Auto Design

LILLI BERTONE HAS FULL CONTROL OF “STILE BERTONE”.

Lilli Bertone, the strongly minded widow of the late Nuccio Bertone, is reportedly the only owner of the Stile Bertone design think tank as of July 28^th. After the Turin Court ruled that Mrs. Bertone has the right to a minimal majority stake in the company, with the remaining 49.9periodical in the hands of her two sisters, the Bertone matriarch has succeeded in buying them out and ensure herself 100% of the stakes into Stile Bertone.

The changes in the company management took place the same day, when the new board has been appointed and Marie Jeanne Bertone and her Managing Director, Mr. Gaudio left the company.

Lilli Bertone is the new president and chairman and Mr. Marco Filippa is the new managing director. Reportedly, Lilli Bertone controls Stile Bertone via Bertone Cento.

Jason Castriota, who has a contract as a consultant is still with the company and might stay.

According to a source close to Bertonecento (and indeed Stile Bertone) director Michael Robinson,

Stile Bertone would have no problems working with “such a good designer as Jason” and it will probably be up to Jason to decide if he wants to stay, probably in a different role. Here it will be up to Lilli to create the right conditions for the two talents to from a winning team.

LILLI BERTONE’S   BERTONE CENTO GET THE BRAND NAME AND THE HERITAGE.

Mrs. Lilli Bertone is reportedly the only bidder for the “Bertone” brand name. Or, at least this is what it clearly appeared after the deadline set for the offer. In this case, the three government appointees who are running the rescue-show of the coachbuilding manufacturing Carrozzeria Bertone would have no doubt about the purchaser and the selling price.

According to well placed sources Mrs. Bertone has offered to pay some € 4 million for all rights to the Bertone name and all  its logos and the company Archive.

These assets were considered part of the Carrozzeria Bertone.

The formalities should be completed in few days. As soon as Lilli Bertone is again the owner of the Bertone brand name, Fiat who has only acquired the premises and facilities of Carrozzeria Bertone will remove all Bertone names and symbols from the factory.

STILE BERTONE CORVETTE ZR1 MANTIDE SOLD FOR € 1.5m.

The project launched by Stile Bertone under the management of Marie Jeanne Bertone and Teresio Gaudio for a very special one-off of the Chevrolet ZR1 has been successfully completed. The project was proposed and has been implemented by consulting designer Jason Castriota who conceived, design and directed the entire development of the one-off Corvette ZR1 called Mantide and presented almost simultaneously at the Shanghai Motor Show and the Concorso d’Eleganza di Villa d’Este last April.

The Stile Bertone Mantide has promptly been sold to a wealthy gentleman driver based in the U.S.A. That is the British Dan Watkins who has already driven the car at Goodwood and is now taking his very fast beauty to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

The Stile Bertone Mantide has been test at high speeds on the Nardò ring and has topped 330 kph with its engine in standard setting. That is 20 kph faster than a regular ZR1. According to Jason Castriota, once the engine is set free to rev to the limit in top speed, the Mantide has all it takes to set a new class record at the Nürburgring, sometime next year. Dan Watkins is indeed an amateur racing driver and it is likely that he will hardly resist the temptation.