The HTT Pléthore LC-750 is a gorgeous car. 6.2-litre, V8 sourced, massive supercharger. The 750 horsepower
should take it from zero to 100 km in 2.8 seconds. Spec-wise, it’s up there with the likes of Porsche,
Ferrari and Lamborghini.
But it’s not like those cars. It’s not European.
It’s Canadian.
That’s right: Canada has a supercar poised to compete on the world stage. Ever since High Tech Toys’ (HTT’s)
completion of the prototype in 2007, Canadian and international media have been abuzz about this car. It
graced a magazine cover in Italy, almost sold out of orders in a single Scottsdale, Arizona showing, and
stole the spotlight at the 2010 Toronto International Auto Show, where it was presented for the first time on
Canadian soil.
But the rest of the world won’t care that the car’s Canadian. One of the best cars in the world, the
Koenigsegg, is from unassuming Sweden. These things happen. So while encapsulating our national pride is
great, the Pléthore also needs to be a big-time player. And, according to HTT, it will be. After all, the
word pléthore is French for plethora, or overabundant.
HTT’s slogan is “It’s not how fast you go, it’s how you go fast.” The defining feature of this car is its
central driving position, where passengers sit on opposite sides of the driver. You go fast like a pro. “Just
like Formula 1 drivers you want to sit in the middle so it’s full balance,” says co-founder and co-owner Carl
Descoteaux. “It’s just amazing.”
On the note of balance, the Pléthore accomplished a drag coefficient of 0.37, what HTT calls “a near-perfect
balance between aerodynamics and car handling.”
The car’s other distinct advantage is the touch of industry design pro, and the Pléthore’s other co-founder,
Luc Chartrand. He’s renowned for more than 25 years of work and creating masterful replicas of exotic cars,
be it for individuals or movies. The Pléthore is the result of 11 years of work on Chartrand’s dream — making
his own supercar, a real one.
“He’s a mad genius, really a perfectionist,” says Descoteaux. “When we were in Toronto at the International
Auto Show… people saw the car, people know those types of car, people know that Luc is something else because
the finish and the quality is remarkable.”
At the aforementioned Scottsdale show, in the prestigious Barrett-Jackson Auctions, HTT received six orders
for the Pléthore. Not bad considering they were only planning on making eight to 10 this year. Those cars
will hit the road this spring and there are 25 more available for order at the end of 2012, at a price tag of
$450,000.
It’s what Descoteaux calls “very limited edition,” mostly because HTT is still a small team that needs to
establish itself before any big plans.
He says they’re trying to appeal to the five to 10 per cent of car collectors who either want everything or
want something different. And there’s a great international market for that, from London to Dubai.
“People who are buying those types of cars — they want to be unique,” Descoteaux explains. “They want to have
something in their garages that nobody else has.”
The pressure on present business doesn’t mean HTT isn’t thinking forward, though. They’re planning on a 1,300
horsepower version of the car that could potentially be the fastest on the market. At 750 horsepower, the
current Pléthore hits around 385 km/h. It could already be one of the fastest production cars ever made, so
the possibilities at 1,300 are mind-boggling. Descoteaux also ventures HTT will go hybrid during this decade,
and, before then, the car will be running on ethanol fuel.
It has been hard work for the small Quebec team to get off its feet so well. Descoteaux says it probably
couldn’t have been done without the Internet, which has aided media’s constant search to report on “new
things,” but that comes off as stupendously modest. Descoteaux “had already been up for a few hours” before
our first interview at 9 a.m. on a Saturday. He was also leaving for Monaco on the Monday to the Top Marques
auto show, which, despite the destination, wasn’t going to be a vacation.
But Descoteaux laughs it off. Passion is what these guys are all about. And while this project is more
international than anything, there is an invigorating sense of genuine, ardent enterprise – a “we can do
this” underdog triumph – that is distinctly Canadian. It’s something for us to be proud of — something to
root for.
As Descoteaux says, “I really have a lot of respect for people who just go all the way.”
So does the rest of the world, and the characteristic has no doubt manifested itself into the Pléthore.
Descoteaux spoke of one critic who said he was a Koenigsegg fan until he saw its most recent showing in
Dubai. Later in his writing, he dismissed Koenigsegg and went on to rave about the look of the Pléthore.
The HTT team is driving onto new territory here. Only once before in Canadian automotive history was a
supercar ever mentioned, but the MCV CH4 never made it past the concept. HTT has already accomplished a great
feat, but they’re continuing to progress like a supercar itself: at break-neck speed. •
