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Tapiro: 50 years of a revolutionary prototype with a Spanish past

WEDGE DESIGN. A REVOLUTION LEADED BY BERTONE

At the end of the 60s, some Italian designers forged an aesthetic revolution never seen before. Armed with geometric shapes and profuse aerodynamic studies, prototypes emerged from the pencils of Marcello Gandini, Paolo Martín and Giorgetto Giugiaro that would set the course for the next decade. Bodywork resolved based on horizontal lines and right angles, far removed from the muscular and rounded volumes with which sports cars had been sculpted to date. In addition, the height was lowered to improve the degree of aerodynamic penetration, thus requiring the use of doors with vertical opening.

Under these parameters, between 1968 and 1970 five prototypes were born in Italy at the rate of one unit per project. With the exception of the Maserati Boomerang, of which there were two units of which only the second and final one remains. Unique pieces that defined the "Wedge design", always following the trail started by Marcello Gandini in 1968 with the presentation of the Alfa Romeo Carabo. Built on the chassis of a 33 Stradale, this prototype was the first to propose solutions that would end up defining such significant models as the Lamborghini Countach. A pioneer who consolidated Gandini and Bertone as standard bearers of a change completed in 1970 with the Lancia Stratos Zero.

porsche tapir

Taking to unsuspected limits the definition of "Wedge design", the Lancia Stratos Zero is just over 80 centimeters tall still riding a V4 engine extracted from the Fulvia. An absolutely revolutionary concept, so influential that it was the basis for the legendary Lancia Stratos HF Stradale. In fact, the impact generated was so great that it even conditioned its name; called Stratos for looking something spatial and futuristic, arrived from the stratosphere. As it is, there is no doubt that the main protagonist of that revolution was Marcello Gandini. Something that he would continue to confirm during the 70s with designs such as the Lamborghini Bravo.

However, along the lines of Bertone houses like Pininfarina or Italdesign they were not far behind. Thanks to the pencils of Paolo Martin, the former made their contribution to this phenomenon with the Ferrari 512S Module. Like the Stratos, this prototype seemed to come straight from the distant future. Based on the chassis of one of the 25 units of the 512S designed to beat the Porsche 917 at Le Mans, the Modulo just exceeds 90 centimeters in height, housing a 12CV V550.

porsche tapir

GIORGETTO GIUGARO AND THE WEDGE DESIGN. THE PORSCHE TAPIRO IS GESTED

Regarding the role of Giorgetto Giugaro things started to get interesting in 1968. After eight years working for Bertone and Ghia, Giugaro finally founded his own studio in Turin together with Aldo Mantovani. This is how Italdesign was born, the place from where this designer would establish himself as one of the most influential in the entire history of motorsports. Something to which two decisive prototypes contributed to understand how the definition of the "Wedge design". He maserati boomerang and Porsche tapiro.

porsche tapir

Presented at the 1971 Turin Motor Show, the Maserati Boomerang was the later of the two examples. Of course, the unit presented at that time did not have an engine. We had to wait for the 1972 Geneva Motor Show to see it completed, based on the chassis and mechanics of a 1971 Maserati Bora. Extravagant but balanced, some journalists of the time said that its design was "So dynamic that it seems to go 150 km / h even when standing still". An excellent design exercise that, however, was based on the lines proposed by the Volkswagen / Porsche Tapiro.

porsche tapir

First shown during the 1970 Turin Motor ShowOnly one unit was manufactured from the Tapiro. Being Giugaro's best contribution to the birth of the "Wedge design". A radical departure from its previous collaboration with Volkswagen: the VW Karmann TC. Curious fastback destined for the Brazilian market that Giugaro conceived during his last months working for Ghia.

Made on the chassis of a VW / Porsche 914, the Tapiro spent three years touring various international shows. The idea was to show that this new wave of design did not have to be reserved for supercars. Since in this case had been applied on the basis of an average sports car like the 914.

porsche tapir

A model developed halfway between the two German firms, of which almost 120.000 units were produced. Had it hit production, the Porsche Tapiro could have made an unconventional futuristic sports car available to the masses. However, History awaited him a hazardous and lonely existence in which the fire almost killed him.

PORSCHE TAPIRO. WEDGE DESIGN RE-INTERPRETING THE VW / PORSCHE 914

Since Ferdinand Porsche put his surname on the front of a car in 1939 Type64, the history of Volkswagen and Porsche has gone hand in hand on more than a few occasions. That sporty evolution of the KdF-Wagen was the first stone in the history of a brand derived from the Volkswagen Beetle itself. Something that continued after the Second World War, when the first 356s began to define the identity of Porsche based on the architecture and mechanics of the popular utility.

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A formula "All behind" that continues to survive in the current 911s, which still defy logic with their engine hanging behind the rear axle. So things, in 1963 Porsche introduced the 911 as the natural evolution of the 356. A rabid sports car that requires a certain skill in its driving, only suitable for true devotees of the motor with a more or less comfortable pocket. For this reason, at the end of the decade, Porsche flirted with the idea of ​​a sports car of average character. Not as attractive as its top-of-the-range, but adequate to square the company's battered accounting.

porsche tapir

While this was happening at Porsche, at Volkswagen they were mulling over how to revamp their dated Karmann Type34. A timely coincidence, since this allowed the two brands to join forces in order to develop a basic sports car for Porsche, which at the same time was part of the top range in the popular Volkswagen. A hybrid for which it was not necessary to make too many agreements, since based on an agreement signed after the Second World War, Porsche was in charge of the development work for Volkswagen.

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In addition, all this accumulation of coincidences was favored by the impulse of Ferdinand Piëch. Grandson of Ferdinand Porsche himself, this key figure in understanding modern motorsports held the position of research and development in the house founded by his grandfather at the end of the sixties. With this leadership, the project of the future VW / Porsche 914 was sealed, which was sold in Europe with the simultaneous name of both brands, while in the United States it did so only as Porsche.

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However, to what extent is the 914 a true Porsche? It is true that the chassis is designed by the Stuttgart brand, but Most of the 914 have the Volkswagen four-cylinder 80CV engine. The first to have electronic injection in the history of the brand. Although enough to power a mid-range sports car born in the late sixties, the Porsche team decided to create the 914/6 version. Named for mounting the six-cylinder boxer of the 911T, here the power was already going up to 110CV. A most interesting evolution, which turned the 914 into a kind of mid-engined 911. A full-fledged Porsche on which Giorgetto Giugaro based the Tapiro.

GIUGARO AND THE PORSCHE 914. WEDGE DESIGN COMES INTO PLAY

Marked by Porsche's widely used Targa layout, the 914 was introduced during 1969 as a semi-convertible two-seater useful for everyday use. But yes, with clear sports whims thanks to its low weight, short battle and good weight distribution. Something that was achieved thanks to being the first mid-engined series production vehicle after the short run of the 1962 Renne Bonnet / Matra Djet. Of course, although when it comes to design, it has won over the years, the truth is that its restrained nature did not lead to experimentation.

porsche tapir

Only the retractable headlights gave a futuristic feel to an otherwise conservative body. Perhaps that is why Giogetto Giugiaro sensed the commercial possibilities of a 914 offered under the futuristic cloak of a closed body finished off with some showy vertical opening doors. Thus, his company Italdesign proposed to Volkswagen the start of a prototype based on the 914 on its own. In this way, the concept of the Porsche Tapiro was born at the end of 1969, with an Italian designer determined to give the bell and some German executives in expectation.

porsche tapir

At this time, Giugiaro defined the outline of the Porsche Tapiro. As guiding elements, the highest possible safety and aerodynamics would be taken into account, while the layout of the 914 would only be slightly altered by increasing the track width due to larger wheels than the original ones. Defined by representative lines of the new style of the "Wedge design", the front cuts the wind thanks to its sharp beak. A forward that gives way to a bodywork governed by large flat surfaces, on which the air slides to a rear with glass hoods to cover the engine.

porsche tapir

The wide windscreen offers plenty of visibility for passengers, who are accommodated in an interior located very low, accentuating the sporting experience offered by the Porsche Tapiro. In fact, the glass panels in the rear half help enhance that clear view. A solution that Giugaro had already tried in 1967 when equipped De Tomado Mangusta with two vertically opening gates.

porsche tapir

Attached to a longitudinal pillar supported by the roll bar, these unfold just like the doors. Giving a curious look to the Porsche Tapiro when we open the moving parts of its body. Without a doubt, a spectacular way to solve your back to fastback.

porsche tapir

In addition, one of the most striking aspects of the Porsche Tapiro is that Giugaro managed to capture this design on a fully functional vehicle. As we know, many prototypes are pure empty shells. And among those that do have a chassis and mechanics, not a few would have to undergo modifications in the event of reaching series production. However -and only in the absence of some mirrors- the Porsche Tapiro is fully designed to be transferred to series production. A blend of bold design and efficient engineering, which is still one of the masterpieces of Giorgetto Giugiaro's career to this day.

MOTORIZING THE PORSCHE TAPIRO. SIX CYLINDER HEART.

Called Tapiro for the similarity between its sharp front and the snout of this mammal with a taste for sniffing, this project already had a truly revolutionary body in the mid-1970s. But nevertheless, for the prototype to be really functional, it had to include mechanics to match. And it is here where the first controversies in the history of our protagonist begin to emerge. Commonly, sources indicate that the Porsche Tapiro was riding the six-cylinder of the Porsche 914/6. Something logical considering that it is the car on which, normally, our protagonist has been said to be based.

porsche tapir

However, looking at the chronologies, it could also be possible that the six-cylinder in the Porsche Tapiro did not come from a 914/6. Let's see. The first units of the 914/6 were assembled at the beginning of 1970. In fact, the FIA ​​approved this enhanced version of the 914 on March 1 of that same year within the Group4. A few days later, Porsche sent two units to the Targa-Florio registered out of competition as a test bed. All with the aim of preparing Le Mans, but also of testing the future series model. These two units are had as the first two of 914/6.

As we said before, the 914/6 version was later introduced by Porsche itself with the 911T engine. The aim was to offer a more performance modification for those who were looking for in the 914 not a simple mid-range sports car with a Volkswagen engine, but a kind of 911 with its novel mid-engine arrangement. Although they differed in the engine, both versions of the 914 shared the same chassis. Therefore, and based on the chronology, there is reason to believe that the Porsche Tapiro appeared at the Turin Motor Show in 1970 - held at the end of October - with the four-cylinder mechanics of the 914/4.

However, this was not the case. Then, Where did the six-cylinder Porsche come from that you were already equipped with from the day of its presentation? This is where Bonomelli Tuning comes in. This preparation company with extensive experience in Porsche models was responsible for equipping the Tapiro with the 2-liter boxer engine taken from a 4S. An intervention carried out during the construction of the prototype in the Italdesign workshops, which explains why the Porsche Tapiro has a six-cylinder, even though it was built before the moment when the first 911/914s began to be marketed.

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A fact corroborated by the research carried out by Brian Long for his book Porsche 914/4 and 914/6, The Definitive History of the Road and Competition Cars. Something that adds more legend and confusion to the complex history of this prototype, since although that engine threw 190CV in its series versionWe do not know if with the possible modifications of Bonomelli it delivered something else. In fact, some sources put the power of the Porsche Tapiro at about 220CV. In short, when it comes to this type of almost artisan elaboration on models that never reached series production ... Everything can be.

THREE YEARS OF WORLD TOUR FOR THE PORSCHE TAPIRO

With the bodywork designed by Giugiario and mounted in the Italdesign workshops on the chassis of a 914/4 to which the six-cylinder engine of a 911 was added by Bonomelli, the Porsche Tapiro was finally presented in Turin on October 28. 1970. The specialized press echoed the model, raising great expectations about its possible serial production. After all, while the other pioneers of the "Wedge design" They had been made on short-run sports cars, the Tapiro was based on a series model produced in batches of thousands. In sum, there was a real chance that the Giugaro prototype would seduce Ferdinand Piech to take it to series.

porsche tapir

However, right then the 914/6 was hitting the market. And well, the truth is that of the 118.995 units of the 914, only 3.349 came with the six-cylinder of the 911. It seemed that, although Volkswagen had been phenomenal in the market launch of the 914/4, Porsche had not been successful. both do the 914/6. In short, from what it looked like Porsche customers went straight to the established 911. More attracted to carry the engine hanging behind the rear axle than in a central position. As it was, Porsche did not dare to launch the Tapiro as a closed-body version with a futuristic design of the 914/6.

As far as Volkswagen is concerned, it did not venture with the Tapiro either. And the disruptive nature of the prototype did not fit well with the commercial strategy of a generalist brand.

With all the options to manufacture it in series closed, the Porsche Tapiro remained a fantastic trial of the new wedge designs. Thanks to this, it was exhibited in various international salons for three years. In Turin 1971 he repeated his presence, accompanying the presentation of the Maserati Boomerang. That same year he was also at the Los Angeles Hall, which echoed the revolutionary designs arrived from Italy with a poster where the Porsche Tapiro appears next to the Lancia Stratos Zero.

porsche tapir

THE PORSCHE TAPIRO AND ITS HAPPY LIFE IN SPAIN

Curiously, both the Porsche Tapiro and the Maserati Boomerang shared a dangerous destiny in Spanish lands that was about to end them. Exhibited in Spain as part of the 1973 Barcelona Show, the Tapiro was sold to a Spanish businessman during the show. Briefly used as a daily car, it eventually ended up in a sale to be acquired in 1974 by the Argentine composer based in Madrid Waldo de los Ríos. And it is right here when the Porsche Tapiro suffered an accident that almost cost it scrapping.

As is known, Porsche 914/6s used to catch fire fairly easily due to their triple body Weber carburettors overflowing from float failure. Thus, gasoline found the cables of the electrical equipment inside the engine compartment, causing abrupt fires just behind the nape of the passengers. Just what happened with the Tapiro. A fire that, according to information published in the magazine Clásicos Exclusivos, surprised Waldo de los Ríos while he was driving the vehicle through Madrid's Casa de Campo.

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Followed closely in another car by his wife Isabel Pisano, the fire started with the car moving, destroying the rear of the car. According to various testimonies, after the owner's suicide in 1977 his widow stored the car wreckage in the back of his house in the Parque Conde de Orgaz in Madrid until well into the 90's. A situation of complete helplessness. In fact, according to eyewitnesses, it lay abandoned like the rest of the house in whose garden even children sneaked in to play. Two decades in which the remains of the Porsche Tapiro miraculously survived until discovered by a collector.

After the discovery, the prototype goes to be stored in a scrapyard in the north of Madrid where, finally, it is recovered by Italdesign itself after receiving notice that his remains still existed. Transferred to the company museum in Moncalieri, Giugiaro decides not to restore the Porsche Tapiro. Today it is exposed in the sorry state that the fire left it. In fact, the photograph of Giugiaro and his son receiving the remains of the Tapiro at the entrance of the museum is pure poetry. The sample of an unexpected reunion -after almost three decades- with one of the most significant prototypes in his entire career as a designer.

porsche tapir

Beyond this account of the events, for quite some time there was a rumor. A rumor that still remains in some forums about the reason for the fire that affected the Porsche Tapiro. A truly romantic story, which further spiced the legend of the car. And it is that, according to this rumor, the Tapiro would have been set on fire in the course of some worker protests at the end of the Franco regime. Excited by the uproar of the protest, some workers reportedly threw several Molotov cocktails at the car, owned by a businessman with little understanding of labor rights.

In fact, in an even more seasoned version, some claim that the Tapiro was the target of the terrorist group ETA. Anyway, despite the fact that it is a more impressive narrative than the real story ... The truth is that the Porsche Tapiro was never a victim of the political struggles against the dictatorship. But simply its carburetion failures and a long neglect.

porsche tapir

Interestingly, the Maserati Boomerang also had a similar story to that of the Tapiro although with fewer lagoons and shades of legend. Sold to a businessman from Alicante after the 1974 Barcelona Show, Giugiaro's prototype ended up abandoned in a plot until it was rescued in 1980. All by an enthusiast who restored it before selling it to the German collector Bertold Ollmann. Fortunately, today the Boomerang looks in perfect condition, being able to roll on the road as its predecessor the Porsche Tapiro obviously cannot.

Now, 50 years after its introduction in 1970, The Porsche Tapiro is one of the most interesting contributions to the wedge design revolution started by Gandini at Bertone and continued by Giugaro at Italdesign. In fact, that it is based on a very popular series model is, at least for us, something really transcendental. And it is that the rest of prototypes protagonists of this change were based on high-end sports cars. While the Tapiro, by making it on the basis of a VW / Porsche 914, demonstrated how close this futuristic idea could be to series production.

A piece of history that survived fire and abandonment to be happily treasured today in the museum of the brand that saw it born.

What do you think?

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Written by Miguel Sánchez

Through the news from La Escudería, we will travel the winding roads of Maranello listening to the roar of the Italian V12; We will travel Route66 in search of the power of the great American engines; we will get lost in the narrow English lanes tracking the elegance of their sports cars; We will speed up the braking in the curves of the Monte Carlo Rally and we will even get dusty in a garage while rescuing lost jewels.

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