The Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera is two years younger than its century. As one of the leading surviving Italian coachbuilders, the Milan-based company has been through a family adventure of success, struggles, bankruptcies and rebirth, and now finds itself again at the peak of demand as a supplier of bespoke vehicles to an organization from creditors who are not motivated by the vicissitudes of the luxury car bidding war. The tours are designed for those who know what they want, not what they are told, going against the trends of design, fashion and vulgar wars of forces.
Veloce12 Touring Superleggera
This is the Veloce12, a radical and complete redesign of the 550 Maranello, Ferrari’s flagship V12-powered grand tourer manufactured between 1996 and 2002. Originally bodied by Pininfarina, the 550 was never considered one of Ferrari’s classics, but it was a relatively low model. A key GT reminiscent of a golden age of the automobile.
Veloce12 Touring Superleggera
The Veloce12 takes the core elements of the 550 and amplifies them, tweaking surfaces and trim, mechanical systems and tuning, to create a GT that is classically sublime and surprisingly modern. “It’s a dream to create a car that reflects what we enjoyed in the ’90s, but it works like a new car,” says Markus Tellenbach, CEO of Touring. “The Veloce12 brings the joy and excitement of controlling a manual machine. “
Veloce12 by Touring Superleggera
Four design proposals were made, and the winning design was approved through potential clients; 20 of the 30 planned cars have already been sold. “It’s purely Italian, designed and built in Italy,” Tellenbach says, adding that “everything can be made to measure, as long as it’s legally possible. The Touring production plant not only manufactures its own limited-edition models, but also uses subcontractors. “brands: the next Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale is being built there.
Veloce12 Touring Superleggera
You’d be hard pressed to find many hot cars that combine a manual gearbox with a V12 (Aston Martin’s limited edition Valor, for example), but that’s precisely what the Veloce12 promises. Ferrari’s 5. 5-liter V12 is now paired with increased cooling and exhaust. systems, new brakes and a complex new adaptive suspension system, all filtered through the purist analogue driving delight that only a classic portal shift can offer.
“The 550 had all the ingredients we needed, although it’s now [technically] outdated,” says Tellenbach. Touring was about hiring suppliers who could make the company’s vision for the car a reality. The result is described through The tours are a “pure Italianness” and an “antidote to electronic overload. “
Veloce12 interior via Touring Superleggera
Thanks to those improvements, the Veloce12 now delivers an impressive 503 horsepower. Paired with an all-carbon fiber body, the car is more responsive and dynamic than the original, without wasting the qualities of refinement and effortless grace that characterize the brand. “We’re not where we are, but we wanted it to be a high-performance sports car on the market today,” admits Tellenbach, adding that “travel isn’t about lap times, track days or straight-line acceleration. Touring means: this is where we think we can express ourselves convincingly.
Each side of the Veloce12 interior can be customized
“The Touring has 98 years of experience in designing automobiles that stand the test of time,” enthuses Tellenbach fans, pointing out that in the modern era the art of bodywork is very different. “I’m not a manufacturer, because the cars are very sophisticated,” he says. Acting as a specialist manufacturer for brands like Alfa Romeo and giving Aston Martin the name ‘Superleggera’ are just some of the tactics with which that the art of Carrozzeria survives today. “Owning your own car is a high-risk business,” says Tellenbach.
Veloce12 interior can come with custom-made luggage
Projects like Veloce12 tap into enthusiast owners who want to upgrade their existing car through a personalized and engaging process. “It’s a genuine driving experience,” he says of the Veloce12, “we promised there would be no screens. ” None. No downloads. No updates. It’s about the pleasure of ordering anything that exactly follows your orders and inputs. Cabling. Honest. Directly and without filter.
Veloce12 Touring Superleggera
Inside and out, the Veloce12 presents the world with a supple and sleek face, subtly muscular but still responsive compared to the competitive bumps and vents of the new supercars and GTs. “It’s not a bully, it’s a sublime grand tourer,” Tellenbach. “He’s a car in a tuxedo, not a wrestling suit. “
Touring Superleggera Veloce12, €690,000 plus donor (not including taxes), TouringSuperleggera. eu, @TouringSuperleggera
Jonathan Bell has been writing for Wallpaper magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, generation and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s transport and generation editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, adding Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.