Alfa Romeo 8C Zagato Doppiacoda Spotted Ahead Of Villa d’Este

The 2007-2010 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione and its Spider sibling are two of the most incredible automotive designs of the 21st century – if not all time. Yet despite their inherent beauty, Italian design firm Zagato seems intent on perfecting the 8C with a new one-off. Due for a debut at Villa d’Este but leaked online earlier today, the 8C Doppiacoda Zagato (as it’s rumored to be called) maintains some of its donor car’s fabulous design cues, but there are a few alterations that make it look a tiny bit like a front-engined 33 Stradale.

Modernizing A Classic Shape

The Doppiacoda features a prominent trilobo front grille design and almond-shaped headlights, à la the 8C. But while the proportions may ape the Competizione almost perfectly, the design details are quite different. For example, the headlamp projectors have a much more intricate, technical design, and there are vents at the top of the housings for some added visual aggression. The mustache grille openings are much larger and more angular, with a prominent front spoiler mounted low on the bumper. Meanwhile, the Alfa-signature triangular front end has been 86’d for a more modern grille opening with some extra bevels.

The Original 8C Sets A High Bar

The 8C Competizione’s organic curves have been stiffened and creased for the Doppiacoda, while the triangular fender vent has been replaced by a fin-like air outlet just aft of the front wheels. The oval side window opening and its bright chrome trim are gone as well, replaced by a pointier treatment and gloss black roof that gives the Zagato more than a passing resemblance to the Toyota Supra. The roofline also looks to be a bit faster than the 8C’s, and given the car’s name (Doppiacoda is Italian for double-tail), we think there’ll be some kind of tapering decklid motif at the rear that flows beneath the spoiler visible in the images.

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A Rare Car Gets Even Rarer

Alfa Romeo only sold 829 versions of the 8C, between 500 Competiziones and 329 Spiders, and a few of those were built into one-off coachbuilds. For example, Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera built the futuristic Disco Volante in tribute to Alfa’s unique history of extraterrestrial sports cars, which also spawned a captivating Disco Volante Spyder variant. Alfa Romeo enthusiasts on the Autopareri forum, where the Doppiacoda leaked, suggest that this latest variant was based on an unsold pre-production Spider prototype, rather than one of the series-production Alfas. One user also pointed out the similarity between the Doppiacoda and a 2011 Zagato concept, the 8C Aerodinamica. The Doppia’s unique tail and revised fenders set it apart, but it’s not hard to see the similar lineage between the two.

As for whether or not the newest (and admittedly still unconfirmed) Zagato design was successful, opinions seem to be split. The Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione is about as perfect as a modern car can get, and some of us are crying heresy at the modifications. However, others – your author included – relish any chance the 8C gets to be celebrated, and for us, the Zagato Doppiacoda is both a tribute to the original and a slight modernization that still preserves its gorgeous stance and Italianate flair. Expected to be revealed at this weekend’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, near Lake Como, Italy, the Alfa Romeo 8C Doppiacoda Zagato is very likely a one-off design, with a price tag that could easily exceed seven figures. As usual, it costs a lot to look this good.

Source: Autopareri.com Forums