Description
Compiled by R.M.Clarke, Softbound, 172 Pages, A-ISOGP, ISBN: 9781855202399 - 1st Edition ** VERY RARE BOOK**
Brooklands Books are a reference series for enthusiasts and we are delighted to record here our thanks to two people who urged us to cover this marque. The first is John Lello of Motorbooks in London who brought to our attention the need for such a book and secondly Chris Lackner, Secretary of the ISO Bizzarrini Club. Chris helped us by selecting the best stories, then went on to write the informed introduction below and finally supplied us with the excellent photographs for our covers.
The aim of this book is to gather together a selection of stories which will provide the reader with an overall picture of the ISO and Bizzairini models. We would have not been able to accomplish this aim without the generosity of the publishers of the following magazines who have once again allowed us to include their valuable copyright road tests and other stories. Autocar, Autosport, Car, Car and Driver, Classic and Sportscar, Classic Car, Custom Car, Fast Car, Motor Sport, Popular Imported Cars, Road & Track, Sporting Motorist, SportsCar Graphic, Sports Car World, Thoroughbred & Classic Cars and Wheels.
R M Clarke
The story of the ISORIVOLTA and Bizzarrini marques is not one that is familiar to enthsiasts generally. Nevertheless, it is a fascinating one, which is dominated by a handful of key men: Renzo Rivolta - successful Italian industrialist who, during the 40's and 50's built the firm of ISO into a highly profitable personal empire, through the manufacture of airconditioning and refrigeration equipment, motor-scooters, the famous "Isetta" microcar, and the ubiquitous "ISOCarro" - that curious little 3-wheeled transporter which was and still is so much a part of the everyday Italian scene.
Giotto Bizzarrini - famous automotive engineer, well-known for his work on various projects at Ferrari, most notably the 2500T SWB and the legendary 250 GTO. One of the personnel in the famous "walkout" from Ferrari in 1961, he was hired by Rivolta to assist with the chassis design for the forthcoming ISO Rivolta GT, and subsequently the Grifo, an offshoot of which was to become the car bearing his own name.
Giorgetto Giugiaro - just starting out at Bertone, the Rivolta GT was one of his early styling jobs. The immortal Grifo is widely recoginsed to be one of his masterpieces, and he later was responsible for the body design for the Fidia saloon, while working at Ghia.
Nero Rivolta - took over the reins of the ISO company on the death of his father in 1966 while still in his early 20's. He ably guided the firm until the Rivolta family sold out in the early 70's.
And what of the cars themselves?.. .Having sold the licence to manufacture the Isetta to BMW, Velam and others, which was probably far more profitable than building it, Renzo Rivolta, himself an owner of various quality cars including Maseratis and Jaguars, decided to produce his own version, with the accent on speed and style combined with reliability.
The prototype Gordon GT (later to become the Gordon Keeble) was examined closely. This car was powered by a Chevrolet Corvette 327 cubic inch V8 engine which was particularly admired. ISO's version, the Rivolta GT, retained this power unit, together with the classic de Dion rear suspension, but with pressed-steel monocoque bodywork, which lent itself better to the higher production rates envisaged.
Unveiled to the press in 1962, the Rivolta GT made a very favourable impression with its combination of understated good looks, speed, comfort and handling, as evidenced by the road tests of the time. Production continned until 1970, with just under 800 examples being produced.
At the Turin show of 1963, two new ISOs were displayed. Based on a shortened Rivolta GT chassis the new Grifo A3L berlinetta epitomised all that was finest in Italian GTs of the era. Low, wide, and dramatically good-looking, the production version was hand-made in small numbers until the company's demise in 1974, with 412 built. The fastest car tested by Autocar up until 1966, it could top 160mph, with later versions powered by Chevrolet's 7-litre `big-block' able to lay claim to the title of "world's fastest production car". Just 90 of these trntal monsters were made.
The other car on display was a competition version of the Grifo called the A3C. A very aggressively styled machine, it was designed for endurance racing, and thus was a project close to Bizzarrini's heart. With the similiar ISO underpinnings but with the engine moved even further back in the frame, the A3C went on to record modest successes during 1964 and 1965, notably winning its class at Le Mans on both occasions and fin-sting ninth overall in 1965, without any factory support. Through a complicated deal with ISO, Bizzarrini went on to produce these cars, badged as Bizzarrinis, at his small Livorno works. A project based on a scaled-down -oasion with an Opel 2-litre engine came to nought. Around 150 Bizzarrinis of all types were produced up to 1968.
Meanwhile, in 1967 ISO entered the luxury saloon market with the S4, later to be called Fidia. The only ISO styled at Ghia, it was based on a stretched Rivolta floorpan and marketed as "the worlds four fastest seats". With a top speed of up to 145mph it certainly had a legitimate claim, at least until the advent of the Jaguar XJ12. Ouly 192 examples were built between 1967 and 1974.
What was to be the last new design from ISO was shown at the 1969 New York Auto Show. Essentially, an zpdated version of the Rivolta GT, the new ISO 2+2 called 'Lele' was styled by Marcello Gandini (of Lamborghini Miura and Countach fame) at Bertone. Powered at first by 327 and 350 Chevrolet engines, and from 1972 by Ford Cleveland 351s, the Lele proved that there was plenty of life in the 1962-designed chassis yet. By factory closure, about 317 had been completed.
Sadly, following the change of ownership, and with sales severely hampered by the world oil-crisis, the ISO frm quietly died in 1974.
But the story may not have ended there .... Nero Rivolta, together with some former ISO staff, decided to revive tie Grifo name with a new car, a full-size styling mock-up of which was shown to the press in 1991 to consider-.1E* acclaim. Called the Grifo 90, it has a chassis designed by Gian Paolo Dallara, and styling by Marcello Gamdini, and will use a modified Corvette engine as in the Grifos of old. Let us hope it comes to fruition!
Chris Lackner
