Supercars - Böcker

The Lamborghini Countach: a remarkable supercar, a car of extreme and timeless appeal is the protagonist of this new monograph. The book opens with the long period of gestation in which Marcello Gandini – then head of design at Carrozzeria Bertone – defined the futuristic lines of a car that, to many at first sight seemed to have come from another planet thanks to the taut, sharply creased lines of its bodywork and its muscular mechanical specification, with the V12 engine located behind the driver’s shoulders. When it progressed from a concept to a production model (LP 400), the Countach successfully maintained its charisma, becoming one of the most enduring supercars of all. The thorough text draws on the direct testimony of many of the figures who contributed to the creation of the Countach: from Marcello Gandini to Giampaolo Dallara and through to the invaluable insights provided by the daughter of Paolo Stanzani.The book covers all the principal versions of the Countach: from the first LP 500 to the LP 400, from the 48-valve to the monstrous 5000 QW through to the 25 Anniversario that in 1990 represented the final chapter in the history of this unforgettable car.

A must, an "exaggerated" Ferrari, a remarkably impressive car still today, more than 30 years on from its launch. The Ferrari F40 caused a sensation when it first saw the light of day in 1987 thanks to its uncompromising lines and a formidable mechanical specification, most of which left in plain sight and promising unrivalled performance. The car emanated immense appeal from every side. The last of the Prancing Horse's GT cars "approved" by Enzo Ferrari is the protagonist of this book by Gaetano Derosa, a book that starts from a long way out, analysing the "forebears" of the F40: from the 250 LM of 1963 to the 308 "Millechiodi" of 1978, to the 288 GTO of 1984 and the GTO Evoluzione of 1986. The technical and stylistic evolution of the F40 is also recounted by the figures responsible for this thoroughbred Ferrari: from Leonardo Fioravanti, in his dual role as designer and at the time vice-chairman of the Maranello firm to Nicola Materazzi who defined the monstrous eight-cylinder engine that powered the car and through to Piero Ferrari himself one of the great supporters of the F40 Le Mans project. It is no coincidence that the book concludes with an exhaustive chapter dedicated to the F40 in racing, from the GT and single-marque championships to the return to the Le Mans 24 Hours.

The 8C Competizione was launched in 2008, a synthesis of the new “Alfa Romeo philosophy”, the marque’s strategy to reaffirm its uniqueness and ability to bring together emotion, engineering and aerodynamic efficiency and the exaltation of driving pleasure. From the concept car to the version produced in just 500 examples, just a very few modifications were made by the ""Centro Stile"" at Arese; this supercar struck an immediate chord and relaunched the image of the marque among the world’s most important collectors. This success was to be repeated with the 8C Spider – also produced in a limited series – which the Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson defined as the world’s most beautiful car. The Supercars series could hardly not feature a title dedicated to these two bespoke Alfas. Ample space is dedicated to the history and stylistic evolution of the two models, including an examination of the original Frau interior trim specifications. There are also chapters devoted to the technical history of the cars and the driving impressions of those who have tested them on track. The book comes with a foreword by Carlo Di Giusto, journalist of the Italian magazine Quattroruote (Four Wheels) and leading expert on driving and road tests of both small cars and supercars.The particularly rich illustrations have largely been drawn from the archives of the magazine Quattroruote.

The Testarossa, one of the most “provocative” Ferraris of all time, caused a sensation from its “preview” at the Paris Lido in 1984. It boasted extreme styling, with a rear track significantly wider than the front and conspicuous air intake strakes on the flanks, while mechanically it sported a mighty V12 engine displacing almost five. The Supercars series could hardly fail to include a title devoted to this sensational car and recounting its technical and stylistic genesis. The book covers both the Testarossa's “ancestors” – the 365 GTB/4 'Daytona' and the 512 BB – and its “descendants” – the 512 TR and the F512 M, not to forget the Spider version commissioned by Avvocato Gianni Agnelli and the sensational Mythos, the prototype designed by Pininfarina in 1989 and based on the rolling chassis of this car. The book is completed by the road tests that featured the car in the magazine Quattroruote.

While 1984 was not an easy year for Ferrari in Formula 1, the same cannot be said for the production cars, with the dramatic return of two of the most iconic and evocative names in the history of the Prancing Horse: Testarossa – already featured in a monograph in this series – and GTO, the new Ferrari grand tourer, the latest in the long and glorious line of eight-cylinder cars which was launched at that year’s Geneva motor show.The 288 GTO was derived directly from the 308 GTB Speciale prototype prepared by Pininfarina in 1977, in effect a “pumped up” 308 with even more aggressive bodywork and powered by a muscular 2.8-litre V8 capable of delivering around 400 hp, good for a top speed of a little over 300 kph.Following the F40 and the Testarossa books in this series, this monograph on 288 GTO retraces the technical and stylistic genesis of the supercar, with contributions from several of the artificers of the model. All this accompanied by invaluable materials, many of which previously unpublished, drawn from the archives of the magazine Quattroruote.

The story of theDiablo, the heir to the Countach, the Lamborghini supercar par excellence ofthe 1990s, the car that took the company from an artisan dimension to oneverging on the industrial, so much so as to be the company's first modelavailable in two bodywork variants.This was the carthat single-handedly made it through the marque's darkest periods, succeedingin sustaining the company and keeping it alive. This was also the car that wasborn out of the inventiveness of Luigi Marmiroli and the art of MarcelloGandini, a car that was refined over time so that it always remained close tothe changing tastes of its clientele.This book tracesthe model's technical and industrial genesis, giving voice to several of theprotagonists of the time, while also presenting the road tests dedicated to theDiablo by the Italian monthly Quattroruote.

While it is true that the V12 engine has always been seen as the most iconic power unit for the road cars – not to mention to the racing models – that have left the factory in Maranello, it is equally true that in the mid-Seventies it was an eight-cylinder car that definitively projected Ferrari towards an industrial dimension. The 308 GTB, which appeared at the 1975 Paris Motor Show, was the model that proved capable of revolutionising the image of the Ferrari berlinettas, an image once again born out of the flair of Leonardo Fioravanti. With its soft yet muscular lines, the 308 took the lead in a long line of GTs from the Cavallino – including the 208 and the 328 – all powered by V8 engines located behind the cockpit and offered with closed and open bodywork, which drove the Maranello marque into the late 1980s, with previously unheard of production figures.Those unforgettable cars, now more than ever sought after by collectors, could hardly be absent from the Supercars series