A Tour of Concorso Italiano 2012 - Car and Driver Blog

One of the Pebble Beach Concours d?Elegance?s oldest sideshows, the Concorso Italiano, completed its 27th edition with the usual gathering of Latin bombshells, plus a tribute to the works of Turin coachbuilder Bertone, in all its glorious and, with credit to the show, not as glorious aspects. Lined up in the center ring with the various concept prototypes were the several Lamborghinis that Bertone produced, the concept Fiats and Alfa Romeos, plus were a few workaday cars that Bertone put its stamp on for the sake of earning some extra lire for the corporate coffers. Thus, Concorso produced a display that was a surprisingly good cross-section of vehicles from a company that, like everybody else, sometimes had to hustle for a buck. Fiat also used the occasion to reveal the new 500T, a turbocharged 135-hp 500 that slots between the 101-hp Sport and the 160-hp Abarth. Prosciutto was consumed, Chiantis were uncorked, and the weather was fantastic. Forza Italia!

1967 Jaguar Pirana/Piranha

One of the stars of the Bertone ring, the one-of-one Pirana from the 1967 London Motor Show broke cover after decades hiding out in private collections in England and Palm Springs, California. The name on the car is actually spelled Piranha, but as that was copyrighted elsewhere, the company publicized it as the Pirana. It isn?t hugely significant to Bertone?s history except as a demonstration of how the company often produced its concepts with the hopes of selling designs or body-building business to large carmakers. Jaguar sent Bertone a chassis and powertrain for a ?67 E-Type 2+2 and Bertone produced the beautiful coupe you see here. When Jaguar passed on the finished product, Bertone sold it to Lamborghini and it became, with a few alterations, the 1968?1978 Lamborghini Espada. Owner Edward Superfon of Los Angeles put it through a stem-to-stern restoration after purchasing it two years ago, taking it back to its original metallic silver-flake paint.

1975 Lamborghini Espada S3

Speaking of Espadas, this beautiful Series III was, as of last November, a wrecked parts car with extensive crash damage to both ends. But owner Bob Huber of Los Angeles rescued it in his garage, pulling the chassis straight, hand-fabricating a new quarter-panel for it, and painstakingly rolling the aluminum hood through an English wheel to restore the tricky shape. With no time to properly road test it, he made three false starts on the trip to Monterey with problems, then finally arrived after midnight the night before the show.

1984 Fiat Bertone Ritmo Cabrio Palinuro

Building convertible versions of plebian production cars, such as the Fiat Ritmo (Strada, in the U.S.) hatchback, is how many styling houses made extra money through the lean years of the late ?70s and 1980s. Owner Alberto Massarotto (note: it?s spelled wrong on the sign) of Willow Glen, California, says his car?s structural integrity is ?non-existent? but it still manages to handle ?better than it looks.?? A Europe-only model with a 75-horse, 1.5-liter engine and about 61,000 miles, this Ritmo Cabrio is one of only two in the U.S., says Massarotto.

1954 Fiat Stanguellini concept

Bertone built this car for the 1954 New York auto show, where it was purchased by none other than racer Briggs Cunningham for his wife, who, according to current owner Pete Vasquez, hated it. The car is a grab bag of parts from Stanguellini, Siata, and Abarth, and was intended to be a run of nine cars but, apparently, only two were actually built. The side-hinged rear hatch is a notable feature.

1937 Lancia Aprilia Sport Zagato

Originally built as a one-off prototype for racing, the actual car was lost during World War II when Zagato?s factory was bombed. In 2006 for the 100th anniversary of Lancia, Zagato built this recreation in the old ways using a 1937 Lancia Aprilia road car as a donor, which was the basis for the original. Today, Zagato is planning to build a total of nine copies priced at around $300,000, using derelict Aprilias rather than cars in good condition.

1953 MG-Arnolt Bertone

A mashup of names indicative of how it was back then: The 100 MG-Arnolts built started as MG TDs that Chicago businessman Stanley H. ?Wacky? Arnolt, the local BMC distributor, sent to Bertone for new bodies. According to owner Terry Sanders, the car failed because it cost more than $3000 when the Jaguar XK-120 was only a few hundred dollars more. ?Which would you rather have?? says Sanders. Still, the Arnolt is a rarity, one of just 65 coupes ever made (the rest were convertibles).

1955 Ferrari 250 Europa GT

Owner Ken Roath of Newport Beach, California, bought this stunning Pininfarina beauty in Europe in 2007. At the time of purchase, the 250 Europa GT was sliver with a red interior, but Roath had it restored by Ferrari Classiche?Ferrari?s own restoration shop?back to the original two-tone pale green and white colors. The 250 Europa is a big car with a relatively small engine, being the first model to use the then-new Colombo-designed 250 V-12. Roath has driven it twice in the modern Mille Miglia. ?That?s why I bought it; it?s the most comfortable car you can use in the Mille,? he said.

1974 Maserati Khamsin

Perhaps the last great Italian GT design from Bertone, the Khamsin went into production in 1974, after Maserati and Citro?n had joined dubious forces. The 4.9-liter V-8 was derived from the earlier Ghibli, but the styling was somewhat different and highly exotic with features such as the rear glass in which the taillights seem to float, and the asymmetrical louvers in the hood. Just 430 Khamsins were built.

1971 DeTomaso Pantera

Ladies and gentlemen, this is what a Pantera is supposed to look like. From the small stainless bumpers to the carpeted engine compartment to the dorky plastic steering-wheel, safety dashboard, and pea-green paint, this super clean example from California is the car Lee Iacocca had in mind when he did the deal to sell the Pantera through Lincoln and Mercury dealers. On the dashboard: Pantera designer Tom Tjaarda?s signature.

1960 Abarth 850 Allemano Coupe

This red cutie, one of just 30 made, was driven 2461 miles from Chicago to Monterey for the show by owner Lou Herrin, who claims 35 mpg. Based on the mid-engine Fiat 850 coupe, the body was built by Carrozzeria Allemano in Turin and modified in the workshop of Fiat tuner Carlo Abarth. Herrin gets the prize for distance and bravery.

Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/a-tour-of-concorso-italiano-2012-photo-gallery-2012-pebble-beach/

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