Lamborghini Miura P400
The actual car from “The Italian Job”
Lamborghini’s long and successful adventure in the world of cars began in the early 1960s when Ferruccio Lamborghini, an Emilian entrepreneur who had made a fortune building tractors and boilers, noticed that his Ferrari 250 GT kept running into frequent technical malfunctions with its clutch, which resulted in exorbitant repair expenses. He complained in person to Enzo Ferrari and when the Drake reportedly replied that “The clutch is not the problem. The problem is you don’t know how to drive a Ferrari and you break the clutch.”, Ferruccio saw an opportunity and decided right there and then to make his own cars, so he could be sure work the way he wanted them to. Lamborghini Automobili was officially founded in 1963 and immediately hired some extraordinary talent: Giotto Bizzarrini was entrusted with the creation of a 3,500cc V12 engine and Giampaolo Dallara with the development of the chassis. The first car produced was the 350 GTV, a prototype designed by Franco Scaglione and presented in 1963, followed by the 350 GT and 400 GT production versions with Touring bodywork over the next few years. Then, in a market dominated by front-engine models that focused mainly on engine power, Giampaolo Dallara designed a revolutionary road sports car, the Miura presented in 1966, for Ferruccio Lamborghini: a boxed steel plate chassis, V-12 engine mounted transversely in the rear, a gearbox housing cast in the engine block itself, perfect weight distribution that kept everything inboard, and an impressive power output of 350hp that was particularly high for 1966. In addition to these technical details, the truly unique design by the hand of Marcello Gandini, Bertone's chief designer. Ferruccio Lamborghini, who was born under the sign of the bull, decided to name this finished automobile Miura, paying homage to the famed breeder of fighting bulls, Don Eduardo Miura Fernandez. The Miura served as the pioneer in an extensive line of vehicles produced built by Lamborghini, each one given names inspired by bullfighting. The Miura was the first Lamborghini model to introduce the concept of innovation that would subsequently become a distinctive characteristic of the brand. After launching with the 350 GT, a harmonious front-engine coupe designed by Touring, Lamborghini inaugurated a series of future-oriented V12 models that included the Miura and then Countach and Diablo. A huge success at its launch at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show, 474 examples of the model were produced with two major evolutions: the P400S and the P400SV. The version built for competitions, the Jota, was actually never produced as Ferruccio Lamborghini, then enjoying considerable success with his road-going creations, opposed the idea of racing as it meant competing against the Maranello manufacturer in a sport he had no experience in. The Miura P400 immediately became an object of desire. Shortly after being presented at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show, Lamborghini was contacted by Paramount Pictures who asked if they could feature a Miura P400 in the movie “The Italian Job”. A big opportunity for free global publicity that Sant’Agata couldn’t miss, so they supplied chassis #3586 for the motion shots and an empty shell in the same colour but with no engine to simulate the crash at the exit of the Great St Bernard Tunnel. Cinema audiences were so shocked by this scene that many feared that the real car had been destroyed as well. The success of the film, especially the opening sequence, made the whole world dream and gave the Miura iconic status, so much so that it was chosen by many stars from show business including Johnny Hallyday, Peter Sellers, Miles Davies just to name a few. After extensive research, evidence and documentation, historical specialists proved unequivocally that chassis #3586 was the exact same one used in the filming of the movie “The Italian Job”, in particular in the driving sequence with Rossano Brazzi at the wheel. After being certified by Polo Storico Lamborghini, the car participated in the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2019, taking the podium in the "Miura" class, and in the same year received a special prize at the “Lamborghini e Design” Concours d'Elegance organized in Italy, in Porto Piccolo, by the Brand from Sant'Agata Bolognese. In 2021 it was exhibited at the Musée National de l'Automobile in Mulhouse, France, for the “Pop Lamborghini” exhibition, and in 2022 it won the “Stars on Wheels” class award at The ICE Concours d'Elegance, showing itself in all its beauty on the frozen surface of Lake St. Moritz.
BMW 507 Roadster
Kaiser Collection 1959 BMW 507 Series II Roadster #70163
BMW's history began in 1916 and its roots lie in the production of aircraft engines, an activity that filled the company’s order books in the early years and, thanks to its military connections, allowed it to expand. The technical know-how it gained during that period led first to the production of motorcycles, from 1923, and later to the assembly of cars. From the 1930s onwards, BMW passed through a very important period which included the launch of the 303, the first car equipped with the “double kidney” front grille that became a hallmark of the Bavarian brand, and with the first significant victories in international races with the 328, including the Mille Miglia in 1940. World War II inflicted a severe setback on BMW, which the Nazi’s first forced to stop production of cars and motorcycles in order to refocus on aircraft engines and, after the end of the conflict, when the Allies confiscated the Munich plant and three factories in the eastern part of Germany, which ended up in Soviet hands. The opportunity to revive the brand came after a meeting between BMW’s top management and Max Hoffman, the largest importer of German cars into the United States, who had already played an important role in the overseas success of the Porsche 356 Speedster, the Mercedes-Benz 190 SL and the 300 SL “Gullwing”. BMW also wanted a distribution facility in America, and with these assumptions came the idea of producing a sports car that would be significantly more attractive than the small British roadsters yet cheaper than the cars offered by Mercedes. Hoffman suggested that the design of their car be followed by the Count and designer Albrecht von Goertz, who proposed a more convincing design than the one developed in-house. Consequently, in the summer of 1955 at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, the 507 was unveiled. The perfect shape of the car, built to the highest quality with a sinuous design and extraordinary appeal, attracted multiple famous people and celebrities overseas, above all Elvis Presley. One unforgettable fact about the 507 is the story between it and the “King of Rock'n'Roll”: when he was only 23 years old, during his military service at the U.S. Army base in Friedberg, Germany, he bought a white example that belonged to the driver, Hans Stuck. In order to hide the many love messages scrawled all over the bodywork of the car by his adoring fans, which of course the young recruit’s superiors could not tolerate, Elvis had the car repainted red. However, not even the jet set effect succeeded in increasing sales: high production costs due to an organization that was still based on craftsmanship and a consequent sales price that was almost double what everyone expected led to a production run of only 252 units. A mistake that nearly threw BMW into bankruptcy. The role of the 507 today is completely transformed, its high quality and rarity making it one of the most exclusive and valuable cars in the long history of the Munich-based company and in the world of classic cars. Chassis #70163 was discovered in South America and brought back to Europe. Ironically, even here, the very high asking price meant it remained in the dealerships for a long time before it became part of the Kaiser Collection. A restoration that lasted several years brought the car to its current award-winning concours standard with the exact specifications of Elvis Presley’s 507. The car has matching numbers and has been presented and awarded at the Schloss Dyck Concours d’Elegance in Germany. Today it is used for tours and summer drives.
Cisitalia 202 Pininfarina
1947 Cisitalia 202
The story of Cisitalia began in Turin, Italy, in 1946. Founded by the eclectic entrepreneur Piero Dusio and the driver Piero Taruffi, it initially focused on the development of a single-seater, the D46 which, thanks to a number of sporting successes and the iconic image of Tazio Nuvolari who continued to race despite the steering wheel becoming detached, shot the brand into the spotlight. This increased popularity gave Cisitalia the motivation to expand its range with a small sports car for road use based on the mechanics of the D46, which would go on to represent a fundamental chapter in the history of motoring. The first version of the Cisitalia 202, known as the 202 CMM (Coupé Mille Miglia) and initially designed by Dante Giacosa, the creator of the Fiat 500, together with the technical director of Cisitalia, Giuseppe Savonuzzi, was presented as a very aerodynamic and innovative car, with a streamlined tail and two very prominent shark fins on the rear. This was the starting point for Battista ‘Pinin’ Farina to create the 202 Gran Sport, whose exquisite shapes were the culmination and perfection of everything experimented previously: the bonnet, body, mudguards and headlights were all perfectly harmonized, creating a truly timeless design. Presented in 1947 at the Mostra della Carrozzeria in the Triennale, Milan and the Paris Motor Show of the same year, it won the Coppa d’Oro award at the Concorso d’Eleganza in Villa d’Este in the same year. The Cisitalia 202 Gran Sport was called “a sculpture in motion” in 1951 when it was chosen for an exhibition along with seven other cars at the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA). Since 1972, it has been on permanent display. The 202 can rightly be considered the first example of the modern sports car and its lines have had a strong impact on the design aesthetics of the famous Turin coachbuilder, breaking with tradition and introducing a number of original style concepts. The 202 was built on top of a redesigned chassis and was the first production car equipped with a tubular chassis, while the mechanics were based on numerous Fiat components starting from the 1089cc four-cylinder engine derived from the 1100 and tuned to develop 66 horsepower. Over the course of production from 1946 to 1952 the design evolved but remained essentially the same, also because, at the time, small series cars were often bodied by different coachbuilders, in this case the Farina Ateliers and to a lesser extent those of Vignale. Despite the palpable quality of the design, the advanced mechanics that made it very competitive on the track, including a second place overall by Nuvolari in the Mille Miglia of 1947, Cisitalia did not have a significant commercial success. Less than 200 examples were built over a period of just five years.
Aston Martin DB4GT
The Aston Martin DB4 GT made its first appearance in 1959, just a year after the original DB4 had its own grand unveiling. Designed to rival the Ferrari 250 GT on the racetrack, the DB4 GT was a brilliant fusion of British engineering and Italian design, thanks to Carrozzeria Touring of Milan, who had also crafted the body of the standard DB4. The car was introduced at the 1959 London Motor Show and immediately turned heads, partly because racing legend Stirling Moss piloted it to victory at the International Trophy at Silverstone in the same year. While it was engineered for competitive racing, it also captivated road car aficionados. A major focus of the DB4 GT's design was minimizing weight. To achieve this, Aston Martin trimmed the wheelbase by around 12 inches and utilized a lightweight 18-gauge magnesium-aluminum alloy on a tubular frame, drawing from the Superleggera design philosophy. Unique features like hidden front headlamps behind Plexiglas covers, strategically positioned air intakes for optimal cooling, and a 3670 cc inline-six engine that churned out an impressive 302 horsepower, distinguished the DB4 GT. Initially, the DB4 GT was able to compete against Ferrari's long-wheelbase 250 GTs on the track. However, when Ferrari introduced the 250 GT SWB, the DB4 GT found itself outpaced, yet it remained a formidable contender. Aston Martin only produced 74 units of the DB4 GT, many of which ended up in private collections as road cars, making them exceedingly rare and sought-after today. Interestingly, 30 of these were manufactured with left-hand drive, adding to their desirability in subsequent years. Although the DB4 GT didn't quite eclipse Ferrari in racing or achieve the sales success that Aston Martin had envisioned, it earned an iconic status within the brand's legacy. Seen as a stepping stone to the famous DB5—forever linked with James Bond—the DB4 GT was a groundbreaking vehicle that was ahead of its time. Like its Italian counterpart, the Cisitalia 202, the DB4 GT stands as a landmark in automotive design, encapsulating the spirit of its era while also setting the stage for future sports cars.
