FREE! LANCIA MARTINI LEGENDS GIANT A3 POSTER INSIDE! Issue 279 May 2019 £4.99 FREE MARTINI ALFA SUPERSUD LEGENDS POSTER RACING TEARAWAY ON TRACK ABARTH 70TH I I Birthday best I OSCA 1600GT Le Mans racer ZAGATO ZELE Friend electric www.auto-italia.net FERRARI F355 AT 25 YEARS... AND HOW IT SAVED FERRARI Alfa Giulia V6 Biturbo Quadrifoglio Alfa Romeo Giulia Tb 16V Red Calipers, carbon fibre steering wheel inserts, 2950 miles. Black and grey cloth. Alloy wheels, air conditioning, 8,676 miles. Price: £63,975 £54,995 Price: £23,995 £21,990 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Tb Multiair Lusso Tct Fiat Tipo Easy Plus Alfa Romeo Mito TB TwinAir Sprint Alfa Romeo red with Black sports leather upholstery ; this 170 bhp Lusso 17,973 miles. Silver with black cloth 18,488 miles. Ametista black. Air automatic is in fantastic condition. 30,786 miles. upholstery. Air con. Alloy wheels. con, Alloys, E/W. Price: £8,495 Price: £9,485 Price: £6,495 * No 1 out of 180 Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Chrysler Jeep dealers for customer satisfaction in the UK. Oct-Dec 2018 * No 1 out of 165 Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Chrysler Jeep dealers for customer satisfaction in the UK. July-Sep 2018 * No 1 out of 165 Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Chrysler Jeep dealers for customer satisfaction in the UK. April–June 2018 * No 1 out of 165 Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Chrysler Jeep dealers for customer satisfaction in the UK. Jan-Mar 2018 WELCOME www.auto-italia.net Editor Chris Rees [email protected] Photographic Editor Michael Ward [email protected] Events Director Phil Ward [email protected] Editor at Large Peter Collins Contributors Keith Bluemel, Peter Collins, Richard Heseltine, Richard Bremner, Andy Heywood, Martin Buckley, Peter Nunn, Simon Park, Simon Charlesworth, Mike Rysiecki, Tim Pitt, Richard Dredge and Phil Ward Art Editor Michael Ward Back Issues Tel: 01462 811115 Subscriptions www.auto-italia.net [email protected] Managing Director Michael Ward General Manager Claire Prior [email protected] Advertisement Managers David Lerpiniere [email protected] Simon Hyland aving just got back from the 89th Geneva Motor Show, I’ve realised I’ve been to the [email protected] last 26 shows in a row, which officially makes me old. I’ve seen a fair few launches in Tel: 01732 445325 Hmy time there, stretching right back to the Ferrari F355 in 1994. It’s fitting, then, that we celebrate 25 years of this highly regarded Ferrari in this issue. Classifieds email [email protected] But it’s also great to be able to celebrate some cracking Geneva debuts this year. As you Printed in England The MANSON Group Limited, Hertfordshire. can read in our feature starting on page 12, there was plenty for Italian car enthusiasts to Worldwide Retail Distribution get excited about. Seymour Distribution Ltd, 2 East Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PT The new Alfa Romeo Tonale (pictured above with Alfa’s chief of design, Klaus Busse – and yes, he is very tall) is one the reasons to feel jolly. I know some Alfa fans still find the idea of SUVs mildly disagreeable, but success in this still-growing market segment could well cement Alfa’s position as a major manufacturer – which of course helps fund all the nice cars we’d all like to see (and which were notably absent from the show, such as the two- door Giulia GTV and 8C supercar). It also helps that the Tonale looks so good – easily, I’d say, the best-looking compact SUV of all. Here’s hoping that it retains those looks in production. Auto Italia® is published twelve times a year by: But the real star for me was Fiat’s Concept Centoventi electric city car – essentially the Ginger Beer Promotions Ltd, Enterprise House, Building 52, Wrest Park, new-generation Panda. It’s not significant solely for the face that it looks funky, and has Silsoe, Bedfordshire, MK45 4HS loads of clever touches. No, it’s the genuinely revolutionary thinking behind it. This is a car Email: [email protected] you can rent or buy; customise by 3D printing at home; upgrade mechanically in a matter of ISSN 1357 - 4515 minutes; reconfigure inside using Lego-style accessories. Fiat even describes it as a Ford Model T for the iPhone generation. With prices likely to be set very low, that could very well While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of this publication Ginger Beer be true. It’s the clearest indication yet of Fiat’s future as an electric city car specialist – and Promotions Ltd cannot accept liability for any so far, I really like what I see. statement or error contained herein. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part, without written permissio n, is prohibited. © Ginger Beer Promotions Ltd, 2019 Chris Rees CONTRIBUTORS Editor [email protected] Auto Italia is brought to you by a group of journalists and photographers united by a passion for Italian cars. Contributors to this issue include: Chris Rees Michael Ward Claire Prior Phil Ward Simon Park Tony Castle-Miller Tim Pitt Peter Collins auto italia 3 CONTENTS ISSUE 279 MAY 2019 FEATURES 12 GENEVA SHOW 2019 New Fiats & Alfas, plus Ferrari & Pininfarina 18 ABARTH AT 70 YEARS We celebrate the Scorpion’s 70th birthday 28 OSCA 1600GT Ex-Le Mans Zagato-bodied racer 34 FERRARI F355 12 25th anniversary of the car that saved Ferrari 42 MASERATI SEBRING Driving and appreciating a 1960s GT classic 18 48 ZAGATO ZELE Flat out in an Italian 1970s proto-electric car 56 ALFA ROMEO ALFASUD On track in a super-successful Sud racer 62 DALLARA 191 The story of Dallara’s 1991 Formula 1 car 68 FIAT TWIN-CAM STORY An engine writ large in history 74 MONTE CARLO HISTORIQUE All the action from a snowbound Monte classic 34 SUBSCRIPTIONS SAVE OVER £10.00 SEE PAGE 54 FOR DETAILS REGULARS 28 06 NEWS Fabulous Lancia rally/stradale collection for sale 48 56 78 READERS’ CARS Autobianchi A112 and Alfa Brera V6 80 BOOKSHELF Reviews of the latest books on Italian cars 92 CLASSIFIEDS Find your perfect Italian car here 98 OBSCURATI Record-breaking wind-cheater from Vignale 62 42 auto italia 5 ITALIAN CAR NEWS LANCIA COLLECTION UP FOR SALE collection of road-going Lancia prominent Italian rallying family, the car has to £350,000. homologation specials is coming up had only one further owner since, and is A 1985 Lancia Delta S4 Stradale, designed Afor auction. RM Sotheby’s is selling expected to make £420,000 to £450,000. to homologate the Group B rally car, is one the cars at its Essen sale in Germany on Also up is a 1984 Lancia 037 Stradale of 200 road-going versions built. It has done 11-12 April. homologation special, which was also less than 2200km from new and is estimated A 1975 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale, one of delivered new to a member of the Bignardi to sell for £390,000 to £480,000. A 1970 only 492 produced, is a rare example in family. It’s described as in “exceptionally Lancia Fulvia Rallye 1.6 HF ‘Fanalone’ unrestored and all-original condition. Initially well-preserved condition” and has done just (£52,000 to £60,000) completes the Lancia owned by Guido Bignardi, a member of a 3500km from new. Its estimate is £305,000 motorsport line-up. 6 auto italia ‘ESSESESSE’ RETURNS TO ABARTH 595 The Abarth 595 esseesse is back after an absence from the market. The revived model features an 180hp engine, BMC air filter, Brembo front brakes, white 17- inch Supersport wheels, Koni FSD rear suspension and a stripe package. Inside, freshly designed Sabelt carbon shell seats with 70th Anniversary stitching are included (these are an option on standard Abarths in the company’s 70th Anniversary year), along with carbon pedals and special logos. A seven-inch infotainment display, which is optional on the regular 595, is also included on the esseesse. BARGAIN TIPO STREET A new ‘Street’ trim level has been added to Fiat’s Tipo range. Described as “dynamic, stylish and accessible”, it’s based on the Easy trim level, but adds new 16-inch black alloy wheels, tinted rear windows and contrasting dark mirror covers, grille and door handles (inside and out). LED daytime running lights and special badging complete the picture. Available with the 1.4 95hp petrol engine, it’s priced at £15,050, only £500 more than the entry-level Tipo Easy. STICKER YOUR 500 Personalised name stickers are being offered free to all Fiat 500 owners. At www.my-500.com owners can enter the name of their car, choose from one of 10 colours and Fiat will send them a personalised 500 sticker for free. Owners have until 30 June 2019 to claim their personalised Fiat 500 name sticker; further stickers can be acquired for a small extra cost. FERRARI: ANOTHER RECORD YEAR Ferrari has posted another record year in 2018, recording growth of 10.2 per cent. Full year sales amount to 9251 cars – some 853 more than in 2017. The impressive performance was driven by strong demand for V12 models (an increase of 19.6 per cent), with the 812 Superfast accounting for the biggest V12 boost, the LaFerrari Aperta having finished its production run during 2018. Meanwhile, sales of Ferrari’s V8 models increased by 7.3 per cent, driven by the Ferrari Portofino and new 488 Pista. Sales in Europe grew by 13.1 per cent, China/Hong Kong/Taiwan by 12.6 per cent, other Asian countries by 7.8 per cent and America by 6.7 per cent.