I think this is new?? I always liked GM showcars, and my favorite Pontiac is the Banshee wich I saw in person. Image Unavailable, Please Login
I love the building, the car is ok. Those things on the front remind me of a 1950's American bumper. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Yes, cool book. I've asked Don the author, to do another follow-up book with some of the cars he wasn't able to add to this version. he said he's working on it. one of my 'babies' is on p.166-67
John, thanks for the name of the concept! It's quite odd and interesting. I admire the headlights at some point: they are extremely low-profile, but most likely they worked. Sliding door is also unique for a sports-coupe. Bertone's collection was auctioned in 2014, not sure what happened next. Bertone is still in free sail, still bankrupt and nobody bought it. Same with new DeTomaso factory owners, they are bankrupt too. https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=es&tl=en&js=y&u=http%3A%2F%2Flosorigenes.net%2Fmarcas%2Flamborghini%2Flamborghini.html The most complete Lamborghini story I've read so far. Includes some development information of Countach (barn story) and extremely deep (in comparison) info about LM002 production. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Oh, btw. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha5AWr9QGIM[/ame] And a longer Bertone prototypes video from the 80s [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynDCCXNg0Cc[/ame] That gear selector is quite unique and yet functional. I guess Ramarro also had retractable fog lights, but they never used them.
Bingo! http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4027/4408014545_4d3934780a_z.jpg And an article on Ramarro and development. Yup, I was right about the fog lights. http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5051/5524157164_3a4df5a891_o.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5251/5524157902_6f31a98a50_o.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5258/5523567073_e003239823_o.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5139/5524160116_8e29fa16d7_o.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5251/5524161028_f31bee55a8_o.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5292/5523569427_5c7193a542_o.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5138/5523570387_bd4d874480_o.jpg
Still have the brochure for that car: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Wow, that's amazing! Since when you got that? It seems like if you could get those, that would be in mid-80s. I know the car is ridiculous in looks, but some points are interesting. The roof is nice too, being a single-piece. I like such roofs, but making them stiff and accident-proof is quite a problem.
Thanks! I got it when Mr. Bertone visited GM Design to show us the car. Must have been mid '80's i would guess, but not sure of exact date.
That's an honour! I still a lot of Gandini influence in all of them, guess, he worked or guided the designs. They look pretty much alike to his Citroen BX design, well, more or less.
Yes it was a great honor to meet Mr. Bertone.He was one of my idols as a design student. What a gentleman. He signed my Bertone Design book for me which I though was really cool. That whole period for Bertone had them doing really creative designs. The Contact was only the beginning of that form vocabulary that made it into production, along with the X1/9, and the Ferrari 308 GT4. Cool stuff.
So Mr.Bertone brought the car as well? It's strange how that all had fallen apart, when Mr.Bertone passed away. I don't know what's left now. I've seen a video with Gandini and others (preceeding the bankruptcy), praising Bertone design house, but, guess, it didn't help. Recently, I've been studying cars with low roof slope, i.e. low side window angle. I know it's 80s-90s thing, but anyway I'd like to know if it's worth. So far, the problems are: - the car has to be pretty wide to have some space inside - the looks won't necessarily benefit from it <-- - big problems with window mechanisms - aerodynamics - ??? Does anyone have some studies on the aerodynamics with low roof slope? Do you know some cars with low roof that have functional windows and at the same time look great? Countach has got about 40 degrees, strangely enough, Diablo is close with 45-50! (none of the latter Lambos). BMW M1 seems to be the only one with functional windows of full height with nearly the same angle. There are some other low sloped cars like Dome Zero, but in most cases they are plain ugly. And in most cases such windows are fixed. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
It's ATS Wildtwelve: 3.8 V12 with forced induction and hybrid-something. I suppose the engine would be, as usual, based on some bike engine. Btw, it's not a render, but a real-life concept. ATS (Automobili Turismo e Sport) is a newly revived company, the original was Bizzarrini's venture in 60s.
As for me, I don't like the front much (good ideas, just didn't work out altogether), but the rear is interesting. Image Unavailable, Please Login
The Bertone story is a sad one. Once Mr. Bertone passed away there was an internal struggle between the wife & 2 daughters. After yrs of infighting Mrs. Bertone finally took over, but it was too little, too late. The world had changed and the car biz had changed. And yes, he personally came to Michigan to show the Ramarro at GM Design. Much as Sergio Pininfarina came to show the Cadillac Allante. They wanted GM business. I believe you are referring to the term 'tumblehome':'The inward slope of the "greenhouse" above the beltline is called tumblehome. An example of a car with a pronounced tumblehome would be the Lamborghini Countach.' Usually it's a matter of degree (no pun intended) The greater the angle as with the Countach, the more difficult it is to drop the side glass, and provide enough headroom. The car does indeed get wider to allow for the occupants. 'Most' high volume production cars split the difference between the extreme of the Lambo & dead vertical as in old Jeeps & Land Rovers. For sportscars the owners put up with the width and headroom. In a sedan, it becomes more difficult.
On the far right, that looks a bit like a cross between a BMW 6-series and a Bugatti Veyron. What is it? All the best, Andrew.
In real life, a '73 Impala hardtop looked like a car with the "pronounced tumblehome" effect. Looked quite slopey for a sedan! Harley Earl's rules were kept well, but again, the side windows had taken almost full width of the car to make the effect. Do you know some tumblehome'd sports cars that look awesome? The effect is most pronounced on Lotec Sirius, but it's as far from beauty as LM002 from having a real-life purpose. It actually is a Bugatti itself! But an Italian venture of the 90s of Romano Artioli. The design of the initial "EB110 prototype" is credited to Marcello Gandini and Bertone. Even Michael Schumacher had one, in yellow. He praised it a lot, until he rear-ended other car in traffic (true story).
Pininfarina always seemed to get it right, proportion wise with tumblehome on the Ferraris they were responsible for.
