Zagato Zeta 6
The Zagato Zeta 6 is a two-door notchback coupe that the Italian body manufacturer Zagato introduced in 1983. The vehicle was based on Alfa Romeo drive technology and, contrary to the original plans, only very few copies were produced.
background
The Milan-based company Zagato, founded in 1919, found itself in an economic crisis from the middle of the following decade after it had been able to expand strongly in the 1960s. The production of niche models, which Zagato had previously operated intensively with vehicles such as the Alfa Romeo Junior Zagato , was increasingly taken over by the major automobile manufacturers themselves, so that there was no longer any need for Zagato's creations. After the departure of the longtime head of design Ercole Spada , there was a creative crisis. The last car Zagato designed in the 1970s was the Bristol 412 (1974). In the following years, the plant concentrated on the production of third-party vehicles, namely the Lancia Beta Spider designed by Pininfarina , as well as on the armoring of mass-produced vehicles. Another mainstay was the production of the Zagato Zele , a small car with an electric drive that was used on golf courses , among other places .
In the late 1970s, Zagato wanted to revive the tradition of individually designed vehicles. In 1979, Zagatos' then chief designer Giuseppe Mittino, who had succeeded Ercole Spada in 1970, first made some chalk drawings of a two-door coupé with an emphatically round body, which was named AZ6 Sperimentale . Mittino's designs were submitted to the Alfa Romeo board of directors, which, after a brief review, decided to commission Zagato to manufacture two prototypes. At the same time, Bertone was commissioned to work out an alternative design. The aim of both orders was to develop a large coupé with Alfa Romeo technology, but above all with the 2.5 liter six-cylinder engine.
Zagato then implemented Mittino's designs between 1980 and 1982 with financial support from Alfa Romeo; the result was the Zagato Zeta 6, which stuck closely to the initial conception of the AZ6 Sperimentale . At the same time, Marc Deschamps designed the Alfa Romeo Delfino for Bertone , a lavishly glazed notchback coupé based on the technology of the Alfa 6 sedan, which anticipated many of the design elements of the Subaru SVX .
Zagato's Zeta 6 and Bertones Delfino were each presented to the public at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1983. Both vehicles - one painted green and one painted brown - received positive reviews; Zagato's draft, however, was received much more friendly.
In the following months, Alfa Romeo considered series production of the Zeta 6 as an exclusive version of the Alfetta GTV . At the end of 1983, however, the company decided against series production. The investments required turned out to be too high: Alfa Romeo was busy preparing the Arna during this time and was unable to provide any additional funds. Zagato then initially stated that it wanted to produce the Zeta 6 itself; but this project also failed due to the unsecured financing.
With the Zeta 6, Zagato recalled itself as a "serious automotive designer". As a result of this design, the traditional company succeeded in receiving further design and production orders and securing its existence beyond the 1980s. From 1987 onwards, Zagato produced the self-designed Aston Martin V8 Zagato , three years earlier the production of the Maserati Biturbo Spyder had started at Zagato . Their success formed the basis for a long-term collaboration with Nissan , which resulted in unusually designed vehicles such as the Autech Stelvio, the Autech Gavia or the Nissan Seta and Bambù models.
Design and technology of the Zeta 6
The Zagato Zeta 6 was a rounded two-door notchback coupé that demonstratively gave up the previous tradition of angular designs that Zagato had cultivated since the 1960s. The B-pillar followed the trapezoidal line of the doors and merged into a sloping panoramic rear window. The design of the vehicle flanks evoked memories of the Porsche 928 , which in turn took up a design detail of the AMC Pacer .
The Zeta 6 had no independent bumpers. Instead, it had massive, malleable plastic units at the front and rear that were painted the same color as the car. Glazed double headlights were embedded in the front units, while the Zeta 6 used the rear lights of the BMW 5 series at the rear .
A distinct feature of the Zeta 6 was the unusual door opening mechanism. Instead of conventional door handles, the Zeta had 6 round turntables with recesses for fingers. To open the door, the windows had to be turned counterclockwise (driver's side) or clockwise. A spring then opened the locking mechanism.
The chassis and engine of the Zeta 6 came from the Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV6. The technical components were taken over unchanged.
production
Zagato made two copies of the Zeta 6 in 1982, both of which were shown at the 1983 Geneva Motor Show. The body of the prototype was made of aluminum.
The brown vehicle remained in Alfa Romeo's factory museum, while the green one was sold in 1989 to a British collector who regularly drove it in traffic in London until 2011 . Then an Italian collector bought it. It is unclear whether further copies were completed. There are press reports about a third body-in-white, which will be in the Netherlands in 2012 without technology or interior fittings.
literature
- Giles Chapman: Zeta! . Presentation of the Zagato Zeta 6 in: Classic & Sports Car, issue 5/1989, p. 70 ff.
- Richard Heseltine: Future Shock . Presentation and history of the Zagato Zeta. In: Octane Classic & Performance Cars, issue 4/2012, p. 82 ff.
- Georg Amtmann and Halwart Schrader: Italian sports cars . Stuttgart 1999, ISBN 3-613-01988-4 .
Web links
Illustration of the Zagato Zeta 6.
Individual evidence
- ↑ On the whole cf. Amtmann / Schrader, p. 359.
- ^ Image of Bertone Delfino (accessed on March 12, 2012).
- ↑ Octane Classic and Performance Cars, Issue 4/2012, p. 84.
- ↑ Octane Classic and Performance Cars, Issue 4/2012, p. 84.
- ↑ Classic & Sports Car, Issue 5/1989, p. 73.
- ↑ Doug Nye in: Road & Track , Issue 5/1983.
- ↑ Classic & Sports Car, Issue 5/1989, p. 73.
- ↑ Comparison of the vehicles mentioned and the Rayton Fissore Golden Shadow on the website leroux.andre.free.fr (accessed on March 12, 2012).
- ↑ To the whole: Octane Classic and Performance Cars, issue 4/2012, p. 85.
