Five supercars that share parts with ‘normal’ cars

You’d think that all supercars and hypercars, like those in the PaddlUp showroom, are sculpted by artisans using a blend of titanium, carbon fibre and gold. Unfortunately, even the most exotic marques in the business have budgets and need to meet regulations, so sometimes parts get borrowed from the most unlikely of places.

McLaren F1

VW Corrado mirrors

The McLaren F1 is one of the most valuable cars in the world at the time of writing and it's easy to see why. More than just another modern classic, the F1 is responsible for establishing the hypercar category and announcing the brand as more than just a racing team, before McLaren Automotive - in its modern guise - was even a twinkle in Ron Dennis' eye. It's well documented that the model houses the mighty BMW S70 V12 engine, but that’s not the part in question here, that would be the wing mirrors pinched from a Volkswagen Corrado. It still remains the fastest naturally aspirated car in the world though, so we’ll let it off for that. 

Jaguar XJ220

Various parts

The XJ220 is notorious for being a bit of a parts bin car. At one point it was the fastest production car in the world, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that the rear lights are from a Rover 200 and the wing mirrors are from a Citroen CX. The engine was also from a Metro, but we’ll let Jag off as it was a twin-turbo version of the V6 you’d find in the back of the 6R4 Group B car.

Koenigsegg

RX-7 reflectors

Koenigsegg is known not only for building bonkers hypercars with power figures and top speeds you can’t fit on a calculator, but also for creating and innovating everything in-house. Even Koenigsegg aren’t immune from needing parts from external sources though, the original V8 they used was a Ford-based unit, but surprisingly it also borrowed the rear reflectors from an FD RX-7 on multiple models.

Pagani Zonda

Rover climate controls

Pagani is one of the most exotic car makers out there. Both the Zonda and the Huayra (and every iteration of each) are exquisitely made with painstakingly stunning details. Like a few on this list, the original Zonda borrowed an engine from elsewhere, taking a stonking great V12 from AMG. One of the other parts borrowed was the climate controls from a Rover 45. This a great fun fact if you own a 45, but the bragging rights aren't quite as impressive for Zonda owners.

Lamborghini Diablo

Nissan 300ZX headlights

This is one of the part sharing facts you hear most often. When the Lamborghini Diablo was given a facelift in 1998 the switch was made from pop-up headlights to more conventional fixed headlamps. Those light units are the same ones you can find in a Nissan 300ZX.