Nuccio Bertone

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Giuseppe Bertone, called "Nuccio", (Torino, July 4, 1914 – Torino, February 26, 1997) was a famed automobile designer and constructor. He took over Carrozzeria Bertone from his father, Giovanni after World War II, growing the small business to a carbuilding and designing powerhouse. After racing Fiats, O.S.C.A.s, Maseratis, and Ferraris, Bertone moved to construction, agreeing to build his first car, a series of 200 MGs, at the 1952 Turin Motor Show. He drew attention at the Paris Motor Show that year with an Abarth concept, and was chosen to design the replacement for the Alfa Romeo Disco Volante. These so-called BAT (Berlina Aerodinamica Technica) cars used the Alfa Romeo 1900 Sprint chassis.

Two years later at Turin, Bertone introduced the Storm Z concept based on a Dodge chassis alongside his latest BAT concept and a prototype of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint, which would become the company's main product for the coming years. Bertone built more than 31,000 bodies in 1960, including Fiat 850 Spiders, Fiat Dinos, Simca 1200S coupes, the Alfa Romeo Montreal, and Lamborghinis. His 100th design was a special Ford Mustang, introduced at the 1965 New York Auto Show and commissioned by Automobile Quarterly.

Bertone summed up his philosophy when introducing the Fiat 850:

"Our role is the production of car bodywork on which we impose the styling trends, build prototypes, develop the design, the production methods, and the tooling. Naturally, we produce them in quantity."

Bertone's Ferrari designs were a radical departure for that company and drew the ire of rival Pininfarina. His two 25OGT coupes were only a foreshadow to the controversial 308GT4 of the 1970s.