drb
logo



"QUANTUM SHOT" #319(rev)
Link - by Avi Abrams



Cast your vote for the most gorgeous car body! These are the prime contenders.

Continuing our popular series, we are going to celebrate the most exciting and eye-pleasing body styles in car design, from last 70 years of the automobile era. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but surprisingly, some cars possess what can be considered "a universal beauty" - no matter what your taste, or where you're coming from, you may end up enchanted. It's easy to pacify even a hypothetical alien monster, if you arrive in one of these sensuous rides - or you can make a very fast escape, if things go wrong.

Italian Stylists Present: Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale, by Franco Scaglione - 1967


(images via)

Continuing the string of enchanting designer bodies for Alfa Romeo in the 1950s and 1960s (see the Pininfarina custom body for Alfa Romeo 33, for example - revealed at Paris show in 1969 and discussed in our previous article), Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale ("Street") is another curvaceous beauty, as desirable as it is rare:

The street version of the Alfa-Romeo Tipo 33 racing car was designed by Franco Scaglione, a major talent who just left Bertone studio, and went free-lancing... apparently losing none of his master touch.





(images via Supercars, Anhn Hehn)

The first production vehicle to have "butterfly" doors, the first mid-engined Alfa Romeo road car appeared at Milan Motorshow in 1967. Its voluptuous, nicely proportioned shape many consider to be one of the most beautiful designs ever:


(image credit: Diariomotor)

On a racing track the car was intended to lock horns with Ferrari (that was promoting its own famous Dino 206S back then) and with a line of 910s from Porsche. The 33 model performance was called "unprecendented": indeed, considering it went from 0 to 60mph in just 6 seconds - and could reach maximum speed of 162 mph (260 km/hr) - making it a true supercar at the time! Perhaps even better than Ferrari Daytona...


(image credit: Phillip Leemans)

Only 18 such cars have been built, mostly due to their astronomical price. Some versions had entirely different front-end styling (I find it quite a bit tamer and less flamboyant):



(images credit: Wouter Melissen / Rob Clements)

The 33 Series Alfa-Romeo chassis proved to be attractive to numerous stylists, among them Bertone, Pininfarina, and Ital Design from 1968 to 1976. In the next articles we'll try to cover these rarities as well.


(Tipo 33 Stradale - image credit: Craig Morey)

"Muscular, aggressive and sensual, the 33 Stradale was magnificently sculpted"

---------

The German Style:
Could it be the neatest-looking German supercar from the 60s?


As we all know, Porsche designers rarely change body styles, preferring to stick to the same "good old" look for decades. However, there was one model, perhaps easily overlooked, sandwiched between canonical 911 and variations on 550 Spyder - the drop-dead gorgeous Porsche 904 Carrera GTS:


(image via)

Porsche 904 Carrera GTS (1963-1964) was no slacker in every department. Coming from a premier sports car manufacturer it's got what it takes to compete on the track - but the street version is even more exciting, bringing these sexy curves to the highway. On a closer look, the car even had "garters", funky-looking leather hood straps... Not to mention that it makes great scale model toys (I remember having one as a kid) -


(image via)

The 904 model debuted in 1963 as an answer to the new great cars from Alfa-Romeo and Abarth in GT class. Since then it has become one of the most collectible Porsche models, a fascinating page in the marque's history.

Note the uncluttered back-end styling and the compact aerodynamic look, taking advantage of its short-base chassis:



(images credit: Wouter Melissen)


(image credit: Thomas/FineCars)

Proving the versatility of this car, it won a second place in a snow-covered 1965 Rallye Monte Carlo. Imagine sending this sculpted metal rocket around snow-covered road curves, ripping through the silent winter forest... tasting the car's exclusivity and power:


(images credit: classicdriver)

The following are rarely seen images from the official 904 concept brochure... I am almost convinced that this was the ultimate in German sports car styling, bar some fabulous examples from Mercedes.





(images courtesy Wayne R. Dempsey)

Other sources: UltimateCarPage, Autozine

Read also:
Jaw-Dropping Concepts from Alfa-Romeo
Beautiful Pininfarina Alfa-Romeo concept car (1969)

Join us on the New Digg



Share



RECENT ARTICLES:

Visual Caffeine #8
Visual Caffeine, Issue 8

A thrilling blend of art, myths and technology

Visual Caffeine #7
Visual Caffeine, Issue 7

A thrilling blend of art, myths and technology

Art Deco
Imperial Dreams: Art Deco Update

Wings, Gears, & Glamorous Ladies

1970s SciFi
DRB Pics-of-the-Day

Grand Space Adventure 1970s Art



"Dark Roasted Blend" - All Kinds of Weird and Wonderful Things, Discovered Daily!"

DRB is a top-ranked and respected source for the best in art, travel and fascinating technology, with a highly eclectic presentation. Our in-depth articles in many categories make DRB a valued online magazine, bringing you quality info and entertainment every time you visit the site - About DRB

Connect with us and become part of DRB on Facebook and Twitter.



YOUR COMMENTS::

22 Comments:

Blogger Rally said...

I am more of a fan of the Ferrari 330 P4, a contemporary of the Alfa. The 330 to me has better proportions and conveys a sense of power that the Alfa cannot.

___  
Anonymous Steve said...

Love the 33 Stradale, although the 1967 206 S Dino Berlinetta Competizione is right up there too.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Where's the Porsche 928?

___  
Blogger Marc B. Poblet said...

Phantom Corsair, 1938

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Volvo 1800.

___  
Blogger Unknown said...

The Jaguar E-Type which no less a person than Enzo Ferrari called 'the most beautiful car ever made'.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

you forgot the MELKUS RS 1000 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melkus_RS_1000) handmade from a GDR common car.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sorry, still in love with the bathtub Porsche.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

1960 Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I rather thing those vehicles look absurd, not sensuous. But everyone is welcome to their own opinion.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

of course you can call them absurd. the question is, why are you on this website?

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Almost 50 years later I still drool over the E-Type Jaguar.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Think about the 68 Dodge Charger big block, brute horsepower plenty of room , fantastic looks , can kick most cars butt except a parking lot race (who races parking lots)"top end unlimited"drive all day and not cramped up, FUN

___  
Anonymous LeftyRodriguez said...

You forgot to include the Lamborghini Miura. Just sayin'...

___  
Blogger Unknown said...

IMHO the sexyist affordable car was the Jaguar XK-E types.

I actually had one (used, couldn't afford it new) and I felt on top of the world when I drove it.

On those occastions when it ran, that is.

___  
Blogger Von Strangeduck said...

As an Alfa Romeo owner Ill go with the Alfa.

This one needs its own post.

Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQ8xDia5RNY

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Now why can't those no tallent bums in detroit design something this nice?

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I read somewhere that they put estrogen in the steel to get those shapes.

Is that true?

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

For me, the 64-65 Shelby Daytona Coupe is the sexiest car ever created.

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

inspitLots of great ones and no doubt it has t picks, buto be he Jaguar E Type. Nuff said by many many people plus almost all the most famous car designers and other design icons.

___  
Anonymous David said...

exactly how are these designs "sensuous?"

___  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Chevrolet Cheetah?

___  

Post a Comment

<< Home


SF ART & BOOK REVIEWS:
Don't miss: The Ultimate Guide to NEW SF&F Writers!
Fiction Reviews: Classic Cyberpunk: Extreme Fiction
Short Fiction Reviews: Lovecraft's "At the Mountains of Madness" (with pics)
New Fiction Reviews: The Surreal Office



READ OTHER RECENT ARTICLES:


Abandoned, Dieselpunk
DRB Pic-of-the-Day

Abandoned: Streamlined Three-wheeler

Visual Caffeine #6
Visual Caffeine, Issue 6

A thrilling blend of art, myths and technology

Visual Caffeine #5
Visual Caffeine, Issue 5

A thrilling blend of art, myths and technology

Hellish Weather on Other Planets

Wild, Untamed, and Uncut

Medieval Suits of Armor

Metal Body Suits vs. Weapons of Medieval Destruction

World's Strangest Theme Parks

Amusement to the (twisted) extremes!

Enchanting Victorian Fairy Tale Art

"Then world behind and home ahead..."

Adorable Pedal Cars

Collectable Pedal Vehicles Showcase


Japanese Arcades: Gundam Pods & Other Guilty Pleasures

These machines have gone up to the next level


Modernist Tallinn Architecture

Delicious blend of old and new!


Early Supercomputers: A Visual Overview

"Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons"


Futuristic Concept Cars of the 1970-80s

French, Italian & Japanese rare beauties


Epic 1970s French Space Comic Art

DRB Time-Slice: Valérian and Laureline


The Trees Are Escaping! The Abandoned Prison in French Guiana

"Great Escape" from the Devil's Island



FULL ARCHIVES
(with previews, fast loading):

2022/16
2015/14
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006

Link Lattes

Feel-Good & Biscotti Issues





CATEGORIES:
Feel-Good! | airplanes | animals | architecture | art | auto | boats | books | cool ads | famous | futurism | food
gadgets | health | japan | internet | link latte | military | music | nature | photo | russia | steampunk
sci-fi & fantasy | signs | space | technology | trains | travel | vintage | weird | abandoned