Izuogu Z-600

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The Izuogu Z-600 was Nigeria’s first home-made car, unveiled in 1997 by engineer Ezekiel Izuogu. The prototype ran on a self-made 1.8-liter four‑cylinder engine, got about 18 mpg, and could reach around 140 km/h (86 mph). It used front‑wheel drive to keep costs down and because a transmission tunnel for rear‑wheel drive would be expensive to build. About 90% of the car’s parts were made locally, and its simple design looked like a Renault 4, with a front end similar to the Peugeot 504. If it had gone into mass production, it would have been priced around $2,000, making it one of the cheapest cars in the world. Production was planned under Izuogu Motors in Naze, Imo State, but financial and political hurdles stopped the project at the prototype stage. In 2005, African countries showed interest and invited Izuogu to speak in South Africa, where officials wanted to build the car there. A major setback came on March 11, 2006, when armed men raided the Izuogu Motors factory, stealing engine blocks, crankshafts, mudguards, the Z-600 design notebooks, and other production materials. Since then, the project’s status has been unclear.