The relaunch of the famous Touring Superleggera brand at the weekend was double pronged effort and alongside the attention-grabbing concept sportscar the Milanese firm presented a coachbuilt Maserati Quattroporte 'fastback'.

The relaunch of the famous Milanese Touring Superleggera brand at the weekend was double pronged effort, and alongside the attention-grabbing concept A8GCS Berlinetta sportscar, the Milanese firm presented a coachbuilt Maserati Quattroporte 'fastback.

Now owned by the ambitious Zeta Europe BV group headed by Dutchman Paul V J Koot, Touring Superleggera has revealed ambitious plans this weekend to build its own-developed sportscars hand in hand with exclusive coachbuilt projects tailored to individual customer's requirements. The first project out of their workshops is a Maserati Quattroporte conversion, which reinterprets the Italian super-luxury saloon as a stylish but equally practical fastback. Other coachbuilding projects are already in the pipeline.

'Elaborazione' used to be a typical denomination of a segment of Italian coachbuilding craft-say Touring Superleggera in their introduction of the Quattroporte Bellagio Fastback-it stands for the modification of an existing shape of layout, to serve a different or extended purpose. Sometimes, it would result in an interesting new automotive product or individual taste. During the postwar period, it flourished as 'variations on a theme' for industrially produced car models.

The external design of the Quattroporte Bellagio Fastback was created by Alessandro Damborosio, while Louis de Fabribeckers, who styled the A8GCS Berlinetta concept, was responsible for the interior design and the overall finish of the project. The brief to the engineers in the workshops was then for real attention to quality and detail.

The execution of the final product includes a redesigned and newly engineered fuel tank; for both shape and horizontal position. The rear bodywork of the car has been strengthened for improved rigidity, while the new rear seats are versatile and completely foldable. The new luggage compartment, with the rear seats folded down, can accommodate objects up to a length of 1.85 metres.

The new interior finish uses fine leathers, bamboo and plush carpets, and the redesigned rear seat folds down ingeniously, with the boot floor, covered with finely finished polished wood and insert runners, as are the folding sections that slide over the rear seats, once the are stowed horizontally. The split seats can be folded down individually so for example the car can carry one rear passenger along with an lengthy object such as a set of skis, with the sliding panels being divided into three individual sections. The rear centre armrest neatly incorporates a hidden wine bottle and twin glass holder.

In the warm sunshine at Villa Erba yesterday the Quattroporte Bellagio Fastback was one of the popular draws with the knowledgeable crowd as it took its place amongst the modern concept cars fanned out across the lawn in front of the fabulous Villa, which is located right on the banks of Lake Como, as it made its public debut. The car has been thoughtfully styled and finished, while Touring Superleggera logos feature on the new tailgate and a detailing panel located just behind the front wheels, while inside the car the crest is emblazoned on the passenger's side of the dashboard. The Quattroporte's distinctive rear light clusters have been retained while new alloy wheels designed by Zeta Europe BV group company, Ruote Milano, are clad with 240/40/19 Pirelli tyres.

by Edd Ellison