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Almost all the Shamal models built were red or black, despite being available in the full palette offered by Maserati in the early 1990s. We managed to get our hands on one of the very few examples finished — and, fortunately, still preserved — in blue. The story of an uncommon car to introduce an equally uncommon model: one that brought the V8 back into Maserati’s range and raised both the image and the ambitions of the sports cars derived from the prolific Biturbo family. Words Marco Visani Photography Leonardo Perugini To tell the story of a car starting from its colour can mean one of two things: either the narrator is unusual, or the colour is. As for the former, we are far too involved to judge. As for the latter, there is no doubt: encountering a blue Maserati Shamal is rarer than finding a needle in a haystack. For the simple reason that almost all those that left the assembly lines on Viale Ciro Menotti, in Modena — save, it seems, for little more than a dozen — were Rosso Maserati or Dazing Black. An unusual misunderstanding lay behind this near-unanimity: the brand’s official communication — press release images and brochure photography — portrayed the car exclusively in these two shades. Colours that were, in fact, a nod to the contemporary Biturbo Racing, itself offered only in those hues. Whether customers walked into a Maserati dealership already intent on ordering their car in red or black, or whether these colours were subtly “imposed” by salesmen despite the availability of the full Maserati palette — both solid and metallic — remains unclear. Claudio Ivaldi, president of the Biturbo Club Italia and author of Maserati: L’era Biturbo, a 416-page tome that stands as the definitive bible of this model family (if you do not already own it, you should — it is an extraordinary read), offers no firm hypothesis. Or rather, he advances a cautious, almost inverse suggestion: since the overwhelming majority of early cars were sold in red or black, subsequent buyers simply came to believe those were the only available options. However it happened — and by now it matters little — the fact remains that our Shamal, the one featured in these pages, is finished in Blu Sera. Its owner, Fabio De Domenico, is a 73-year-old Sicilian gentleman driver with mineral oil running through his veins — drawn, needless to say, from the sump of a Maserati. “The spark,” he tells us, “was struck at first sight. It was 1983 when I brought home my first Biturbo, still carburettor-fed and with the digital clock.” Soon after came the oval analogue unit, objectively far more elegant. Yet being able to say that your car still carried the liquid-crystal display — however modest and awkward — is precisely the sort of detail that makes a Trident aficionado smile knowingly. By 1987, the lure of open-air driving prevailed: he sold the coupé and replaced it with a Biturbo Spyder, still in his garage today with fewer than 50,000 kilometres. There were others in between, but Fabio is not one to boast or dwell on numbers. Above all, he values quality over quantity. Proof of this came when choosing a Shamal: there was no hesitation. He acquired it in 2023 from its first owner, a gentleman from Messina, complete with its original registration plate — the final digits reminiscent of James Bond. A subtle suggestion, perhaps, that 007 might be missing out by insisting on driving Aston Martins. Built on 22 October 1992 and registered on 17 November, the car was in excellent condition, though it betrayed the previous owner’s taste for light customisation: minor sins such as a Momo sports steering wheel, an aluminium gear knob in place of the original wood, and other small “interpretations”. All swiftly reversed within days — just long enough for the correct parts to arrive and for Fabio to restore them with meticulous care. We agree with him: history is best preserved with absolute respect, and if that earns you the label of obsessive, take it as a compliment. With a car like this, satisfaction comes unbidden. At its first public appearance, the 2023 Maserati International Rally in Barcelona, it won the “Biturbos and derived” class and received its award from Adolfo Orsi — grandson of the man who chaired Maserati from 1937 to 1968. No small achievement. The Shamal marked a return to values that had been lost in Maserati’s De Tomaso era. It emerged at a time when Fiat was beginning to acquire a stake in the company — full ownership would follow in 1993 — yet the project itself belongs entirely to the previous management. To begin with, after years of somewhat cryptic numerical designations, it revived the tradition of naming cars after winds, as the Karif had done before it. “A summer wind, from the northwest, originating in Mesopotamia,” explained the Shamal’s brochure, in a deliberately elevated tone that avoided mentioning Iraq at a time — as now — of delicate geopolitical tensions. The car was developed on the shortest of the three Biturbo platforms: a 2.4-metre wheelbase shared with the Spyder and Karif. This both revealed the lack of funds for an entirely new model and showcased Maserati’s ability, as the French would say, to faire du nouveau avec du vieux. Doors and windscreen were carried over from other models — a significant constraint that did not deter designer Marcello Gandini. He created a coupé that was aggressive yet controlled, firmly planted thanks to a noticeably wider rear track, with his signature upward sweep of the rear wheel arch and a contrasting treatment of the thick B-pillar and roof, suggesting a removable hardtop and targa configuration. Pure illusion — but effective in lightening and animating the design. The rest was achieved through a raised tail, a faired-in scuttle improving aerodynamics while masking the mature base design, and asymmetrical front lighting — a round projector lamp on the outside, a rectangular unit within — shared with the Racing, from which it also borrowed its wheels, albeit in larger dimensions. Spoilers and side skirts completed the look, in line with the stylistic conventions of the time. Inside, aside from the seats, the cabin was largely identical to the Karif’s, including its 2+2 homologation — though the rear seats are best suited to very small passengers. The true highlight, however, lay beneath the bonnet. After years dominated by a range of V6 engines — while the naturally aspirated V8 survived only in the Quattroporte III, produced in very limited numbers — the Shamal introduced a completely new V8, developed by Walter Ghidoni. Unrelated to the flagship’s engine, it was a modular evolution of the twin-turbo V6, with an additional cylinder per bank: 3,217 cc, 32 valves, four overhead camshafts and a catalytic converter, producing 322 horsepower (later increased to 326) — more than the “entry-level” Ferraris of the period. Top speed approached 260 km/h (later 270), and 0–100 km/h took just 5.3 seconds. Other innovations included a six-speed Getrag gearbox and a tubular rear subframe, replacing the stamped structure to better handle power and torque — 44 kgm at 2,800 rpm, for the record. While the Ranger differential and electronically adjustable Koni dampers represented state-of-the-art technology, the brakes lagged behind: enlarged compared to lesser Biturbos, yet lacking ABS altogether. De Tomaso saw no need for it and refused even to consider it as an option. In fairness, the early development of anti-lock systems in the 1990s was not without flaws — we once witnessed a Lotus crash into a low wall in a gravel car park when the sensors misinterpreted the surface and reduced braking force entirely. Not entirely irrational, then, his resistance. Still, with such technical credentials, the Shamal stood as the most high-performing Biturbo derivative ever produced — and the only one with a V8. The Shamal was first revealed on 14 December 1989, at Maserati’s traditional anniversary celebration — a commendable custom introduced by De Tomaso that one hopes might one day return. The car was almost production-ready, aside from details such as the wheels — burnished on the prototype — and the bonnet vents, silver and louvred rather than black mesh. Yet production plans, by De Tomaso’s own admission, were still undefined. Like a true star, the car toured motor shows throughout 1990 before returning to Modena on 14 December, accompanied by confirmation that production would proceed. During the Christmas period, Maserati issued its first price list featuring the Shamal. The first customer cars were delivered at the end of January 1991. These were affluent buyers, willing to accept the higher VAT rate — 38 per cent rather than 19 — applied in Italy at the time to cars exceeding two litres in displacement. This tax threshold, incidentally, explains the success of smaller Biturbo models on the domestic market. The Shamal cost 125 million lire — twice the price of a 2.24v. It was certainly more exclusive, but for many buyers the increase in image and performance did not justify such an outlay. Abroad, however, the picture was far more favourable — particularly in Japan, where 90 orders arrived from Tokyo as soon as books opened. De Tomaso, who had planned a limited production run of 450 units over three years, even considered removing the cap to meet demand. It was not to be. Corporate turbulence, the transition to Fiat Auto, internal competition — first from the Karif (until 1992), then especially from the Ghibli (from 1993) — and a dynamic character perhaps too demanding for a largely road-focused clientele all curtailed the ambitions of a model that had much to offer. Production continued until March 1996 — more than two years longer than planned — yet total output reached only 369 units, of which 37 were right-hand drive. What remains of the Shamal, beyond its memory, is its engine: that magnificent V8, later used in the Quattroporte IV and, above all, in the 3200 GT, which in 1998 would take up the mantle of Maserati’s great grand tourer. About the author, Marco Visani. Born in Imola in 1967, he has been a journalist since 1986. After beginning his career as a reporter for Il Resto del Carlino and other local newspapers, he has been writing about automobiles since 1992. He has worked with magazines such as Quattroruote, Ruoteclassiche, TopGear, Youngtimer, Auto Italiana, Auto, AM, Sprint, InterAutoNews, and EpocAuto; with TG2 television; the portal Veloce.it; and with the English publisher Redwood Publishing, active in the field of customer magazines. He is currently the Italian correspondent for the French classic-car magazine Gazoline, editor-in-chief of the bimonthly ZeroA, and contributor to L’automobileclassica, Youngclassic, Quadrifoglio, and Tutto Porsche. He also manages heritage communication for Volvo Car Italia. His writings have appeared in Corriere dello Sport-Stadio, Avvenire, Tecnologie Meccaniche, Rétroviseur (France), and Top Auto (Spain). He has published and co-authored several books for Giorgio Nada Editore and other publishers from 2016.

Born into the craft, his father Giovanni already possessed a natural instinct for high-speed mechanics, Gian Carlo Minardi began in the minor racing categories in the 1970s and, in just over a decade, embarked on a remarkable 21-season journey to build his own Formula 1 team. Along the way, he crossed paths with Enzo Ferrari, Ayrton Senna, and Flavio Briatore, and continues today, long after stepping away from the circus, to cultivate motorsport culture through the Historic Minardi Day at the Imola circuit. This is the portrait of a visionary who transformed dreams into reality, overcoming obstacles and skepticism alike. Words: Marco Visani Photography: Leonardo Perugini Video: Andrea Ruggeri Archive photography courtesy of the Gian Carlo Minardi Archive There is a word in the local dialect that perfectly encapsulates a certain Romagnolo mindset, one that requires explanation to be fully understood. E mutòr does not simply mean “engine.” It signifies the passion ignited by anything that has one, especially when that engine is used to test oneself on a fast course. It is not a descriptive term, it is a way of being. [click to watch the video] Whether two wheels or four, whether few cylinders or many, is of little consequence. What matters is the desire to inhale the scent of mineral oil, to see the marks of burnt rubber etched into the asphalt, to watch your rival shrink in the rearview mirror after you’ve left him in your dust. Without mutòr, Giovanni Minardi of Faenza would likely be remembered by few. He would have remained a footnote in local history, significant, certainly, having managed the city’s Fiat dealership since 1927. But then something happened. In 1947, engineer Oberdan Golfieri, an associate of Enzo Ferrari, who at that very moment was founding the company that would bear his name, often invited his colleague Gioacchino Colombo, another engine designer, to dinner at his home in Faenza. It was during those Romagnolo evenings, over piadina and glasses of Sangiovese, that Golfieri met Minardi. Minardi, driven by that same mutòr, had conceived the idea of building a racing car. And since the Olympic ideal of participation did not interest him in the slightest, he wanted only to win, he secured backing from Counts Renzo and Rino Ferniani and commissioned Golfieri to design the most competitive 750cc engine ever built, to be mounted on a modified Fiat 500 Topolino chassis. The result would be the smallest inline six-cylinder engine in the world, derived from half of the V12 then taking shape for the Ferrari 125, the progenitor of all Ferraris. The car, named GM 75 (Giovanni Minardi 750), achieved little in terms of results, second-to-last at the 1948 Valentino Grand Prix in Turin, a retirement at the Coppa del Garda despite securing pole position, and just two unremarkable appearances in 1949. It could have remained a minor story, one of countless unsuccessful single-seaters of the postwar years. But it did not. The Minardi racing lineage had been born. Even if a quarter of a century would pass between its prologue and its first true chapter. Fast forward to 1972. One of Giovanni’s three sons, Gian Carlo, born in the very same year as the GM 75, for nothing ever happens by chance, was not only helping manage the family dealership but was, inevitably, captivated by racing. He founded a team, Scuderia del Passatore, its name paying homage to a legendary 19th-century Romagnolo bandit whom folklore had elevated into a kind of folk hero. The team entered single-seaters in Formula Italia and Formula 3 and maintained close ties with Angelo Gallignani, owner of Everest, a company based in nearby Fusignano producing rubber aftermarket components. Before long, the team became Scuderia Everest, reflecting its sponsor, and moved up to Formula 2. When Everest withdrew in 1980, the team took on the name of its founder, Scuderia Minardi was born. Appetite, as they say, grows with eating. And this small provincial team, having climbed from grassroots beginnings to what might already have seemed the fulfillment of a dream, was not content. It wanted more. It wanted the top tier. Gian Carlo wanted it, having tailored that dream around himself and his family, always supported by his brothers Giuseppe and Nando. That dream, pursued with relentless effort and few proclamations, was realized on April 7, 1985, at the Brazilian Grand Prix, for the first time, a Minardi, the M185, stood on the grid of the Formula 1 World Championship. Originally intended to run an Alfa Romeo turbocharged V8 promised by President Ettore Massacesi, who ultimately withdrew his commitment at the last moment, Minardi instead sourced a naturally aspirated Cosworth V8, sufficient for two races, before replacing it with a more competitive turbocharged V6 from the newly formed Motori Moderni, where Carlo Chiti had found a new home. If the engines represented a carousel of missed opportunities and fresh starts, the lead driver was a certainty, another Romagnolo, Pierluigi “Piero” Martini. Of the 118 Grands Prix he would contest, 102 would be under Minardi’s yellow and blue colors. Minardi and Martini became inseparable, so much so that even today, mention of one often blurs into the other. It mattered little that Martini retired in that overseas debut, a team born from nothing, with just one engineer, Giacomo Caliri, and ten technicians, had already achieved a minor miracle, quiet, proud, and distinctly Romagnolo. While Italy indulged in the hedonism of the 1980s, the Minardi Formula 1 adventure unfolded as something altogether singular. For one, Gian Carlo and his small, determined team extended the boundaries of the Motor Valley eastward, beyond the traditional axis of Modena and Bologna. More profoundly, Minardi achieved an almost anthropological shift. Before 1985, Faenza, a town of fewer than 60,000 inhabitants, was known worldwide for ceramics, so much so that the French word faïence derives from its name. After Minardi, Faenza became synonymous with Formula 1, a legacy that endures even beyond the team’s eventual ownership changes. As Gian Carlo himself likes to point out, “Faenza is the only city in the world to host two top-tier racing teams”, the other being Gresini Racing, founded in 1997 by the late Fausto Gresini. The Formula 1 journey of such a small team was never going to be easy, though it was undeniably exhilarating. Much of this was due to Minardi’s exceptional ability to build relationships. He was among the few granted access to the office of an aging Enzo Ferrari. And when the Commendatore faced a man who inevitably reminded him of his younger self, he listened, advised, and quietly approved. It was no coincidence that in 1991, three years after Ferrari’s passing, the Scuderia supplied Minardi with a V12 engine, leading to the team’s best-ever result, seventh place in the Constructors’ Championship. There was even a moment when Ayrton Senna might have joined Minardi. In 1982, while Minardi was still in Formula 2, Paolo Barilla suggested that Gian Carlo take notice of a young Brazilian driver. After watching him perform in the wet at Silverstone and in the dry at Hockenheim, Minardi offered him a contract for 1983. The reply was disarming: “You are the first person to offer me a professional contract, Gian Carlo, I will never forget that. But no, thank you. I plan to become Formula 1 World Champion within six years.” True to his word, Senna achieved the title in 1988. And he never forgot Minardi, often stopping by the team’s motorhome, renowned for its food, for an embrace and a plate of tagliatelle. His tragic death in 1994 at Imola, just a short distance from Minardi’s headquarters, felt like a cruel twist of fate, a modern Greek tragedy where passion and mortality intertwine. The years that followed were challenging, rising costs, lost sponsorships, and constant engine changes, from Ferrari to Lamborghini, Ford, Hart, and back to Cosworth. In September 2005, the team was sold to Red Bull and transformed into Toro Rosso. Yet Gian Carlo Minardi never left the world of motorsport. He served within the Italian Automobile Club, scouted new talent, and from 2021 to 2025 presided over Formula Imola, managing the Enzo e Dino Ferrari circuit. Above all, since 2016, he has been the creator of the Minardi Historic Day, held annually at Imola. What might sound like a gathering of historic Minardi cars is, in truth, far more, a Romagnolo interpretation of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, a kind of Woodstock for motorsport, where every inch of asphalt resonates with passion. With static displays, associations, memorabilia, and dynamic demonstrations, the event draws 20,000 visitors each year, a powerful statement of authenticity and coherence in an era where traditional motor shows have largely lost their identity. Behind the scenes, following the sudden passing of his brother Nando in 2021, Gian Carlo is supported by his niece Elena, ensuring that Minardi is not merely a dynasty, but a family. A family that has always believed, and continues to believe. About the author, Marco Visani. Born in Imola in 1967, he has been a journalist since 1986. After beginning his career as a reporter for Il Resto del Carlino and other local newspapers, he has been writing about automobiles since 1992. He has worked with magazines such as Quattroruote, Ruoteclassiche, TopGear, Youngtimer, Auto Italiana, Auto, AM, Sprint, InterAutoNews, and EpocAuto; with TG2 television; the portal Veloce.it; and with the English publisher Redwood Publishing, active in the field of customer magazines. He is currently the Italian correspondent for the French classic-car magazine Gazoline, editor-in-chief of the bimonthly ZeroA, and contributor to L’automobileclassica, Youngclassic, Quadrifoglio, and Tutto Porsche. He also manages heritage communication for Volvo Car Italia. His writings have appeared in Corriere dello Sport-Stadio, Avvenire, Tecnologie Meccaniche, Rétroviseur (France), and Top Auto (Spain). He has published and co-authored several books for Giorgio Nada Editore and other publishers from 2016.

A different background to all other car designers, an unusual artistic sensitivity and a unique professional career, that saw him develop from the drawing board to Head of Heritage for the Italian Stellantis brands. Who is Roberto Giolito, the man behind the Mirafiori Heritage Hub? And what is his vision of the history and style told through a divergent intelligence and a generally unusual approach to cars. Words Marco Visani Photography Leonardo Perugini Video Andrea Ruggeri Archive photo courtesy of the Roberto Giolito Archive Roberto Giolito is not the best car designer, for one simple reason: the best people always move within a comparative environment. [click to watch the video] If you are number one, you are not so far from number two or three. Giolito, who was (a verb in the past tense: the first difference, but not the most important) an excellent designer, was on the other hand unique. Incomparable, unclassifiable, undefinable. Defining him merely as the man who designed the Fiat 500 - 312 (the 2007 model) and, just before that, the 1998 Multipla, is an understatement. But also introducing him merely for what he does today, as Head of Stellantis Heritage, to use the inevitably sterile language of the corporate nomenclature, does not suffice for describing this multi-faceted character and his wide skills base. He has spent his entire professional career going against the grain, yet without that determination to deliberately do things differently, as that would have made him nauseating. It’s just that being influenced by different stimuli, and consequently creating a style that goes beyond the simple – yet fundamental – shape of the car, has always come naturally to him. And this also gives his way of being a different meaning today, now that he is the custodian of the history of a great industrial group. It is first and foremost his background that makes him stand out from the crowd. He is not from Turin (or rather, he is only in origins), nor is he from Milan or Modena — the three car capitals are therefore far from his studies — but from Ancona in the Marches region. He did not attend the Polytechnic, he is not an engineer or an architect, but a pure designer, who cut his teeth at the ISIA in Rome. ISIA stands for the “Istituto Superiore per le Industrie Artistiche” – Higher Institute of Artistic Industries: from the name we can understand that his studies were far from rigid, and very open. Basically, he got his passion for cars from his father. Who designed cars… Was he a stylist? No, a trader: he sketched cars as a hobby. Seeing these, the young Roberto learned and developed one thing in particular, perhaps the most important you can learn in life: curiosity. That drive that makes you want to know and understand. And he broke down barriers, because knowledge and creativity know no boundaries. This is also where his passion for music came — jazz and the double bass in particular — which, like mathematics, has strict rules and infinite potential. Furnishings and graphics became his daily bread for a few years. Then, in 1989, things changed: he applied for a job as a designer at Fiat, and during the interview he found himself talking to Ermanno Cressoni, the man behind many successful Alfa Romeos (from the Giulietta – 116 to 75, as well as the 33) who had recently come to Turin after the Arese-based company joined the Fiat group. In almost thirty years as a designer, he blended the ability to innovate from scratch (the Multipla) with that of recovering past experiences and launching fresh ideas into the future (the 500, the 124 Spider). So, after such a brilliant career, it was almost inevitable that, in 2016, Sergio Marchionne thought of him to head the Heritage department of what was still called FCA, as Stellantis was born from the merger of FCA and the French PSA only in 2021. And here we have to take a step back to get a closer look. For a company with 125 years of history — if we consider Fiat as the parent company of this group —, talking about heritage could seem a platitude. But not if that group is Fiat. Before Giolito took over the heritage department, the testimonials of its past were found only in the historical quarters in Via Chiabrera, Turin. It was an interesting collection, that spoke of the Fiat “Cielo Mare Terra” (“Sky, Sea and Land”), according to the 1930s slogan used when Fiat also made aircraft and marine engines, but in car terms had not moved since the 1960s. It was open to visitors only one Sunday a month, or every Sunday for a relatively short period: from the celebrations of the 150 years of Italian Unification (2011) to the pandemic (2020). The remainder of the memories could be found in an anonymous shed in Beinasco, on the western outskirts of the city. Fiat had stored dozens of vehicles there: they took one car from the assembly line as they left the production department, along with the few prototypes that luckily had not been demolished (the vast majority had unfortunately been crushed). There were Fiats and Lancias, the oldest ones put on show in the small museum in Borgo San Paolo, beneath the old headquarters when Lancia was still a separate entity to Fiat. And while in Via Chiabrera the museum was for connoisseurs, Beinasco was a matter for proselytes. You got in if you were in with the right crowd or if, as in our case, you were given (privileged) access as a journalist. It was neither museum nor repository, just a warehouse: a temporary solution to prevent the cars from rotting while final arrangements were being made. The trait d’union between that warehouse and what today we know as the Heritage Hub is Roberto Giolito. It is thanks to him that the Fiat Auto collections are now on show to the public in a highly symbolic space. And this is where the SpeedHolics team met him. The appointment was in Via Plava 80, Turin. The western end of Mirafiori Sud. The cardinal point is very important in the location of this place: built in 1939 to support and, in the medium term, take over from the city site at the Lingotto, the Fiat Mirafiori factory was already too small in 1956. This is why it was doubled in size, going beyond Corso Settembrini: the newly built area thus became Mirafiori Sud. In the golden years, over 60,000 people worked in this area, which ran for five kilometres along one side: the population of an average-sized provincial town. When the economic boom was over, tackling the fierce competition and lowering goals and ambitions, just a few thousand workers could be found at Mirafiori. One of the many spaces left empty by the decentralised production (firstly central and southern Italy, then South America, Poland and the Balkans) was identified as the right place to set up something of a size and accessibility that Fiat had never had before. The premises are those of the former Officina 81, where instead of the previous transmissions, gears were made for the gearboxes of all the cars in production. Anyone who between the 1950s and the 1990s drove a Fiat will have had something to do with this building, even if they were not aware of this: a subtle and highly evocative choice. 230 cars can be found here, in an area covering 15,000 square metres, the size of a large hypermarket, and recently 79 were added from the ASI Bertone collection. Another small trip back in time: when the Bertone bodywork firm folded in 2014, the company museum risked being sold off in pieces. ASI made an offer to ensure it remained intact and prevent it from being sold abroad, so that the heritage of Italian style could stay in its own country. The Bertone cars spent a few years in Volandia, the aviation museum at Milan’s Malpensa Airport: a very attractive location but far from coherent with these artifacts. And in recent weeks an agreement between ASI and the Heritage Hub has brought the Bertone cars permanently to Via Plava. Only a few of these are based on Fiat mechanical sub-assemblies, and their bonnets sport a wide range of names, from BMW to Volvo, from Jaguar to Lamborghini. You would have to visit the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit to find something even vaguely similar. In Europe, as far as we know there is nothing like it: this is the sign of a great cultural maturity, very close to Giolito's own ideas. And today, although a manager of history, he remains “sacerdos in aeternum” in his vocation as a designer. Of course, he would get involved in the idea of conserving a fleet of concept cars and (to a lesser extent) mass produced models of historical and documentary value. What is great about the Heritage Hub is not only that enthusiasts can lose all concept of time and space, magnetised by the number of materials on show: it is also that they can discover the soul of brands that were once under the Fiat Group that were very distant from the idea — or the cliché — of a vehicle manufacturer for the mass market. Fiat was very often a byword for innovation: here, in the 1960s, came the antiskid system, the forerunner of the ABS, which was later industrialised in the USA for regulatory reasons; and it was Fiat that invented the common rail, in turn sold to Bosch. Ahead of its time, when electric mobility was nothing more than an exotic distraction, Fiat was working on this with the 1972 X1/23, the 1993 Downtown and the 1994 Zic, the last two the work of Giolito, who had not yet obtained the media success that he would soon earn with the brilliant (and rather controversial) Multipla. But what is showcased to the full at the Hub is that great Fiat, the star of motorsports. Both not so long ago (the three world rallies won by the 131 Abarth and the five by the Lancia Delta HF Integrale, between 1977 and 1992, and the Stratos and Rally 037 in the meantime and, even before that, the Fulvia) and in remote times, when Fiat had not yet chosen to work in the general field and addressed even high-spending audiences, using its record cars for promotional purposes. Two of these can be found in Via Plava, authentic technological masterpieces applied to racing, with the size — seen with today’s eyes — of trucks and an objectively worrying potential for vehicles with mechanical brakes only on the rear wheels: the 1908 S61 (a 10.1-litre four-cylinders with 115 HP and 150 km/h) and the 1924 Mefistofele (6 cylinders, 21.7 litres, 320 HP and 235 km/h). Two clues indicating the industrial scope of the brand and the ambitions of its founders. The narration offered to visitors to the Heritage Hub is a far more complex and articulated world that we might imagine. There is a lot of technology, but also a lot of beauty: that thing that — as Giolito explains with a pleasing image — we note even before we are able to explain it. Beauty that is also the ethical meaning of certain projects that he worked on before the new millennium. Like the Ecobasic, the study for an essential and sustainable car (“we reuse or remove anything that is not needed”) when sustainability was still not a manufacturers’ priority. And then there are services for collectors, called by a deliberately Italian name “Officine Classiche”: more than just a commercial operation to sell restoration services, but an exchange of expertise between people who share the same idea for one reason or another and a sense of belonging. And who with their stories build a great community. From past productions to today’s narrative, Officina 81 plays the role assigned to it by Giolito: the responsibility for making car history readable, lovable and above all tangible. About the author, Marco Visani. Born in Imola in 1967, he has been a journalist since 1986. After beginning his career as a reporter for Il Resto del Carlino and other local newspapers, he has been writing about automobiles since 1992. He has worked with magazines such as Quattroruote, Ruoteclassiche, TopGear, Youngtimer, Auto Italiana, Auto, AM, Sprint, InterAutoNews, and EpocAuto; with TG2 television; the portal Veloce.it; and with the English publisher Redwood Publishing, active in the field of customer magazines. He is currently the Italian correspondent for the French classic-car magazine Gazoline, editor-in-chief of the bimonthly ZeroA, and contributor to L’automobileclassica, Youngclassic, Quadrifoglio, and Tutto Porsche. He also manages heritage communication for Volvo Car Italia. His writings have appeared in Corriere dello Sport-Stadio, Avvenire, Tecnologie Meccaniche, Rétroviseur (France), and Top Auto (Spain). He has published and co-authored several books for Giorgio Nada Editore and other publishers from 2016.

The thrilling realm of classic car events and motorsport in a curated calendar of the most prestigious and revered gatherings, a gateway to the pinnacle of racing heritage by SpeedHolics. Stay in the Fast Lane events CALENDAR Our Ultimate Guide to Classic Motorsport A curated selection of the most prestigious and revered gatherings. Write to add your event Share this page on Facebook Tier-1 extraordinary CLASSIC CAR EVENTs IN THE CALENDAR 92 TOUR AUTO OPTIC 2000 France France Peter Auto Up 3 - 9 May 2026 Mail HOCKENHEIM HISTORIC Germany Hockenheim Hockenheim-Ring GmbH Up 8 - 10 May 2026 Mail MONACO HISTORIC GP Principality of Monaco Monaco Automobile Club de Monaco Up 8 -10 May 2026 Mail TARGA FLORIO HISTORIC REGULARITY RALLY Italy Palermo Automobile Club of Italy (ACI) and the Targa Florio Committee Up 14 - 16 May 2026 Mail CONCORSO D'ELEGANZA VILLA D'ESTE Italy Cernobbio - Villa Erba BMW Group Classic Up 15 - 17 May 2026 Mail HISTORIC ACROPOLIS RALLY Greece Athens Ομοσπονδία Μηχανοκίνητου Αθλητισμού Ελλάδας (ΟΜΑΕ) Up FIA - Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile 22 - 24 Sep 2026 Mail SPA CLASSIC Belgium Spa-Francorchamps Circuit Peter Auto Up 22 - 24 May 2026 Mail CAVALLINO CLASSIC - MODENA Italy Modena CANOSSA EVENTS Up 22 - 24 May 2026 Mail PAU CLASSIC GRAND PRIX France Pau Asac Basco Béarnais Up 22 - 24 May 2026 Mail RALLYE DES PRINCESSES France La Baule Peter Auto Up 23 - 28 May 2026 Mail BRANDS HATCH MASTERS HISTORIC FESTIVAL United Kingdom Brands Hatch Circuit Kent MASTERS HISTORIC RACING UK Up 30 -31 May 2026 Mail SWISS CLASSIC WORLD Switzerland Luzern SWISS CLASSIC WORLD c/o MARKETINGLINK GmbH Up 29 - 31 May 2026 Mail EL MIRAGE USA-California Adelanto - El Mirage Lake Southern California Timing Association (SCTA) Up May 2026 Mail Date to be announced GRAND PRIX DE L'AGE D'OR France Circuit Dijon Prenois Peter Auto Up 5 - 7 Jun 2026 Mail LONDON CONCOURS United Kingdom London Thorough Events Ltd. Up 9 - 11 Jun 2026 Mail SORRENTO ROADS BY 1000 MIGLIA Italy Sorrento 1000 Miglia Srl Up 9 - 13 Jun 2026 Mail CLASSIC NÜRBURGRING Germany Nürburgring DAMC 05 Veranstaltungs-GmbH Up 12 - 14 Jun 2026 Mail TRENTO-BONDONE Italy Trento Scuderia Trentina Up FIA - Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile 13 - 14 Jun 2026 Mail 1 2 3 4 5 1 ... 1 2 3 4 5 ... 5

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Discover the premier curated marketplace on the web - SpeedHolics Market, where luxury sport cars find their perfect showroom. Notably, some of these exceptional cars deserve more than just a display - they deserve an exclusive editorial article, proudly signed by SpeedHolics Featured by SpeedHolics this month 1965 Bizzarrini 5300 GT Competizione Thiesen Hamburg GmbH View SELECTED BRANDS The Ultimate Refined Automotive Marketplace Online. Showcasing 2779 Exclusive Offerings, Selected with Passion by SpeedHolics. Explore Featured Vehicles Tier-1 CARS & STORIES Racing Through Time: The Legacy of the 1954 OSCA MT4 #1143 Tracing the Journey of a Motorsport Icon: The Chassis number 11431954 OSCA MT4's Epic Tale from Italian Tracks to Classic Car Renaissance... Sean Campbell Porfirio Rubirosa: The “Real” James Bond & His Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Coupe A diplomat, a race-car driver, a pilot, a polo champion, an alleged assassin, and a notorious ladies’ man, Porfirio Rubirosa is believed... Sean Campbell The Story of Bob Akin, Captain of Industry & Racecar Driver, and his 1982 Porsche 935 L1 “You can’t make a racehorse out of a pig. But if you work hard enough at it you can make a mighty fast pig” Bob Akin Find this car listed... Sean Campbell 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder: A Film by Auxietre & Schmidt “This is just the purest of…” Automotive designer Anders Warming trails off, trying to find the right words, “I have to go rob a bank!”... Sean Campbell 1 2 FEATURED PERFORMANCE CAR S 1969-Ferrari-365-GTC-01.jpg 1969-Ferrari-365-GTC-02.jpg 1969-Ferrari-365-GTC-15.jpg 1969-Ferrari-365-GTC-01.jpg 1/15 1969 Ferrari 365 GTC United Kingdom D.K. Engineering Ltd 1978-Fiat-131-Abarth-01.jpg 1978-Fiat-131-Abarth-02.jpg 1978-Fiat-131-Abarth-10.jpg 1978-Fiat-131-Abarth-01.jpg 1/10 1978 Fiat 131 Abarth United Kingdom Duncan Hamilton Rofgo Ltd 1969-Ferrari-365 GT-2+2-Queen-Mary-01.jpg 1969-Ferrari-365 GT-2+2-Queen-Mary-02.jpg 1969-Ferrari-365 GT-2+2-Queen-Mary-20.jpg 1969-Ferrari-365 GT-2+2-Queen-Mary-01.jpg 1/20 1969 Ferrari 365 GT 2+2 Queen Mary Switzerland Oldtimer Galerie International GmbH FEATURED RACE CARS 1962-Ferrari-250-GT-E-Drogo-SWB-01.jpg 1962-Ferrari-250-GT-E-Drogo-SWB-02.jpg 1962-Ferrari-250-GT-E-Drogo-SWB-20.jpg 1962-Ferrari-250-GT-E-Drogo-SWB-01.jpg 1/20 1962 Ferrari 250 GT/E „Drogo“ SWB Germany Thiesen Hamburg GmbH 1987-Ford-Sierra-Cosworth-RS-Gr.A-01.webp 1987-Ford-Sierra-Cosworth-RS-Gr.A-02.webp 1987-Ford-Sierra-Cosworth-RS-Gr.A-20.webp 1987-Ford-Sierra-Cosworth-RS-Gr.A-01.webp 1/20 1987 Ford Sierra Cosworth RS Gr.A United States ISSIMI, Inc 1987-Sauber-Mercedes-C9-01.webp 1987-Sauber-Mercedes-C9-02.webp 1987-Sauber-Mercedes-C9-15.webp 1987-Sauber-Mercedes-C9-01.webp 1/15 1987 Sauber-Mercedes C9 Illinois Mouse Motors LLC READERS' CHOICE 1995-Ferrari-F512-M-01.jpg 1995-Ferrari-F512-M-02.jpg 1995-Ferrari-F512-M-15.jpg 1995-Ferrari-F512-M-01.jpg 1/15 1995 Ferrari F512 M United Kingdom D.K. Engineering Ltd 1990-Ferrari-328-GTS-01.webp 1990-Ferrari-328-GTS-02.webp 1990-Ferrari-328-GTS-15.webp 1990-Ferrari-328-GTS-01.webp 1/15 1990 Ferrari 328 GTS United Kingdom Iconic Auctioneers Ltd 1969-Alfa-Romeo-1750-Spider-Veloce-RHD-01.jpg 1969-Alfa-Romeo-1750-Spider-Veloce-RHD-02.jpg 1969-Alfa-Romeo-1750-Spider-Veloce-RHD-20.jpg 1969-Alfa-Romeo-1750-Spider-Veloce-RHD-01.jpg 1/20 1969 Alfa Romeo 1750 Spider Veloce RHD United Kingdom The Classic Motor Hub View All Listings Catering to Your Passion and Business: A Niche Marketplace for Sports and Racing Cars. Contact Us for Listing Your Vehicle