AVA

Ava Cars was a small British manufacturer of kit cars that operated first in Frome, Somerset, between 1986 and 1987, and later resumed briefly in Bristol from 1990 to 1991.

The company's sole product was the Ava K1, a kit-built convertible designed by Nick Topliss. The car was notable for its claimed drag coefficient of just 0.295, an unusually low figure for a kit car of its era, achieved through careful aerodynamic shaping of its bodywork.

The K1 was based on mechanical components from the Ford Escort Mk3, which were mounted into subframes fitted within a stainless steel chassis tub. Its bodywork consisted of a single-piece glassfibre shell with shallow doors, contributing to both its distinctive appearance and aerodynamic efficiency.

After its initial production run in Somerset, the project was sold to a German company. It briefly reappeared on the British market in 1990 under the Ava name before production ceased entirely the following year.