HistoryBuff

I don't want to buy it..I just want to tell the story of it being found.
"It" is a Bizzarrini, a car made in Italy that came new with a 327 cu. in. Corvette engine mated to a Borg Warner 4 speed. Actually to be technical, this particular one came out before the Bizzarrini brand, when it was called the Iso Grifo but the subsequent Bizzarrinis had the same body style. This particular one is called the Iso Grifo A3/C, the "C" for competition. At Sebring it crashed and Max Balchowsky, the famous movie car mechanic, tried to take two crashed ones and make one car.
The story that sparked my interest is here

http://mycarquest.com/2014/12/wanted...-race-car.html

So I'd like to hear if the car is restored, and here's a cheeky question, if it's welded together from two cars, which SN do you use? The back half car or the front half car?

wmf62

my guess, the half that carries the serial #.

Swept57

The article clearly states that the serial number was on the front of the car so it now carries the number of the car that donated the front half.

gschlarman

Bringing back memories here -- I had a '66 Iso in the early 70s as my daily driver commuting into DC. No I wasn't rich. I was single and stupid.

I recall it had Borani wires and a Jag-type rear with inboard disc brakes and a de dion dif.

Somehow the windshield cracked and I couldn't get a replacement. So I sold the car for $1,500.00 (not thousand)).

JohnZ

Iso's were beautiful cars!

gschlarman

Oh man and leather was everywhere

sub006

Car and Driver tested one, and AIR they said it was so low, it bottomed out frequently. Got to sit in one at Fantasy Junction's showroom in Emeryville CA a couple of years ago, just getting in and out was twice as hard as an original Ford GT. Once in, Grifos are reputed to be a good drive.

The more upright four-seater Iso is far more practical and comfortable IMO. A few Chevy dealers handled them in the mid-'60s, Baldwin (Motion) Chevrolet among them.

gschlarman

I just remember it was big feeling and looking over the hood and determining distance was difficult.

rayvaflav

[QUOTE=sub006;1588485730]Car and driver tested one, and AIR they said it ws so low, it bottomed out frequently. Got to sit in one at Fantasy Junctions showroom in Emeryville CA a couple of years ago, just gettting in and out was twice as hard as an original Ford GT. QUOTE]

If that was the Red Competizione with the 377 from Fantasy Junction, my buddy bought it and races it in Historic Events. He loves it until he has to remove the distributor, then he has to remove the windshield.

Ray

bbxlr8

Couple of pic's of Dr Simeone's in PHL PA. Took these one afternoon when I was the only one in there & they let me up close to the GS (posted some of those pic's right afterward). Thought this was pretty cool and definitely rare for sure - actually like most of his stuff! Underrated place you ought to check out if you are in the area!

Think I have pic's of one in the San Diego museum as well from a few years ago if anyone is interested...

sub006

[QUOTE=rayvaflav;1588487702]Don't recall red, think it was a quieter color like silver. A Front-Oriented Real Distributor (FORD) engine might have been a better choice when Giotto B decided to build a front mid-engined car!

fyreline

Although the race car the OP is discussing was called an Iso Grifo, the actual production Iso Grifo street cars looked like the photo posted by JohnZ. They went through a few different series, some of the last ending up with a Corvette 427 instead of the 327. I can't imagine that the handling didn't suffer a bit. In any case, Bizzarrini did make some street cars as well that DID look like the Iso Grifo A3/C. They called it the 5300 GT Strada:

TCracingCA

Like the Lambo engine prototype when I volunteered my time at the San Diego Automobile Museum! I used to have the production numbers written down on all of these someplace, but you haven't been nice to me! They don't have one of those stick out the tonque smile icons! Toe Tap was the next best thing!

Dana Chevrolet had one of the 7 Liter Iso's in their performance showroom for awhile in the prominent #1 spot in some of the pictures of their dealership! One of these also was used as a pace car for a Can Am event!

The early one of a kind race car, also has a unique Competition VIN #!

63Corvette

There are several Bizzarinis on the Vintage race circuit, and at least one original Iso Rivolta street car which I raced with at Monterey in 2013. It was quicker than I was and it had a LOT of motor.

JohnZ

The big-block 427 Iso's were pretty obvious - instead of making a newly-contoured hood outer panel for air cleaner clearance, they just raised the center section of the hood a couple of inches.

ChattanoogaJSB

What beautiful cars, all! Though the 427 hood detracts these are fabulous.

63Corvette

John this one is not the sporting Grifo model, but an ordinary notchback 2 door. Group 6 (Group 5 at Monterey) "usually" only allows small blocks (except for the Grand Sport), but this one was STOUT!

This is NOT it, but bodywork is similar.

ChattanoogaJSB

Reminds me of a more mass produced early CS BMW which I always think are handsome cars (and pricey). Nice, Garrett!

Gene jockey

There's a Bizzarini in the Doylestown-New Hope PA area that shows up at local car shows . Not a race car but pretty snarky.

0Corvettes by George

Back in the summer of '71, my bud and I showed/sold/delivered "video" games to bars/bowling alleys/skating rinks in southeast Michigan, using his dad's '69 Bizzarrini as transportation.
It was Silver, and as I recall, had a 350 cubic inch, 370 hp solid lifter Chevy engine.
This thing could go into "S" curves at 50 mph, and come out of them at 80 mph--- lots of fun, but even an 18 year old had trouble getting in and out of this very low to the ground car.
My memory was that this was a $10,000.00 car in '69------way "out there" of most.