Prototypes that promised the future and never left the showroom.
ALFA ROMEO B.A.T. 5, 7 AND 9 — WHEN ITALY INVENTED THE FUTURE WITH WOOL THREAD Turin, 1953. A man tapes wool threads all over a car’s bodywork. He drives it onto the road. Another car follows alongside, photographing it at speed. When they return to the workshop, the man studies the photos. He looks … Read more
NO CURVES, NO DOORS, NO MERCY. THE FERRARI ANTI-FERRARI, THE 512S MODULO The sketch in the corner of a Rolls-Royce blueprint Spring of 1968. Paolo Martin is 25 years old. He has just been made chief of the styling department at Pininfarina. On his drafting table, a technical drawing of the Rolls-Royce Camargue. A large … Read more
The Renault Espace F1: The Minivan That Was Faster Than a Ferrari F40 Americans have a complicated relationship with minivans. We need them but we don’t want to admit it. The Chrysler Voyager saved road trips. The Honda Odyssey saved soccer practice. But nobody — absolutely nobody — has ever called a minivan exciting. Except … Read more
