First Sketch: Touring Superleggera Disco Volante Concept


Italian coachbuilding firm Touring Superleggera will launch a concept model called the Disco VOlante 2012 at the Geneva Motor Show next month. Based on Alfa Romeo 8C running gear, the concept car pays homage to the 1952 Alfa Romeo Disco Volante sports car.

The original Alfa, named for the Italian words for flying saucer, was an extremely aerodynamic sports car with bubble-shaped styling. Though it looked somewhat like a Jaguar E-Type of the same era, the Alfa Romeo had a drag coefficient of just 0.25 — less than modern-day eco cars like the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt. The car was launched with a 158-hp 2.0-liter engine and could top 140 mph.

As previewed by this sketch, the DV 2012 will follow the car’s basic styling formula, with cues like raised bubbles over each front fender, a tapered nose reminiscent of a boat hull, and a narrow greenhouse. The bodywork will likely be hand crafted from both aluminum and carbon fiber. Beneath the sultry skin lurk the underpinnings from the Alfa Romeo 8C supercar, including that car’s 450-hp, 4.7-liter V-8 engine.

Not much else is known about the Disco Volante 2012. The concept shown in Geneva will reportedly only be a design study with no running gear, but Touring Superleggera is said to have already green-lit a production model. It’s certain that the car would be built in extremely limited quantities.

In previous years, Touring Superleggera has used the Geneva show to unveil a lightweight version of the Gumpert Apollo and a unique Bentley shooting brake.

Thanks to: Motor Trend

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