Porsche Tapiro
The Porsche Tapiro is a concept car built by Porsche in 1970. It was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro and has a traditional 1970s wedge design, which critics say somewhat resembles that of the De Tomaso Mangusta. The chassis is based on the Porsche 914/6, and it features gullwing-style doors.[1]
Porsche Tapiro | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Manufacturer | Porsche |
Production | 1970 1 built |
Designer | Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign |
Body and chassis | |
Class | Sports car |
Layout | Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive |
Related | Porsche 914/6 |
Powertrain | |
Engine | 2.4 L flat-six |
Transmission | 5-speed manual |
Specifications
The Tapiro is powered by a longitudinally mounted air-cooled 2.4 liter flat-six engine producing 220 hp (164 kW) at 7,800 rpm, and connected to a 5-speed manual transmission. This engine could propel the Tapiro to an official top speed of 152 mph (245 km/h).[2]
History
The Porsche Tapiro was introduced to the world at the 1970 Turin Auto Show, in Turin, Italy.[3] The car made its US debut at the 5th Annual Los Angeles Imported Automobile and Sports Car Show in 1971.
In 1972, the car was sold to a Spanish industrialist who used it as his daily driver. The car was mostly destroyed after it caught fire. Most sources say the cause of the fire was a group of labor activists protesting its owner's labor policies, who planted a bomb under the Tapiro. The bomb exploded, burning the car but not destroying the chassis.[4] Other sources say the car was involved in an accident and caught fire that way.[5] The burnt shell was repurchased by Italdesign and is now on display in its Giugiaro Museum.
References
- "TG's guide to concepts: the 1970 Porsche Tapiro". Top Gear. 2017-03-06. Retrieved 2018-08-11.
- "1970 Porsche Tapiro: Concept We Forgot". Motor1.com. Retrieved 2018-08-11.
- Project: Tapiro. Italdesign.it.
- 993C4S. "What Happened to the Porsche Tapiro". @FlatSixes - the blog about Porsche.
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - "Meet the 1970 Porsche Tapiro, a concept car that met a violent death". Autoweek. Retrieved 2018-08-11.