Hooniverse Weekend Edition – An Original Iso Rivolta IR 300 on eBay.
Welcome to a continuing journey of obscurity on Hooniverse. Glancing through the “Other Makes” section of eBay Motors, this particular listing for an Iso Rivolta caught my eye, and so it had to be shared with the rest of you. The pictures in the listing were quite “Rivolting” so I used one found on Wikipedia as the lead image. Look at the real car after the break…
The Iso Rivolta was introduced in 1962 by Iso Automotoveicoli S.p.A. According to Wikipedia the company chairman named Renzo Rivolta and his colleague, former Ferrari engineer Giotto Bizzarrini (yes, that Bizzarrini) saw the concept as a Gran-Turismo Car in the original sense of the term, designed for long and memorable journeys. Although the Rivolta was originally envisioned as a competitor for the elegant Fiat 2300 Coupé, the low sales volumes made it prudent to move the car and its price upmarket. A 5.4 litre Chevrolet V8 engine was fitted, with the original concept receiving an all-synchromesh four-speed gear change. Production versions offered a GM supplied Automatic in addition to the manual.
The front wheels of the Iso Rivolta 300 are suspended by linkages of uneven length with a sway bar. The rear wheels are attached with twin trailing arms using a De Dion axle with a Watt’s linkage. Coil springs and telescopic hydraulic shock absorbers are fitted to all four wheels. The recirculating ball steering system needs five turns from lock to lock: the turning circle is unusually large limiting maneuverability somewhat.
The design was penned by Bertone, and has an accommodating interior for four passengers. Of course, most of the interior was lined in soft Italian leather. This was a GT Car without many of the headaches associated with an Italian GT Car, but does that make an almost basket case Iso Rivolta desirable? According to the listing for this one:
Rare and desirable Iso Rivolta. Obviously needs a restoration, but is suprisingly original, complete, straight and not rusty. Same owner since 1970! Has A/C and desirable Borrani wire wheels. Underside of car, floors, door bottoms, engine bay, wheel wells, etc., are solid. I believe much of the paint is original. Stainless bumpers and glass are good. I have the other door panel but it’s quite rough. Car has been parked since 1985 so assume a rebuild. At least it’s a 327, which is far cheaper to redo than an Italian driveline.
Mileage on this example shows 67,570 miles, which is pretty good for the Chevy engine and Automatic, but the body will need a lot of work to bring back to show condition. There are 11 bids with the top bid currently sitting at $18,119, with no reserve. Is this the right amount for a rare Italian GT car with the heart of an American? See the listing here, and tell me what you think.
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The Rivolta was one of Giugiaro's early designs for Bertone and frankly I think it's pretty far from his best – there's a lot of messy detailing and the whole car looks a bit awkward. If I wanted a Chevy-engined Giugiaro special, I'd hunt down a Gordon-Keeble – not only is it prettier, but the fiberglass body doesn't rust!
<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Gordon-Keeble_car_2.jpg/800px-Gordon-Keeble_car_2.jpg" width=500>
The styling on the Rivolta is no Gordon-Keeble or HK500, but at least it's bettter than that of a CV8. Still an eminently desirable car. But if I'm ever going to shell out for an Iso, it'll be a Grifo.
Saying a car looks better than a CV8 is what I call damning with faint praise.
<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3203/2604308385_7940abb44c.jpg" width=500>
I'd Hoon it just the way it is.
I'd much prefer a car that's solid and original to one that looks good but is highly modified and has unseen issues. Twenty grand is probably fair money for this. I'd try to see just how lightly I could freshen it up, retaining all that patina.
To my eye, it looks like this car lent a lot of inspiration to later BMWs. I'm not wild about the eyebrows over the headlamps, but it's a handsome beast.
Funny, I looked at the eyebrows and immediately thought of the Ghia Type 34:
<img src="http://www.classicvws.com/images/blue34ghia.jpg" border="0" style="border:none;" alt=" " />
I'm not quite with you. That seems closer to a Mazda Cosmo. Though the front is better integrated.
I agree with you. The Type 34's eyebrows are so overstated that it only takes a hint of them on another vehicle to remind me. Thankfully, the Type 34's are integrated into the bodywork and aren't chromed.
Gorgeous car! I think it looks great, I love the Iso brand, but you never really see them anymore.
Hm. Every source I can find online praises the G-K's handling. From Octane Magazine:
"With achingly pretty Giugiaro styling and the vocal accompaniment of a Corvette V8, you’d never know these were lovingly nailed together in a large shed near Southampton. Just 99 were built before the company folded for the second and last time, but enthusiastic support and a glassfibre body over a square tube chassis means that almost all of those cars survive. Commonly found (and much better to drive) with a power-assisted rack-and pinion steering conversion. Easy to drive fast and simple to look after, it makes an intriguing alternative to an E-type coupé." http://www.classicandperformancecar.com/front_web…
I was writing from memory, but after a quick check I found that C&SC actually drove a G-K in January 1995.
"The Gordon Keeble…suffers from strong bump steer. If you get the tail swinging on a bumpy corner, your arms are working hard as the steering wheel…overamplifies the messages that the wheels are so vividly sending. There is some weird geometry here."
So, yeah, get the beautiful G-K and the bits to re-engineer the steering if it hasn't already been done. There is a reason that such a process was developed.
I note that the article referenced above was a direct comparison test of several cars. The Iso Rivolta, CV8 and Facel II among them. The Brits (almost always 'homers') chose the G-K even while admitting it was "deeply flawed". You would seem to be in good company.
The Rivolta stands as a high water mark of Giugiaro designs, so full of the character and detail lacking from his later work. Consider, for example, the much blander Gordon-Keeble. Not only was that car much plainer, it was made from fiberglass, which doesn't hold up nearly as well as steel.
To the question, I remember the Keeble, this Iso, the BMW 3200 CS and I'd include the Alfa 2600.
Foreign hand built sports cars that aren't A/C's that have American V8's – a pretty wide topic.
I like the Gordon Keeble as well. But I still think the Jensen Interceptor is the best example.
How about the Intermeccanica Italia and Indra? The Indra later became the Bitter SC.
I know I'm in the minority, but I've always liked the Rivolta. When I was a kid I bought a 1/43 scale diecast of it in silver (which I still have somewhere). It's one of those old diecasts that uses rhinestones for headlights.
This example wouldn't be as desirable as a four-speed, since being a '65 model, the automatic is probably a Powerglide. The a/c looks original, since it uses a Borg-Warner York compressor. One thing that would make it pain to take a trip in is the incredibly narrow front footwells. And as crowded as the driver's side is with the automatic brake pedal, it would be worse with brake and clutch pedals.
A couple of other observations:
1) The grille is nice and straight, which is good, since they're probably impossible to find, and;
2) Notice the exposed fuses and relays under the hood. What is it about Italians and electrical systems? This looks like an absolute nightmare as far as reliability goes. Being right in front of the rear edge of the hood opening, water is bound to get in there.
Call me crazy, but my first thought was Rambler Italian-American.
<img src="http://static.ddmcdn.com/gif/1961-1963-rambler-american-convertible-and-hardtop.jpg">