On Saturday, June 4, 2022, the special exhibition "Sbarro Concept Cars" was opened in Romanshorn with a festive vernissage in the presence of 83-year-old Franco Sbarro and his wife Francoise.
It is no coincidence that this special show is being presented in Fredy Lienhard's "autobau", as Lienhard and Sbarro have a long friendship, which has also resulted in some special concept cars that are now part of the exhibition.
A life for the automobile
Franco Sbarro was born on February 27, 1939 in Presicce (Lecce). Interested in mechanical things, he left Italy in 1957 and traveled to Switzerland to train as a precision mechanic. He began tinkering with cars at an early age, building his first prototype with a Lancia engine in 1959. In 1964, he joined Scuderia Filipinetti and became chief mechanic. At the same time, he developed sports cars based on the VW Beetle chassis.
Franco founded his own company in 1967, building racing cars and sports cars based on his own designs.
In 1973, he attracted attention at the Geneva Motor Show with the SV1 concept car, a safety sports car with two NSU Ro80 engines in front of the rear axle.
This was followed by many other concept cars, some of which can also be seen in the special exhibition in Romanshorn. In addition to one-offs, he also produced replicas of classics such as the Mercedes-Benz 540K, the Ford GT40, the Ferrari P4 and the BMW 328. He was also fascinated by off-road vehicles and motorcycles and, of course, his creations always had special features and were full of unusual technical solutions.
In 1992, Sbarro founded his own school "Espace Sbarro" in Grandson to give students the opportunity to learn the full breadth of the automotive engineering profession. His students were able to build entire cars, starting with the design and ending with the production of the vehicle. Other schools were added in Morocco and France.
Today, Franco Sbarro is 83 years old and still works in his office every day. Neither his drive nor his creativity have been lost over the years, as new automobiles from his oeuvre prove time and again.
The special exhibition in Romanshorn
In the "autobau erlebniswelt", a good dozen concept cars and examples of Franco Sbarro's work are on display in a special exhibition.
These include racing cars such as the CanAm from 1968 as well as replicas such as a Sbarro Mercedes-Benz 540K, a Sbarro Ford GT40 and a Sbarro Ferrari P4.
However, the main part of the exhibition comprises concept cars from four decades that still impress today. Whether Challenge, Monster or Hélios, these cars always leave people open-mouthed.
The VW Golf from 1982, which Sbarro fitted with a mid-engine from the Porsche 930 Turbo, is a typical example of his work. To allow access to the mechanics, the entire body can be lifted hydraulically at the rear. This Golf, which weighed around 1,300 kg, produced 300 hp 40 years ago, which was certainly quite an achievement at the time, as just over 110 hp had to suffice for the most powerful production Golf.
Vernissage on June 4, 2022
The special exhibition was opened on June 4, 2022. At the same time, Franco Sbarro was honored with an induction into the autobau Wall of Fame, with Paul Gutjahr delivering the laudatory speech.
Franco Sbarro was of course on site and spoke to his fans and friends.
It's hard to believe how lively and alert the 83-year-old automotive engineer still is today.
The special exhibition is open to visitors until September 4, 2022, and the opening times can be found on the autobau erlebniswelt website . Guided tours are of course also available.
