Brazilian Mix
Why
should it not be possible to set a sportive two-seater, which based on proven
Brazilian Volkswagen technology, on its wheels to target also the sportive
drivers? This was the question that concerned the Brazilian designer Ottorino
Bianco in the mid of the 1970s.
The
43-years-old native Italian had several years of expericence in the field of
sportscars. In 1974 Ottorino Bianco founded the company “Toni Bianco
Coompeticoes” with the aim to compete in motorsport races. Shortly afterwards
the wish arose to produce a small, road legal sportscar in series. Due to a
lack of alternatives Bianco went for a Volkswagen Boxer-engine as a drive unit
for his car. Back then the strongest available Volkswagen Boxer-engine came
from the VW Fusca. It had a displacement of 1.6 liter, a maximal performance of
65 hp and together with the series-chassis it built the base of the sportive
two-seater. As usual for sports cars, Bianco’s guidline was to position the
engine in the rear of the car. To give his car the nessasary extravagance he
focussed on the design of the car body. The harmonious and compact design
delights even today and also fascinated the visitors of the X. Sao Paulo
Motorshow, where the car was initially presented to the public at the booth of
“Toni Bianco Competicoes”, in the year 1976. This positive response was enough
for Ottorino Bianco to set up a small series production of the car.
It
is believed that up to 20 vehicles per month left the small production facility
in Sao Paulo in the early days. It is not known why this figure could not be upheld
later on. In the end the final production figure was most probably not more
than a high double-digit number.
....