The TMC Costin is a Clubman-style sports car built from 1983 to 1987 in Castlebridge, County Wexford, Republic of Ireland. Fewer than forty were produced. History The Thompsons of County Wexford, Ireland were a farming family with six sons. One son, Peter Thompson, embarked on an engineering career, first as a draughtsman at agricultural engineering firm Phillip Pierce and Co. in Wexford and later with the Timoney Research Centre at Navan, where he was in charge of several projects related to the design of armoured personnel carriers. Eventually three of the brothers were at Timoney: Val Thompson was hired as a Financial controller, and Sean Thompson as a Design technician. In March 1983 Peter, Val, and Sean, along with a fourth brother, Anthony, established a new company to build cars. While some references call it the "Thompson Motorsport Company", most refer to the business as the "Thompson Manufacturing Company" (TMC). Financial support was provided through the Industrial Development Authority, under the terms of the Small Industries Scheme. Some degree of American investment or ownership is also possible. Peter asked engineer and aerodynamicist Frank Costin to design the company's first automobile. In addition to designing the car itself, Costin was to develop the tooling and jigs needed to build it in exchange for a 10% royalty on each car sold. This design became Costin's Auto Project XXIV. Conceptually, it was intended to be an improvement on the Lotus Seven. It was also a further development of ideas Costin had explored in his earlier Marcos Xylon. It is described as the first road racing car built in Ireland. While under development, the car was called the Rushabout. The original engine chosen was the straight-four engine from the Vauxhall Chevette. The Thompson brothers hand-built the first car in the family barn. They announced plans to open a factory with a staff of eight to build the car in July 1983. The renamed TMC Costin was officially launched at the Mondello Park circuit in late 1983, and sales began the following year. The car was available in three states of tune: GTA, GTB, and GTC, and offered in kit form or as a fully assembled automobile. The kit was originally priced at £2000, later rising to £6000; prices for the fully built car started at £6500 for a basic model, but eventually climbed to £13,000 with Value-added tax (VAT) and duty included. TMC had