Frank Stephenson is – without a shadow of a doubt – one of the most talented automotive designers of his generation. Born in Morocco to a Norwegian father and a Spanish mother, Stephenson made a name for himself at Ford of Europe with the iconic rear spoiler of the Escort RS Cosworth hot hatch.
Frank then moved to BMW, where he is credited with – among others – the X5 and MINI Hatch. Things really got going in 2002 at Ferrari and Maserati, where the British-American designer penned the likes of the Ferrari F430, 612 Scaglietti, Maserati MC12, GranTurismo, and Quattroporte.
He also turned Roberto Giolito’s design concept into a series-production car with the help of Flavio Manzoni, the guy who currently heads the design department at the Prancing Horse of Maranello. The one and only Stephenson then helped McLaren find its identity after the F1 with the MP4-12C, P1, 675LT, 570S, and the recently discontinued 720S.
The guy is a bonafide prodigy, an extremely accomplished designer who is involved in every stage of the process, from sketching to clay modeling to prototyping. Always the perfectionist, Frank has a few reservations about Alfa Romeo's new 33 Stradale.
Photo: Frank Stephenson on YouTube
The original is – hands down – one of the prettiest cars of all time in terms of balance and proportions. However, the 33 Stradale of the 21st century does not follow the original design down to a T due to numerous reasons, including safety regulations and aerodynamic performance.
Frank redesigned the limited-run supercar to his liking with – of course – an emphasis on keeping it road-legal. Stephenson’s biggest gripe concerns the side air intakes, which are way too gauche for a car that’s supposed to pay tribute to Franco Scaglione’s masterpiece. From 1967 to 1969, only 18 specimens were assembled by Carrozzeria Marazzi in Milan.
Credited to Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos of Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, the newcomer is a bit overkill up front as well. Not surprising anyone, Frank blocked off the hood vents, rounded off the front fenders and headlight areas, and removed the Alfa Romeo cross & snake from the front grille.
Photo: Frank Stephenson on YouTube
As far as the bodysides are concerned, Frank rounded off the wheel arches, repositioned the Quadrifoglio logo, thinned the A pillars, worked his magic on the cutlines, lowered the rear deck, and switched to wrapover glass for the rear window.
Stevenson took the liberty of reshaping the rear-end surface, adding side aerodynamic plates, moving the reflectors and rear license plate, and redesigning the taillight areas in accordance with the aforementioned changes. There is no denying that Frank did a great job, yet Alejandro deserves a standing ovation for the real thing because the all-new 33 is bite-the-back-of-your-hand pretty as is.
You also need to put yourself in Alejandro’s shoes. Alfa Romeo tasked him with reskinning the Maserati MC20 with 33 Stradale styling cues, which is no walk in the park even for an experienced automotive designer. Similar to the Maserati MC20, the 33 Stradale also packs a V6 lump.
Customers who prefer something a bit more thrilling are offered a full-electric powertrain with more than 750 metric ponies on tap. By comparison, the Nettuno 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 of the MC20 produces over 620 ps (612 hp) in this application.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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