Auto Design

At this time it is interesting to take a good look to the design and the making of the SVS Codatronca by Ercole and Paolo Spada. This spectacular supercar – built on the chassis – and with the powertrain – of one of the most powerful Chevrolet Corvette might well serve as a benchmark for the evalutation of the Supercar soon to be unveiled in mock-up form at the Shanghai Motor Show and as a running prototype at the Concorso d’Eleganza di Villa D’Este, later this month.

The two cars share a lot in addition to their mission and ambitions: attract car collectors with a passion for high performance speed and clear cut, very distinctive design.

The SVS Codatronca TS comes with a Chevrolet Corvette ZR 1 V8 engine tuned up to deliver 630 HP at 7000 rpm and 668 Nm of torque at 4800 rpm. This is said to be good enough for acceleration time of just 3.4 second from 0 to 100 kph and a top speed of 340 kph in 6^th gear, at 7000 rpm.

Unlike the Stile Bertone supercar, which aims at setting a new record at the Nuerburgring, the SVS Codatronca has been designed and tuned to enhance “the pleasure of driving instead of speed record, in the perfect style of the gentleman driver.”

The other remarkable difference between the two is that whereas Stile Bertone and Jason Castriota made extensive use of carbon fibre for their bodywork, the Spada (Father & Son) elected the traditional aluminium body panels technique for the construction of their Codatronca. Here, a review of the making of the SVS Codatronca TS and few images of the actual car.

Click on image for complete photo gallery:    

Among the most beautiful cars to be seen at this year Concorso d’Eleganza di Villa d’Este is this unique Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B designed and built by Carrozzeria Touring in 1938. The extremely elegant (and fast) Berlinetta was built on the running chassis developed by Alfa Romeo as the successor of the very successful Alfa Romeo 8C 2300. In its time, the Alfa Romeo 8C built in many different configurations for the road  and for the racing circuits was one of the fastest motorcars world-wide. Alfa Romeo built only 33 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B running chassis but, only six were coachbuilt as Berlinetta.

This Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Berlinetta is owned by Alfa Romeo’s Museo Storico

This unit, coming back to Italy after 62 years spent around the world, ranks as one of the most elegant vehicles to emerge before the Second World War. In September 1947 the car migrated from Italy to Switzerland and to the USA. After being sold to a buyer in South Africa in 1980, the car – with red paintwork at that time – was restored in England and repainted in its original blue.Powered by the famous Alfa Romeo straight-8 designed by Vittorio Jano, the car was purchased in 2005 by Jon Shirley, one of the founders of Microsoft who resides in Medina (Washington) and restored to its original condition

Voted Best Car in Show at Pebble Beach last year, it is very likely that it will double its success and be awarded the Coppa d’Oro di Villa d’Este by public referendum. After all the Concorso takes places few miles away from the shops where this car was built 71 years ago.