A Lady Sells her Jewels: Lancia and Corvair

There is no doubt that these six cars represent a highly significant part of Bertone’s creative history, and are some of the best known and most influential concept cars ever built. With the sale of these wonderful cars, an important and unique Italian collection will no longer exist and the cars will go to private collections. We hope that this sacrifice will serve to help finances and the workers of the Bertone Group. We feature each one in turn with stunning photography courtesty of RM Auctions and Bertone Stile. This part will consist of the Lancia and Corvair cars. Part I highlighted the Lamborghini showcars up for auction.

Lancia HF Stratos Zero 1970, S/N C/1160CPL.

Roberto Motta is one of the very few Earthlings to have driving the Zero, and reported in depth on his experiences in VeloceToday (link). New photographs recently taken for the upcoming RM auction once again confirm the stunning and quite literally, amazing lines of this famous car. Designed by Marcelo Gandini, it is the first prototype of the mid-engined Stratos production supercar, the hugely successful rally car. The Stratos HF Zero debuted at Turin Motor Show on 28 October, 1970, and was fully and professionally restored in 2000, at Stile Bertone in Caprie and it is a fully functioning prototype.

The Stratos used a 115 bhp, 1,584 cc narrow angle Lancia V-4 engine, two twin-choke Solex C42 DDHF carburetors, five-speed gearbox, independent front suspension with coil springs and vertical McPherson telescopic dampers, independent rear suspension with double-wishbones and telescopic dampers, four-wheel disc brakes..
(Auction estimate, €1.000.000 – €1.800.000)

1978 Lancia Sibilo, s/n S 12201

Coming as it did off the heels of the magnificent Stratos Zero (1970) and the hugely successful Lancia Stratos Rally car (1971 intro, 1974 production), the Sibilo, introduced at the Turin Auto Show in 1978, initially disappoints, but nevertheless is a concept car that like its predecessors, takes styling to extremes. Designed at Bertone’s Style Center at Caprie (NOT the island of Capri), it builds on the Stratos Rally platform, adding four much needed inches to the wheelbase, improving interior space and ride. Like the Zero, The Sibilo blends the glass seamlessly; Bertone always felt that window surfaces were important to the aesthetics of an automobile. The coachbuilder had come up with many daring solutions regarding windows (the Marzal, Carabo, Stratos, and Navajo), and with the Sibilo Bertone attempted to blend them in completely with the bodywork, giving a more uniform look as if a single sculpture, however brick-like. Sibilo’s steering and instrumentation was given a completely new, original touch: information is displayed digitally on a device located close to where the windscreen meets the bodywork. Auction Estimate: €60.000 – €100.000.

Chevrolet Corvair Testudo 1963, S/N20927w207657

The Testudo was developed in parallel with GM’s own Corvair Monza GT and SS dream cars, and was an early career highlight of a young Giorgetto Giugiaro. It debuted at Geneva Motor Show on 3 March, 1963. Although one of Giugiaro’s favorites, we think the Corvair Testudo fails the test of time. Its design influenced the Porsche 928 and the AMC Pacer, neither one of which were styling champions. It was, however, a sleek and futuristic method of clothing the rear engine Corvair chassis in a new suit. The design is characterized by sporting a totally transparent one-piece windscreen and roof cover that opened forward as did the Miura-like headlights. and the sleek long wheelbase belied the Corvair engine placed behind the rear wheels. The Chevrolet Testudo was fully restored before being shown at Pebble Beach. The Testudo used an 81 bhp, 2,372 cc flat-six air-cooled engine with two valves per cylinder, two single-choke Rochester downdraught carburetors, anda four-speed manual gearbox. (The auction estimate is €500.000 – €800.000)