Cars

In the early nineties, Aston was in the process of a major brand overhaul and was operating under the Ford umbrella; as was Ghia, the Italian Carrozzeria purchased by the blue oval in 1970. With the substantial funds on offer from the American giant, discussions had begun on what the British marque could do to expand its market and eventually Moray Callum – working for Ghia at the time – was enlisted to design a four-door saloon to revive the defunct Lagonda brand. Ironically, Moray’s older brother Ian was simultaneously designing the DB7.

Matra was a French manufacturer best known for its production of aeronautics and weaponry – until, that is, it entered its first full Formula 1 season in 1968. The pinnacle of its motorsport involvement came just a year later, when the Matra-Ford team won the 1969 Constructors’ Championship, with Jackie Stewart easily taking the corresponding Drivers’ title. Alongside Matra’s Formula 1 endeavours, the company had also begun producing sports cars for the road, following the acquisition of Automobiles René Bonnet.

The C52 was conceived during an unstable period for Alfa Romeo. While the company had just taken the 1951 Formula 1 World Championship, post-War cash shortages within the firm led to its withdrawal from the competition, with the 1900 Berlina road car deemed to be of higher importance. But the competition department was allowed a stay of execution, partly hinging on the promise that it could create an image-boosting race car for entrance into the 1952 Le Mans and Mille Miglia, with the potential to be sold to amateur racers.

In 1974, the tireless Giugiaro – fresh from penning Maseratis Ghibli, Bora and Merak – began a project to design a four-door Maserati that combined the luxury of an American limousine with abundant power – the latter being notably absent in the 207bhp Quattroporte II of the same year. The philosophy of Giugiaro’s car was expounded in its name, ‘Medici’: inspired by the celebrated Florence family that had risen to fame in the 14th Century, through an unequivocal business aptitude and a love of culture and arts.

What was newsworthy about the Singer Racing Silver metallic with Ruby Red interior – a homage to a classic, high-performance early 911 – was that it showcased sophisticated new processes and partnerships with world-class suppliers that will further elevate founder and creative director Rob Dickinson’s dream of building the ultimate air-cooled 911.

However, the story of its gestation is just as interesting as the outcome; for it was originally conceived as a race car, rather than the concours queen it has become.

The first of these lay in its configuration: the Bulldog remains the only ever mid-engined Aston Martin to this day, with a 5.3-litre V8 nestled behind the two occupants. An output of well over 600bhp was achieved courtesy of a pair of Garrett turbochargers and a Bosch fuel-injection system – and although its fastest official speed recorded at the MIRA test track was 191mph (an exact match for the current DBS), Aston Martin claimed a theoretical (if slightly ambitious) top speed of 237mph.

Unlike its modern counterpart, though, the Rainbow's roof required manual work to remove, fold and stow in the back.

The angular proportions of the car no doubt lean heavily on the fact that the Rainbow was never proposed as a precursor to a mass-production model. This gave legendary styling house Bertone – and its head designer Marcello Gandini – the freedom to experiment with the Ferrari ethos and design language, the wedge profile and dramatic 90-degree lines having never before been seen on a car bearing the Prancing Horse badge.

The year was 1969; Nixon had just been sworn in, Rupert Murdoch had purchased the News of the World, and Apollo 11 was about to land on the moon. But there was a far more important event for Australian car enthusiasts: the debut of the Holden Hurricane concept car.

To consider the Fiat 8V Supersonic, it is first necessary to look at the Conrero-Alfa Romeo. This car was the brainchild of Virgilio Conrero, the Alfa Romeo tuning wizard from Turin. Gentleman driver Robert Fehlmann from Switzerland asked him to build a special car for the 1953 Mille Miglia, based around an Alfa Romeo 1900C Sprint engine with a combination of Fiat 1400 and Lancia Aurelia components. For the coachwork, Conrero went to his friend Giovanni Savonuzzi (of Cisitalia fame), who had just been made head of design at Carrozzeria Ghia.