Ligier JS2 Coupe

Ligier JS2 Coupe

The Ligier JS2 is one of the most fascinating French sports cars of the 1970s. Created by Guy Ligier — a former rugby international and racing driver who would later found one of France's most successful Formula 1 teams — the JS2 combined a mid-mounted Maserati V6 engine with a fiberglass body designed by Pietro Frua and a steel backbone chassis.

The engine was the same Maserati C114 2.7/3.0-liter V6 used in the Citroën SM, sourced through Citroën who had acquired Maserati. In the JS2, this sophisticated all-alloy unit with its quad-cam heads and triple Weber carburetors produced 190 horsepower in road trim. The mid-engine layout and light weight gave the JS2 handling that could rival contemporary Porsches and Ferraris.

The JS2 had a notable competition career. It raced at Le Mans multiple times, achieving class victories, and competed in the Tour de France Automobile. The competition versions used a more powerful Cosworth-Ford engine in place of the Maserati unit, demonstrating the versatility of the chassis design.

Only 180 JS2s were built before production ended in 1975, largely due to the collapse of the Citroën-Maserati relationship which cut off the engine supply. Today, the JS2 is a rare and desirable collector car that offers a unique combination of French, Italian, and racing engineering. It represents the era when small manufacturers could still build genuinely competitive sports cars using available components and clever engineering.