user: Lot Watch: Abarth's Periscopica Coupé
Over the past few years, Abarth’s yellow and white scorpion badge has become an increasingly common sight on the roads, adorning the ever-flourishing range of souped-up Fiat 500s. But whilst most modern buyers may be more concerned with style than pedigree, the cachet of the Abarth name stems from very serious racing back in the 1950s and 1960s. The unusual beauty you see here is one of the most important cars from that golden age.

Karl Abarth was an Austrian engineer born in 1908 under the starsign, you won’t be surprised to learn, of Scorpio. As a young man he was obsessed with motorbikes, modifying them to go faster and becoming a champion rider in the process. After the war he moved to Italy where he turned his attention to cars and changed his name to Carlo.

Abarth formed his own racing team, entering four cars in the 1949 Mille Miglia. To help fund these endeavours, he began developing groundbreaking exhaust systems, which became popular with several manufacturers, including Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Ferrari.

When Fiat launched the 600 in 1955, Abarth saw it as the starting point for a lightweight sports car. He used the car’s underpinnings as the basis for Zagato and Bertone-bodied Abarth 750s, which racked up endurance records and Mille Miglia wins by the bucketload, cementing Abarth’s relationship with Fiat and ushering in Abarth’s glory days.

The model pictured here, the OT 1300, first raced in prototype form in the Nurburgring 500-km classic in 1965. The 1.3-litre engine produced 147 bhp, an incredible amount of power for such a small engine at that time. It went on to be one of Abarth’s most successful racers.

Other than an unusual turn of speed for such a little car, the most distinctive feature is the structure on the roof that gave it the adopted name Periscopica. It’s not actually a periscope, but an air intake. The oil-cooling pipes running through the cockpit would cause the cabin to become unbearably hot. At speed the “periscope” would blast down air down onto the occupants, keeping the temperature at a more acceptable level during endurance races.

One of an estimated 50 cars built, the example being auctioned here does not have a well-documented history and following a long time in static display, it requires some work before it can run, but its originality is authenticated and the car is in “fine aesthetic order”, according to Bonhams.

"The Periscopica Coupe is a beautiful example of Abarth styling from the 1960s,” said James Knight, head of motoring at Bonhams.

“Requiring sympathetic restoration, any collector would recognise the Periscopica as an entry pass into many of the world's most prestigious historic and classic car motor race meetings and concours events."

The Periscopica is one of 10 Abarths in the Maranello Rosso Collection, which is part of the Bonhams sale at the Goodwood Revival and includes a 1961 Fiat Abarth 1000 Bialbero “Record Monza” and a 1965 Abarth Simca 2000 GT Corsa.

The 1962 Abarth 1300 OT Periscopica Coupe is lot 221 in the Bonhams Goodwood Revival sale on 13 September 2014. Estimate £180,000 – £220,000
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The distinctive 1967 Abarth 1300 OT Periscopica Coupé auctioned by Bonhams at the Goodwood Revival is an important part of the marque’s glorious past
Volkswagen, EPA Fail to Break Impasse in Emissions-Cheating Scandal
Top Volkswagen AG and U.S. environmental officials met briefly for the first time on Wednesday and parted agreeing to continue discussing ways to resolve the auto maker’s emissions violations, an outcome that suggests the two sides still remain at odds months after the crisis emerged.

They gave no indication of progress following an hourlong meeting at Environmental Protection Agency offices in Washington, D.C. In nearly identical...
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assistant: Volkswagen and U.S. officials failed to announce a breakthrough in talks between the company’s CEO and the head of the EPA, casting doubt over a quick resolution of the emissions-cheating scandal.