Giotto Bizzarrini – In Memoriam

The automotive landscape took a bit of a hit recently. The chrome bumpers have become a little less bright and the paintwork has lost some of its luster as we mourn the passing on the 13th of May, 2023 of the influential and iconic Giotto Bizzarini, a man who plied his trade in an era that saw arguably the peak of Italian automotive design and innovation. Even if Bizzarrini wasn’t a household name under some roofs the cars he worked on and produced most certainly are, with the Italian engineer and designer having been involved not only with the Ferrari 250 GTO but also Lamborghini’s first and now legendary V12 engine before going on to work with Iso Rivolta and subsequently starting his own company, Bizzarrini S.p.A. It’s quite the curriculum vitae and one that should absolutely be celebrated, so join us as we remember the legend that is Giotto Bizzarrini.

Bizzarrini began his illustrious career in 1953 after graduating from the University of Pisa in Italy and walking straight into a job at none other than Alfa Romeo. As first gigs go that’s a pretty good one. It’s not like he had to stack shelves at the local supermarket whilst applying for graduate jobs like the rest of us. Alfa Romeo put him to work helping to develop the Giulietta but soon saw the man’s potential, moving him across to its experimental department where he progressed quickly taking on a test driver role alongside his engineering responsibilities in order to better understand the cars he was working with.

After four years at Alfa Romeo Bizzarrini took the leap to Ferrari and would be in its employ as chief engineer for five years. Yep, chief engineer at Ferrari. That’s how good Giotto Bizzarrini was and all this by the time he was in his early 30s. Again, working on sports cars and experimental projects Bizzarrini would be handed the keys, so to speak, to the 250 GTO project. Using his own short wheel base Ferrari 250 GT he reworked the car with better aerodynamics and a relocated engine to improve weight distribution and increase performance on track. The results speak for themselves with the 250 GTO going on to take numerous motorsport victories. Sadly, however, Bizzarrini would not be involved in collecting any silverware having left Ferrari in ’61 as part of the ‘great walkout’ that saw a number of high ranking employees stage a revolt and turn their backs on the company.

Giotto Bizzarrini (left) with Ferruccio Lamborghini, Gian Paolo Dallara and the famous V12

Bizzarrini spent the next few years as an engineer for hire, working on various freelance projects before starting his own company, Società Autostar which allowed him to continue this ad-hoc engineering work but in a more official capacity. It was at this time, in ’62 that he was approached by Ferruccio Lamborghini to design and develop a new engine in order to compete with rivals Ferrari. The resulting 3.5-litre, dual-overhead cam V12 was deemed too spicy for Lamborghini and so was de-tuned to make it more manageable. As far as accolades go you know you’ve hit the nail on the head when Lamborghini tells you the engine you’ve produced is too powerful!

Shipped in the then new 350 GT, Bizzarrini’s V12 has since gone down in history as one of the greatest engines ever built and remained in production for almost 50 years with the 2010 Murciélago having the honour of being the last Lamborghini to utilise the powerplant. A true testament to the astonishing engineering, not to mention passion, that went in to creating such a long lasting legacy.

Bizzarrini would team up with Renzo Rivolta, too in 1964 helping to develop the Iso Rivolta and Grifo models but tensions between the two men meant that the relationship was short lived, in part prompting Bizzarrini to change his company’s name to Bizzarrini S.p.A two years later. Under this banner Bizzarrini would build and sell his own sports cars, starting with the beautiful 5300 GT Strada which was based on the Iso Rivolta. Equipped with a 5.4-litre Chevy small-block V8 producing 365 horsepower the car would go on to prove its worth by winning its class in the 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans.

A paired down 5300 GT, known as the 1900 GT Europa, was also produced by Bizzarrini. Like the 5300 the 1900 is an incredibly rare beast as fewer than 20 produced by Bizzarrini, with some sources claiming that the actual number is as low as 12. Whatever the case, the Europa remains a beautifully styled, lightweight miniature grand tourer and the last car produced by Giotto Bizzarrini before his company went bankrupt. Powered by a 1.9-litre Opel engine which is mounted behind the front axle the car produced around 110bhp, enough to propel the fibreglass-bodied Europa to a top speed of almost 130mph. Independent suspension as well as disc brakes all round and a limited slip diff completed the package.

As rare as it is, Car & Classic at the time of writing currently has a beautifully restored 1969 example available via our auctions platform. Some Europas were assembled in the late 1960s and early ’70s by third parties with unused parts and chassis from the Bizzarrini factory after the company folded but this particular car is believed to be the last factory-built Europa produced while Bizzarrini was still in business, which as you ca imagine makes it incredibly special indeed.

Not only that but thanks to a comprehensive restoration in 2010 by Diomonte, this Europa is in stunning condition throughout, both aesthetically and mechanically. The car has a comprehensively documented history but it’s always imperative to carry out your own due diligence as far as a vehicle’s claimed provenance is concerned. Either way this is an incredible opportunity to own an exclusive slice of bona fide automotive history by a legendary car maker that will remain in the history books long after you and I have shuffled off this mortal coil.

Giotto Bizzarrini’s achievements, and by association his legacy, will forever be indelibly etched into the collective classic car consciousness. Preferring to be remembered for his work ethic rather than labelled as a designer whichever way you look at it as car fanatics and enthusiasts we have a lot to thank him for. Riposa in pace signore Bizzarrini.