Photo: Mirko Pavan on Instagram
Italian cars aren't renowned for their reliability, to put it mildly, but if there's one thing the Italians have generally gotten right over time, that would be the design.
If somebody asked you to name three famous car designers, I bet at least one of them would be Italian. I second bet that his name would be either Giugiaro or Bertone. Both of them have unbelievably beautiful and equally famous car models under their belts, from the Mk. 1 Volkswagen Golf to the De Tomaso Mangusta or the Lamborghini Countach.
However, their panoply includes some models that history decided would not be as renowned as others, despite being both gorgeous and revolutionary. One such example is the Fiat X1/9 that was penned by Bertone back in 1972.
The strange-looking mid-engined sports car was based on an even stranger concept called the Bertone Runabout. That study was essentially a powerboat on wheels with the designer doing very little to hide his source of inspiration. It featured a front-sloped C-pillar roll-over beam, a wedge shape that would make a door stopper question its wedginess, and a set of headlights mounted on the same C-pillar.
One of the most striking features of the Runabout, though, was its ridiculously short rear overhang. The concept looked like it wanted to beat every other vehicle out there in an imaginary departure angle contest with the body virtually ending no further than one inch behind the rear wheel. It was an odd, cool little car.
The production model that followed was named X1/9, a moniker that wasn't in line with Fiat's standards at the moment. Then again, neither was the X1/9's design, so it all made sense by not making any sense. If that makes any sense. I think it does.
The X1/9's shape is somewhat reminiscent of a Toyota MR2 Mk. 1, but its proportions are a bit off with a longer and pointier hood. The Italian roadster had to have its entire cabin moved forward (compared to the Runabout concept) to make room for the 1.3-liter engine just in front of the rear axle. The car was also available with a 1.5-liter unit later on, but neither of them produced an overwhelming amount of power: 75 and 85 hp.
It wasn't its power that made the X1/9 famous, but the combination between its exterior design and very enjoyable driving characteristics. It's probably the former of the two that fascinated Mirko Pavan, a 25-year-old Italian designer who claims to be working at Pininfarina. There you go, Pininfarina: a third name to add to the list of legendary Italian designers.
Mirko says he developed the Fiat X1/9 homage as a personal project spurred by his admiration for the '70s model. He tried to remain true to the original while also adding a bit more sportiness and racing pedigree. The rounded shapes are in clear conflict with the angles of the original, and yet there's plenty left to make the connection between the two.
If we're being fair, Fiat is in desperate need of a new model to make the brand cool again. Apart from the 500 tiny hatchback, the Italians have no other model with any trace of pizzazz. There's the 124 Spider - essentially a rebadged Mazda MX-5 - which kind of fills the niche a modern X1/9 would take, but it doesn't do it with style. It's too bland for that. This is anything but bland, but sadly it's not something we'll ever see entering production. Well, we can always keep our fingers crossed for a one-off built by someone with enough money and an emotional attachment to the mid-engined roadster from the '70s.
However, their panoply includes some models that history decided would not be as renowned as others, despite being both gorgeous and revolutionary. One such example is the Fiat X1/9 that was penned by Bertone back in 1972.
The strange-looking mid-engined sports car was based on an even stranger concept called the Bertone Runabout. That study was essentially a powerboat on wheels with the designer doing very little to hide his source of inspiration. It featured a front-sloped C-pillar roll-over beam, a wedge shape that would make a door stopper question its wedginess, and a set of headlights mounted on the same C-pillar.
One of the most striking features of the Runabout, though, was its ridiculously short rear overhang. The concept looked like it wanted to beat every other vehicle out there in an imaginary departure angle contest with the body virtually ending no further than one inch behind the rear wheel. It was an odd, cool little car.
The production model that followed was named X1/9, a moniker that wasn't in line with Fiat's standards at the moment. Then again, neither was the X1/9's design, so it all made sense by not making any sense. If that makes any sense. I think it does.
The X1/9's shape is somewhat reminiscent of a Toyota MR2 Mk. 1, but its proportions are a bit off with a longer and pointier hood. The Italian roadster had to have its entire cabin moved forward (compared to the Runabout concept) to make room for the 1.3-liter engine just in front of the rear axle. The car was also available with a 1.5-liter unit later on, but neither of them produced an overwhelming amount of power: 75 and 85 hp.
It wasn't its power that made the X1/9 famous, but the combination between its exterior design and very enjoyable driving characteristics. It's probably the former of the two that fascinated Mirko Pavan, a 25-year-old Italian designer who claims to be working at Pininfarina. There you go, Pininfarina: a third name to add to the list of legendary Italian designers.
Mirko says he developed the Fiat X1/9 homage as a personal project spurred by his admiration for the '70s model. He tried to remain true to the original while also adding a bit more sportiness and racing pedigree. The rounded shapes are in clear conflict with the angles of the original, and yet there's plenty left to make the connection between the two.
If we're being fair, Fiat is in desperate need of a new model to make the brand cool again. Apart from the 500 tiny hatchback, the Italians have no other model with any trace of pizzazz. There's the 124 Spider - essentially a rebadged Mazda MX-5 - which kind of fills the niche a modern X1/9 would take, but it doesn't do it with style. It's too bland for that. This is anything but bland, but sadly it's not something we'll ever see entering production. Well, we can always keep our fingers crossed for a one-off built by someone with enough money and an emotional attachment to the mid-engined roadster from the '70s.
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