Among the hundred cars that will be showcased when the inaugural Grand Basel exhibition opens its doors tomorrow are racing legends, movie icons, radical one-offs, culturally-significant classics and the world premiere of a contemporary coachbuilt special.
Significant Italian cars will take centre stage during the exhibition and their number includes the reimagined Lancia Delta Integrale “Futurista”, a Ferrari 250 GTO that was once Enzo Ferrari’s personal car, the Lamborghini Miura which starred in “The Italian Job” blockbuster, Ferrari’s newest “One-Off” coachbuilt car, the SP38, revealed at Villa d’Este back in May and a Cisitalia 202 SC, a legendary car that is regarded as introducing one of the most significant designs of all time.
Lancia Delta Integrale Futurista (2018)
A boutique engineering company founded by racing driver Eugenio Amos, Automobili Amos has set out to restore and reimagine the iconic Lancia Delta Integrale.
The ‘Integrale Futurista’ carries over the familiar design of the Italian- built rally legend, but features more than 1,000 new components, including a wider body constructed from hand-beaten aluminium panels, and a bespoke carbon-fibre front fascia.
Modern technology has been used judiciously to enhance the powertrain, chassis and suspension, while aligning closely with the character and flair of the original. Amos says each car will take approximately four months to build. The Integrale Futurista’s appearance at Grand Basel is the world premiere of this remarkable new car.
Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta (1960)
Revealed at the Paris Motor Show in October 1959, the short-wheelbase – or ‘passo corto’ – 250 GT Berlinetta was Ferrari’s vision of the archetype road-legal racing car. The bodywork was designed by Pininfarina and would be built by Scaglietti in Modena, clothed either in aluminium or steel. The 250 GT SWB Berlinetta was the first production road car from Ferrari to be fitted with disc brakes as standard, and the 3.0-litre V12 Colombo engine could be ordered in varying states of tune, depending on whether it was intended mainly for road use or would be raced competitively on track.
This particular 250 GT SWB – chassis 2111GT – is a very special example, as it was used by Enzo Ferrari himself between February and September 1961. The car was a prototype for the new 1961 body shape, and numerous photos show Enzo behind the wheel of the car during that year.
Lamborghini Miura (1968)
Lamborghini heralded a new area of sports cars on 10 March 1966 by unveiling the Miura. In addition to the groundbreaking and timeless Italian design, the Miura continues to epitomise 'la dolce vita' of the Swinging Sixties.
The iconic opening sequence of ‘The Italian Job’ was filmed using this Lamborghini Miura for the driving scene, and a matching painted ‘body double’ shell as a stand-in so it could appear to have been wrecked. This car used for driving was borrowed by the film crew during June 1968 and when the film was released in 1969, it changed the image of Lamborghini forever. Arguably one of the most famous cars ever built thanks to its starring role on screen, this very Miura is a legendary icon of film and cultural history.
Ferrari SP38 (2018)
The first car attributed to Ferrari’s ‘Special Projects’ division – the F430-based SP1 – was revealed in 2008. Under a new banner of the ‘One-Off’ programme, and 10 years after the first such bespoke car was shown, Ferrari revealed the incredible SP38 at this year’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este in Italy.
The SP38 uses the underpinnings of a 488 GTB model, but has dramatically different bodywork, with certain features – such as the louvred engine cover and wrap-over rear wing – inspired by Ferrari’s iconic F40 supercar. Sleeker side panels, slim headlights and tightly-enclosed rear lights are all exclusive to the SP38, as are the set of bespoke alloy wheels and the wide, prominent rear diffuser. It is a truly unique contemporary car in the tradition of classic coachbuilding.
Cisitalia 202 SC (1947)
Founded by industrialist and amateur racing driver, Piero Dusio, the Cisitalia automobile brand derived its name his conglomerate – Consorzio Industriale Sportivo Italia. Having proved his ideas on agile, lightweight automobiles with Italy’s first post-war race car, Dusio unveiled the model 202 road car – clothed with a bespoke aluminium body by Pinin Farina – at Villa d’Este in 1947 and the Paris Motor Show a month later.
It was an aesthetic and technical masterpiece – a design achievement which would go on to transform the shapes and styles of post-war automobiles, influencing myriad single-form contoured bodies. Articles written in the present day have referred to it as the ‘genesis of modern car design’, which is no exaggeration.
One example is exhibited at the MoMa (Museum of Modern Art) in New York, where it is shown as a “moving sculpture” and one of the 10 best automotive designs of all time. The car shown at Grand Basel was restored from ‘barn find’ condition to concours level, and subsequently graced the cover of the 2014 edition of The Classic Cars Book published by teNeues.
A unique format of curation and exhibition
Grand Basel, which commences a global tour, starting this week, will present exceptional cars in the contexts of art, design, architecture and lifestyle. The show’s unique and independent advisory board of experts – comprises leading cultural and design authorities, architects and artists – will curate the exhibits, in order to ensure its peerless quality and originality.
Exceptional automobiles will be presented in an exceptional setting at Grand Basel, thanks to a bold exhibition concept. Its homogeneous design, inspired by contemporary architecture, forgoes the often-nostalgic ambience of established car shows, instead allowing the motor cars to be admired in a surrounding reminiscent of modern museums.
The inaugural Grand Basel show, which will take place from 6-9 September in Basel, Switzerland, leads the way for upcoming shows in Miami Beach, from 22-24 February 2019, and Hong Kong in May 2019.
Photos: Grand Basel 2018
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