October 18, 2002
Story and photos by Alessandro Gerelli
The "Salon Mondial de l’ Automobile" in Paris closed October 15th after 15 days and an incredible number of visitors.
The Italian presence was represented by Fiat group (Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Ferrari), plus Lamborghini, Pagani and a few Giugiaro prototypes. But the star of the exhibition was the Ferrari Enzo. Two models, one red and one black, were displayed in a very crowded Ferrari stand, together with the other production models and a Formula 1 2001.
Nearby the Ferrari stand, Maserati presented their complete range, including a Trofeo berlinetta and, an unexpected surprise, a wonderful Type 61 of 1962.
A completely different atmosphere was felt in the Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Lancia arenas. Fiat is actually in a big crisis and a dramatic restructuring plan is in the works. The plan includes the closure of a few factories, including the historic Alfa factory of Arese near Milan, and the dismissal of more than 8000 workers. Nevertheless, Fiat presented the new Stilo station wagon. Attracting the attention of the youngsters ( and of the nostalgic) was the return of the Abarth badge on a 3 door rally-tuned Stilo.
The situation was better at Alfa, who introduced the new 147 GTA--a very sporty berlinetta with a powerful V6 engine of 3.2 litres and 250 bhp. This worthy effort brings the GTA name back to life, which is strongly linked to an incredible number of Alfa Romeo successes in the 1960s and 1970s.
Revival was also the theme in Lancia’s stand with the introduction of the new Thesis, which reminds one of the 1950s B10 sedans.
The Thesis has a 5 or 6 cylinder engine of 2 litres turbocharged or 3 litres with a power of 170 to 215 bhp and is positioned at the top of the range, in competition with the C and E class Mercedes and BMW 520. We wish them luck.
Lamborghini presented the Murcielago (6.2 litres V12 engine and 580 bhp). Pagani showed the Zonda S, a nice sport car with a Mercedes AMG 7.3 litres engine with 555 bhp and 1150 kilos, that allows the car to reach 100 km/h in 3.5 seconds.
In Giugiaro’s stand there was the well known Alfa Romeo Brera, a beautiful coupe which deserves to be built in numbers, but the critical situation of the markets do not encourage any risky production attempt.
L’ AUTOMOBILE ET LA PRINCIPAUTE DE MONACO
One big hall of the Salon de l’Auto in Paris was devoted to the celebration of the race car in Montecarlo. The small independent princedom near the Italian border and French Riviera is well known all over the world for its beauties, the Casino and of course the Monaco Grand Prix and the WRC Monaco Rally.
In addition to these two events, the Prince of Monaco has also a rich collection of vintage cars starting from the beginning of 1900.
This collection was exhibited in a separate hall, and included a selection of the Formula 1 cars that have won the Grand Prix, as well as some of the winning rally cars.
Obviously the presence of historic Italian cars was very significant: the Alfa Romeo Monza of 1932 winner with Tazio Nuvolari, the Maserati 4 CLT of 1948 of Nino Farina, the Alfa Romeo Alfetta 158 as driven by Manuel Fangio, the 1956 Maserati 250 F driven by Stirling Moss and finally the Formula 1 Ferrari of 1999 of Michael Schumacker.
In the rally section, visitors gazed at the Lancia Fulvia HF (1972), the Lancia Stratos (1977), the Fiat 131 Rallye (1980) and the Lancia Delta Integrale, winner of the 1987 edition.
Another section included the Prince’s personal collection. Italian cars on display were a stunning Cisitalia 202 SC of 1952 and, to recall that Montecarlo is on the seaside, a perfect car for the sun and the beaches of the Riviera: the Fiat 600 Jolly Ghia.
In conclusion, a nice exhibition with lot of nice cars and many, many visitors: au revoir in 2004 !
