14 Feb 07 16:49
Diatto Ottovu Zagato
Italian car design studio Zagato has created a two-door coupe which revives a classic carmaking name.
A commission from two wealthy collectors, the Diatto Ottovu Zagato has a V8 engine ('Ottovu' is Italian for 8-V) thought to be sourced from Maserati. More details will be revealed in Geneva.
According to Diatto.it, the Diatto company was founded on the outskirts of Turin as a wheelmaking and mending firm in 1835. It started to build cars in 1905, with French Clement-Bayard cars under licence, before venturing into racing cars, driven by legends including Nuvolari and Ascari, as well as Alfieri Maserati, who drove a Diatto to victory in the 1922 Monza Grand Prix.
However, the firm had run into financial difficulties by 1923 and eventually went into receivership in 1931. There was a brief attempt to revive car production in the 40s, but the firm eventually closed in 1955.
The Diatto name and logo currently belong to a firm called Diatto International Trademark Marketing, registered in Madeira, Portugal.
