ALA 50 grand tourer news - Monte Car-low - 2008

Monaco does many things well. Casinos. Yachts. Obscene wealth. But not, by the looks of things, Le Mans race cars.

To celebrate 25 years in the car-building business, Monegasque manufacturer Monte Carlo Automobile has created this: the ALA 50 grand tourer.

Unveiled by His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco - a fine title if ever there was one - on the occasion of his 50th birthday, the ALA 50 is built completely from carbon fibre and powered by a 650bhp V8.

Weird it might look, but there's a bit of pedigree behind it: the engine was put together by Christian Contzen, the former MD of Renault Sport.

Monte Carlo Automobile says it plans to enter the ALA 50 in the 2010 Le Mans 24 Hour race with a team of three Monegasque drivers with a road-going version to follow.

Alternatively, you could crash an Maserati MC12 into an Honda Insight to achieve much the same effect.