America has built plenty of fast cars. Muscle cars, supercharged monsters, track weapons—no shortage of horsepower. But there’s one title the U.S. auto industry briefly held… and then lost forever.
The Vector M12 was America’s first—and last—production V12 supercar with a manual transmission. A carbon-bodied, Lamborghini-powered wedge that looked like a stealth fighter and promised to take the fight directly to Ferrari and Lamborghini. Instead, it nearly bankrupted its maker—twice—and vanished after only 14 customer cars were built.
Today, the M12 is a cult legend. Back then, it was a commercial disaster. And the reasons why tell a fascinating story about ambition, timing, and how hard it is to play in the exotic car big leagues.
Vector’s Wild Origins: Bigger Dreams Than Budgets
Vector Aeromotive was founded in the 1970s by Gerald Wiegert, an aerospace-obsessed designer who believed American engineering could dominate the supercar world. His early creations—the Vector W2 and W8—looked like fighter jets on wheels and used twin-turbo V8s pushing outrageous power for the era.
The W8 became infamous: brutally fast, wildly expensive, and plagued by reliability issues. Vector gained attention, but not stability.
By the mid-1990s, Vector needed help. That’s when Megatech, an Indonesian investment group that also owned Lamborghini, stepped in. Their directive was simple: simplify the madness and build something people might actually buy.
The result was the Vector M12.
A Lamborghini Heart in an American Body
Instead of developing its own drivetrain, Vector borrowed one of the best engines in the world at the time: the Lamborghini Diablo’s 5.7-liter naturally aspirated V12.
Key specs:
- 5.7-liter V12 (Diablo-sourced)
- 490 horsepower
- 425 lb-ft of torque
- 5-speed manual transaxle
- 0–60 mph: ~4.7 seconds
- Top speed: 189 mph
- Curb weight: ~3,600 lbs
The engine sat inside a tube-frame chassis, wrapped in a carbon-Kevlar composite body. On paper, the M12 matched the Diablo VT almost spec-for-spec—at a time when Lamborghini itself was the gold standard for V12 excess.
And unlike many later exotics, this was a proper three-pedal car. No automated manuals. No paddles. Just clutch, shifter, and twelve cylinders screaming behind your head.
Design: Peak 1990s Excess
Visually, the M12 is impossible to ignore.
It looks like:
- A Lamborghini Diablo crossed with
- A stealth bomber
- Designed by someone who loved fighter jets a little too much
Scissor doors, massive side intakes, razor-sharp angles, and a cockpit that felt more like an aircraft than a car. The interior was aggressive and dramatic, though not exactly luxurious by Ferrari standards.
In the mid-1990s, it looked like the future. Today, it looks like the most unapologetically 1990s supercar imaginable—and that’s part of its charm.
So Why Did It Fail?
Despite the incredible spec sheet, the Vector M12 was doomed by reality.
1. Development and Funding Chaos
Megatech’s ownership was unstable. Funding was inconsistent. Development dragged on. Promised updates were delayed or canceled entirely.
2. Build Quality Issues
Early cars suffered from inconsistent fit and finish. For buyers spending nearly $190,000 in the 1990s, expectations were sky-high—and Vector couldn’t always meet them.
3. Pricing vs. Reputation
Lamborghini had decades of brand equity. Vector didn’t. Asking Diablo money without Diablo prestige was a hard sell.
4. Production Collapse
After just 14 customer cars and 3 prototypes (17 total), Megatech pulled the plug. Vector shut down, again.
And just like that, America’s only manual V12 supercar was gone.
The Historical Irony: A Title No One Else Claimed
Here’s the twist that cemented the M12’s legend.
In 1999, Lamborghini discontinued the manual gearbox on the Diablo. From that moment on, no American manufacturer ever built another V12 production car—manual or otherwise.
That makes the Vector M12:
- The only American V12 supercar
- The last manual V12 production car from any U.S. brand
- A historical one-off that can never be repeated
Collector Status Today
For years, the M12 was ignored. Values languished. But collectors eventually realized what it represented.
Today:
- Clean examples trade between $300,000 and $500,000
- Survivors are extremely rare
- Documentation and originality matter enormously
It’s no longer a failed supercar. It’s a blue-chip oddity—a symbol of what American ambition looked like when it aimed straight at the exotic elite.
Final Verdict: A Glorious, Flawed American Icon
The Vector M12 didn’t fail because it lacked performance. It failed because building supercars requires more than speed—it requires capital, consistency, and credibility.
But judged by history rather than sales figures, the M12 deserves respect.
It proved:
- America could build a V12 exotic
- A manual gearbox still mattered
- And that ambition alone can create legends—even if the business collapses
The Vector M12 died young.
But it went out screaming—twelve cylinders, three pedals, no apologies.
