It is probably the sensation of autumn 2020: the three aerodynamic studies designed by Franco Scaglione on the basis of Alfa Romeo 1900 chassis in the first half of the 1950s will go under the hammer together at the RM/Sotheby's "Comtemporary Art Evening" auction on October 28, 2020 in New York.
USD 14 to 20 million is expected for the trio at the live auction.
Sensational and a surprise
Not only have the three Bertone concept cars rarely been shown together, they have also never been sold together before. It took until the end of the 1980s for a single collector to buy the three cars from different owners and unite them.
What all three have in common is Alfa Romeo technology and Franco Scaglione's signature line. B.A.T. stands for Berlinetta Aerdonamica Tecnica, which roughly translates as streamlined coupé.
Alfa Romeo B.A.T. 5
The first of the three studies was shown at the Turin Motor Show in spring 1953. It was designed as a road car rather than a racing car and is said to have had a drag coefficient of 0.23 cw. Almost 200 km/h is said to have been possible with around 43 hp.
As early as October 1953, Nuccio Bertone sold the concept car to the American entrepreneur Stanley "Wacky" Arnolt.
Alfa Romeo B.A.T. 7
Just one year later, Bertone showed Scaglione's next creation in Turin. B.A.T. 7 was designed to be even more aerodynamic and is said to have achieved a drag coefficient of 0.19.
Bertone and Scaglione also reduced the weight; at just under 1000 kg, the study was a lightweight. After the show tour, Alfa Romeo took over the one-off.
Alfa Romeo B.A.T. 9d
In April 1955, Bertone was once again able to present a further development of the B.A.T. theme. However, Scaglione had refrained from going even further in the direction of aerodynamic optimization, but instead created a much more aesthetic design with the B.A.T. 9d.
The mechanics again came from the Alfa Romeo 1900 Sprint and the aim was also to be much closer to the Alfa production models. This one-off was also sold to America, where it turned up in a public parking lot in Sebring in March 1956.
Now these three masterpieces are going under the hammer as one lot and it will be interesting to see whether the estimate was too low or too high.
Further information and many pictures can be found on the RM/Sotheby's website.
