Page 30 - Sample pages "Bugatti, The Italian Decade" by Gautam Sen

NEBOOK n the greater scheme of things, Romano
Artioli’s ambition was to emulate
rO the success of Porsche and Lotus SI I in attracting design and engineering
SI consultancy business for Bugatti. Thus,
F v even before the EB110 was ready, Bugatti
D Automobili was looking for projects from other
N OKS y A automobile manufacturers.
O
E S
Given Artioli’s excellent relationship with Suzuki,
C h O T T
it was not surprising that the first client signed
S on was the Japanese car manufacturer. In March
B AK 1989, after a series of meetings between the Suzuki
N personnel Messrs. Nishi, Hatoh, Kawasaki and
E O W
Ueda, and Artioli, Paolo Stanzani and Julia Wilson,
N O A
an Englishwoman working for Artioli, at Artioli’s
I
N
Berman facilities, Bugatti Automobili prepared
F
B O
T
an elaborate proposal, to design and prototype a
two-seater sports coupe with a spacious luggage
E TN
L
compartment. The reference product? The hugely
N successful Honda CR-X.
O
I S
F U
For motive power, Suzuki suggested that the
coupe’s base would be the engine/transmission
T
aggregates of the Suzuki Swift GTi 1300, a 16-valve
N S AK twin cam unit to be located at the front to drive the
O
O front wheels. The principal market was identified
W
S
N
as the United States, and it would be a car that
O N
would appeal to essentially a young clientele. The
T
B potential volume was estimated at a thousand
A
TO
O
units per month, to be produced for at least six
E years, at a targeted selling price of $12,000.
W
L
C
IN
In the proposal that Bugatti Automobili sent
A
to Suzuki, the costs were divided into several
ON
F
D
I
headings: styling and scale model, full-size
mock-up, and prototype zero (the non-running
TN
prototype). It was suggested that they could
T
L
One of the first projects was a design for
make a series of pre-production prototypes, six
O
more after the prototype zero, and follow that
A
Suzuki and Paolo Martin made at least four
S
T
proposals for the Suzuki sports coupe.
with another 32 pre-series cars. For each phase
D
T
of the project, Bugatti provided a cost estimate
The first (top two) was the most ambitious
N A
range; for instance, for the styling and scale model
in proposing scissors-action doors. The next
A
©
an estimate of between Lire 250-300 million
threeweremoredowntoearth,andthe
O
W
(€130,000-158,000) was proposed. The full-size
fourth suggestion may have also considered
S
G
mock-up costs were estimated between Lire 600-
scissors-action doors given the cutline of the NT
750 million (€313,000-392,000), and the prototype
trailing edge of the door.
A
U
at Lire 715-850 million (€374,000-444,000).
O
The prettiest of the four is the bottom image.
Even the costs of homologation in Europe were
T
(All above courtesy of Paolo Martin)
W
provided. Leading most of the discussions and the
B
L
negotiations during the initial stage of the project
N
was Paolo Stanzani.
A
D
©
DALTO