hence the name). Only 25 units were planned.
The chassis is a mix of high-strength steel and chrome-moly with a full carbon-fiber body. With a 0–62 mph sprint in 2.7 seconds and a top speed over 250 mph, performance figures are absurd. Massive Brembo carbon-ceramics handle stopping duty, while the interior blends supercar minimalism with hand-stitched Italian leather. Rare, dangerous, and deeply exotic.
2014 ATS GT
ATS (Automobili Turismo e Sport) was founded by former Ferrari engineers in the ’60s, and the modern revival brought us one of the best-kept secrets of the Italian supercar world in the form of the ATS GT. Built on a McLaren 12C chassis, it uses the same twin-turbo V8 tuned to 650–700 horsepower, depending on spec.
Every body panel is unique to ATS, reshaping the McLaren skeleton into a sleek, flowing Italian GT. ATS redesigned the cabin with analog-inspired dials, exposed metalwork, tailored carbon pieces, and a driver-focused layout you don’t get in modern McLarens. Only 12 cars were slated for production.
2017 FV Frangivento Asfane DieciDieci
The Asfane DieciDieci is one of the strangest and most futuristic Italian cars of the last decade. It uses a hybrid powertrain combining a Lamborghini-sourced twin-turbocharged V10 and dual electric motors for a total of roughly 1,000 horsepower.
The wedge-like body features complex aerodynamic surfaces, open wheels, aggressive fins, and a cabin that looks straight out of Cyberpunk 2077. Despite its outrageous styling, the Asfane DieciDieci is a functioning prototype with handcrafted components and aerospace-inspired construction. It’s weird, wild, and undeniably Italian.
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