This is the 150th BAC Mono ever built: a 342bhp Mono R

The Briggs Automotive Company, established by brothers Neill and Ian Briggs in 2009, has this week reached a special milestone via this 555kg single-seat masterstroke. You’re looking at only the 150th BAC Mono ever built.

And Mono #150 is also the 29th Mono R, which is of course the harder, faster, sharper and more powerful version of a car that was lacking in precisely none of those things. So not only is it vanishingly rare, it’s also quite exceptional to steer.

“It is fitting that Mono #150 is an R,” said Neill, “which represents the pinnacle of our engineering expertise. Seeing the car roll out of the door of our factory in Liverpool, in such an exquisite specification, was a very special moment for everyone at BAC.”

Probably the last time they’ll see it roll out at such pedestrian speeds, too. The Mono R gets a 2.5-litre 342bhp four-cylinder engine matched to a Formula 3-derived sequential six-speed gearbox. It weighs less than most eyebrows at just 555kg, and is capable of bending the world around to such lengths it lapped Anglesey in 1m 6.9s. Context? That’s two seconds faster than a McLaren P1 GTR.

So, the new owner – Hong Kong financier Julien Begasse de Dhaem – has some tool on his hands. He wanted his Mono R to feature a special science-fiction inspired livery, and as such the Mono R gets a ‘liquid silver’ metallic paint finish, with the lower body decked out in exposed carbon fibre.

There are ‘R29’ motifs inside the main beam light surrounds (it’s the 29th R, after all) and on the rear wing, along with outlining the spec in yellow on the side of the airbox. It’s finished with carbon hybrid wheels complete with bronze and yellow logos, while inside there’s a carbon steering wheel and contrast silver stitching.

“Paramount to our company DNA is the fact that no two vehicles that leave the factory will ever be the same,” said Neill. Indeed, as we found out earlier this year, it’s a singular experience…

TEXT Vijay Pattni