Restoration & Preparation: Bizzarrini 5300 GT

Giotto Bizzarrini was the young genius responsible for the Ferrari 250GTO, the world´s most desired classic Ferrari, but resigned from Ferrari along with other senior figures in a row over management responsibilities. With the ‘Gang of 6’, Bizzarrini went to ATS, creating a new F1 brand and the world´s first mid-engined road super car. ATS was over-ambitious and soon collapsed, leaving Bizarrini free to join the nascent Lamborghini company, where he designed the chassis and Lamborghini V12 engine for the first 350GT. This legendary V12 has powered all senior Lamborghinis (Miura, Countach, Murcielago, Hurucán and also many racing powerboats) for over 50 years. Invited to move to Iso, he designed the chassis for both the Iso Rivolta and Grifo., introducing Giotto to the power and reliability of the V8 Chevrolet engine and Bertone´s brilliant young designer, Giugiaro.

Bizzarrini was a racer at heart, so his last project for Iso, the A3/C racing GT version of the Grifo shaped by Giugiaro, was the car he wanted to build as the next logical development of the GTO concept. Again, differences of opinion about the importance of racing meant that Bizzarrini left Iso, but this time with the rights for the A3/C. Giotto began to manufacture this car under his own name as the Bizzarrini 5300, in Stradale and Corsa versions. The racing car showed promise, although lack of funds again meant a lack of development and a failure to achieve its full potential. The Stradale road car was generally too much of a racer at heart to satisfy the luxury GT market and the company soon failed, having produced around 130 examples of the 5300.