Italian Coachbuilder and Racer, Elio Zagato Has Passed
Sep 16th, 2009 by Steve Simmons
Elio Zagato, son of the founder of the Italian coachbuilder Zagato, died on Sept. 14, the company said in a news release. He was 88.
Known to many by the nickname “Dr. Elio” — though Enzo Ferrari referred to him by the fond diminutive “Zagatino” — Mr. Zagato not only oversaw the creation of classic car bodies for Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Lancia and other makes, but also raced them. After World War II, he was part of the dolce vita culture of the gran turismo racer, where amateurs rubbed shoulders and traded paint with professionals. He raced in the same cars and on the same tracks as Juan-Manuel Fangio and Tazio Nuvolari.
In 1919, Elio’s father, Ugo Zagato, left his job in an aircraft company to establish a firm near Milan to adapt aeronautical construction to car bodies. The Zagato carrozzeria was known for racecar body innovations. During its aerodynamic period in the 1930s, Zagato led the way in covering wheels with sleek covers, tilting grilles and windshields.
Zagato bodies were famously light, thanks to material innovations like Plexiglas and structural innovations like the famed “double bubble” roof, arched for strength, and later imitated in cars like the Dodge Viper. The company pioneered aerodynamics with trademark forms like the split or stub tail (or coda tronca).
During the Panoramica period of the late 1940s, the company’s trademark large greenhouse style was applied to models from many makers, including MG. Over the years, carmakers like Ford, Jaguar, Rover, Volvo, Bristol, Aston-Martin, Bentley and Rolls-Royce went to Zagato at least once, like a society belle commissioning an evening gown. Ugo Zagato and his company prided itself on simplicity.
In 1947, Elio Zagato received a rebodied Fiat from his father as a graduation gift. He joined the family firm, along with his brother Gianni, who was born in 1929 and survives him, and soon went racing. Elio competed in 150 races, the company said, winning 85 of them, including the Targa Florio, several Coppa Intereuropas and a 1955 competition at the Avus circuit in Berlin.
In recent years, Zagato has produced mostly high-style one-off designs — haute couture for collectors in which a classic marque and model name are followed by the simple suffix “Zagato.” One example was the Maserati GS Zagato, shown in 2007 at the Concours d’Élégance Villa d’Este in Cernobbio, Italy. It paid homage to another Zagato, the Maserati A6 G Zagato from 1954.
The company’s press release for that car outlined its ambitious view of mission and was in the spirit of Elio Zagato: “In homage to the tradition of the gentlemen drivers who asked Zagato to transform the bodywork of their cars, modern collectors choose mechanics at the top level of technical evolution and ‘dress’ them in tailor-made garments that increase in value as time passes.
This is the mission of a modern automobile atelier: to create timeless objects that celebrate prestigious models and brands and which, unlike mass produced vehicles, are destined to last for ever.”
Earlier this year, Zagato showed the Perana Z-One concept at the Geneva auto show. And its Ferrari 575 GTZ was widely praised.
Source: New York Times
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A state Senate committee will vote today on whether to gut an anti-speed trap law that has protected California drivers for the past seventy-six years. Assembly Bill 564, introduced by Assemblyman Anthony Portantino (D-Pasadena), exempts his home city from the statute that now requires any jurisdiction using radar on a road receiving federal aid to use engineering safety studies to establish speed limits. The exemption for Pasadena passed the state Assembly by a 51-17 vote last month.
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If a citation was issued for participation in a speed contest, exhibition of speed, or reckless driving, even if on private property, the vehicle would be impounded and inspected for 
In an article by Telegraph in the UK it is reported that people are looking toward classic cars as investments during the current economic recession. This is an interesting turn of events, as historically we have seen prices drop during times of economic hardship. In the past, collector cars have typically been viewed as luxury items by most. It is possible that modern media outlets such as internet forums, televised car auctions and others have broadened the appeal of classic cars and shown how stable their values remain compared to traditional investment schemes. The following is a reprint of the Telegraph article, as found on 
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