Arash — Arash Farboud's Small British Supercar Company
Arash Motor Company is a very small British sports-car maker based in Newmarket, Suffolk, and named after its founder, Arash Farboud. It started in 1999 as Farboud, whose GTS design later passed to Farbio and then to Ginetta. The company took the name Arash in 2006 and has since shown a series of mid-engined cars: the AF10 of 2009, the AF8 and a 2016 hybrid AF10 with a claimed 1,550 kW (2,080 hp). With a handful of staff and only a few cars a year, it is one of the smallest car companies in Britain.
Key takeaways
- Arash Farboud began the Farboud GT in 1999; Farboud Limited was incorporated on 27 November 2000 and renamed Arash Motor Company in 2006.
- The Farboud GTS of 2004 was licensed to a new company, became the Farbio GTS and, after Ginetta bought it in 2010, the Ginetta F400 and G60.
- The hybrid AF10 shown in Geneva in 2016 combines a 6.2-litre supercharged V8 and four electric motors for a claimed 1,550 kW and 2,280 Nm.
- Companies House lists it as a micro entity; it employs fewer than ten people.
Arash at a glance
| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1999 (first car); company incorporated in November 2000 |
| Renamed | Arash Motor Company Limited, 2006 |
| Founder | Arash Farboud |
| Headquarters | Farboud Innovation Park, Newmarket, Suffolk, UK |
| Size | Fewer than 10 employees; fewer than 3 cars a year |
| Models | AF8 (Cassini, Falcon), AF10 hybrid; Imperium electric concept |
| Earlier designs | Farboud GT, Farboud GTS (later Farbio GTS / Ginetta F400) |
Farboud: the GT and the GTS
Arash Farboud developed his first car, the Farboud GT, in 1999 and registered his company the following year. The GT was a one-off prototype with a 2.8-litre twin-turbo Audi V6 and was presented at the Autosport International show in Birmingham in 2002. Its successor, the GTS, appeared as a concept at the same show in 2003, and three prototypes were built. It was launched at London's British Motor Show in 2004. Sources disagree on the output of the Audi-engined cars: the Arash article gives 460 kW (620 bhp). The article on the later Ginetta F400 gives 328 kW (440 bhp) for the 2004 concept.
In 2005 a salesman, Chris Marsh, licensed the GTS design in exchange for shares in a new company. His team replaced the Audi engine with a Ford V6, and after a dispute the car was renamed Farbio. Arash Farboud sold his Farbio shares to Michael Simmonds and kept the original Farboud company.
From Farbio GTS to Ginetta G60
The design had a long life outside its creator's company. Farbio Sports Cars launched the Ford-powered Farbio GTS in 2007, with sales from early 2008; the GTS 400 had 286 kW (384 bhp). In 2010 Ginetta bought the rights and renamed the car the F400, with a supercharged 3.0-litre Ford V6 of 306 kW (410 bhp). The F400 was priced at £95,000 in 2010. Production stopped in 2010, and the car was redeveloped as the Ginetta G60, presented in October 2011. The G60 had a 3.7-litre Ford V6 with 231 kW (314 PS), a carbon-fibre body on a tubular steel chassis and a kerb weight of 1,080 kg. It cost £68,000 in 2012. About 50 were built until Ginetta ended production in November 2015, citing poor sales and rising manufacturing costs. It had no ABS and no power steering, by design.
Arash Motor Company and the first AF10
In 2006 Farboud Limited became the Arash Motor Company. Its first car under the new name was the AF10 concept of 2009, a conventional mid-engined supercar with a 7.0-litre V8 from the Chevrolet Corvette and 370 kW (500 bhp). In an interview that year Farboud described the business as a hobby being turned into a company and said about £5 million had been invested in the AF10 by 2009. That car did not go into production.
The AF8 followed. It has a carbon and steel tubular chassis and a mid-mounted 7.0-litre GM LS7 V8 with 377 kW (505 bhp), or 410 kW (550 bhp) in the Cassini version. The Arash article dates its presentation to the Geneva show of 2016, while one of its references is an Autocar article of 28 February 2014. A Falcon Edition is also offered, and the AF8 Falcon and the AF10 appear in the video games Asphalt 8: Airborne and Asphalt Legends.
The hybrid AF10 of 2016
Arash's best-known car is the revised AF10 presented in Geneva in February–March 2016. It is a hybrid that combines a 6.2-litre supercharged V8 with four electric motors and a 32 kWh lithium-ion battery. The company claims 1,550 kW (2,080 hp), 2,280 Nm and 0–60 mph in 2.8 seconds. A Jalopnik headline of 2016 reports a price of US$1.5 million. Wikipedia gives no top speed, weight or production figure for the car. The performance figures have not been confirmed by an independent test in the sources used here. The car is described in the Arash AF10 article, and confirmed figures for other cars are in the list of the most powerful supercars.
Arash today
In 2021 Arash published details of the Imperium, an electric hypercar concept with a one-piece carbon-fibre monocoque; its production status is not known. The company's website now also lists the AFX-R and AFX-8 petrol cars and the electric AFX, alongside the AF10 hybrid and the AF8 in its Falcon and Cassini editions. The business remains tiny: Companies House classes it as a micro entity, with fewer than 10 employees and a small balance sheet. Its output is fewer than three cars a year. Arash models on 1cars are listed in the Arash catalogue, and other low-volume sports cars are in the supercars section.
Arash timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1999 | Farboud GT developed |
| 2000 | Farboud Limited incorporated (27 November) |
| 2002 | Farboud GT at Autosport International, Birmingham |
| 2004 | Farboud GTS launched at the British Motor Show |
| 2005 | GTS design licensed; becomes the Farbio |
| 2006 | Company takes the Arash name |
| 2009 | First AF10 concept with a Corvette V8 |
| 2010 | Ginetta buys the Farbio design (F400) |
| 2016 | Hybrid AF10 at the Geneva Motor Show |
| 2021 | Imperium electric concept |
Landmark Arash and Farboud models
| Model | Years | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Farboud GT | 1999–2002 | First car, one-off with an Audi twin-turbo V6 |
| Farboud GTS | 2003–2004 | Design that became the Farbio GTS, Ginetta F400 and G60 |
| AF10 (2009) | 2009 | First car under the Arash name, Corvette V8 |
| AF8 | 2014/2016 onwards | LS7-engined road car, Cassini and Falcon editions |
| AF10 hybrid | 2016 | V8 plus four electric motors, claimed 1,550 kW |
Photo gallery
FAQ
Where is Arash based?
In Newmarket, Suffolk, England, at the Farboud Innovation Park.
Who founded Arash?
Arash Farboud. His first car was the Farboud GT, and the company has carried his first name since 2006.
Is the Ginetta G60 related to Arash?
Yes. The G60 was developed from the Ginetta F400, which was the Farbio GTS, itself based on the Farboud GTS designed by Arash's company.
How powerful is the Arash AF10?
The 2016 hybrid version is said to produce 1,550 kW and 2,280 Nm from a supercharged V8 and four electric motors.
Sources
- Wikipedia — Arash Motor Company (accessed 24 Oct 2026)
- Wikipedia — Arash AF10 (accessed 24 Oct 2026)
- Wikipedia — Ginetta F400 (Farbio GTS) (accessed 24 Oct 2026)
- Wikipedia — Ginetta G60 (accessed 24 Oct 2026)
- Arash Motor Company (official site) (accessed 24 Oct 2026)
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