Currently reading: Geneva motor show 2013: Touring Superleggera Disco Volante
Production version of Alfa 8C Competizione-based Disco Volante has been unveiled in Geneva

Italian coachbuilder Touring Superleggera has created the Disco Volante, a stunning new model based on the Alfa Romeo 8C.

The production car for the Geneva motor show follows a concept of the same name at Geneva last year. The Disco Volante will be built to order at a price available on application only. Each one will take 4000 man-hours to make over the course of about six months.

The Alfa C52 Disco Volante of 1952 inspires the design of the 2013 Disco Volante. The brief for the 2013 car was to blend 'innovation, emotion and aerodynamic properties into a timeless and essential shape'.

The Alfa 8C's chassis, 444bhp 4.7-litre V8 and major hard points have carried over unchanged, with Touring Superleggera's main work centring on producing striking new bodywork, which is prodominantly aluminium.

The interior is luxuriously appointed and fully customisable, featuring high-quality leather and Alcantara. The Disco Volante can crack 0-62mph in 4.2sec and reach a 181mph top speed.

Milan-based Touring Superleggera has been designing and creating hand-built cars since 1926.

"With the production model we have gone back to our tradition of producing exciting shapes for the best-performing chassis. Coachbuilding today is a response to a growing demand for personalisation and for bespoke cars," said a spokesman.

"It obviously implies beautiful design, but it now requires engineering and technical skills at the highest level. This is what we are doing to revive the coachbuilding industry in the 21st century.

"Bespoke cars explore the future of design in a feasible way. Unlike concept cars from major manufacturers, our cars are visible today and made to be driven now.

"In less than one year we have developed the production model from the style model. The Disco Volante is now ready to be enjoyed by those who appreciate its unique combination of craftsmanship, quality, innovative design and a good deal of automotive history.

"During development the car had to preserve the design essence of the original style model in spite of the technical constraints. We solved the technical problems immediately without compromising the design.

"We changed many elements during this process. Maybe one single piece of the car is the same as the design that we showed last year, but what is important is that we retained the original proportions and I believe the final design is even more impressive."

Mark Tisshaw

mark-tisshaw-autocar
Title: Editor

Mark is a journalist with more than a decade of top-level experience in the automotive industry. He first joined Autocar in 2009, having previously worked in local newspapers. He has held several roles at Autocar, including news editor, deputy editor, digital editor and his current position of editor, one he has held since 2017.

From this position he oversees all of Autocar’s content across the print magazine, autocar.co.uk website, social media, video, and podcast channels, as well as our recent launch, Autocar Business. Mark regularly interviews the very top global executives in the automotive industry, telling their stories and holding them to account, meeting them at shows and events around the world.

Mark is a Car of the Year juror, a prestigious annual award that Autocar is one of the main sponsors of. He has made media appearances on the likes of the BBC, and contributed to titles including What Car?Move Electric and Pistonheads, and has written a column for The Sun.

Join the debate

Comments
9
Add a comment…
CLSC 7 May 2013

Great

The Disco Volante is also a very beautiful old Alfa Romeo that is at their museum in Milan and the main erason why I always wanted to go there. This update of that design is also beautif.

jmd67 6 March 2013

Lovely from some angles

Lovely from some angles almost deliberately ugly from others. Can anyone mention a modern car that is stunning from every angle. Aston Vantage is the only one I can think of.

mx5xm 5 March 2013

Lovely version of a classic Alfa

The Disco Volante is also a very beautiful old Alfa Romeo that is at their museum in Milan and the main erason why I always wanted to go there. This update of that design is also beautiful.