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There are wagons, and then there are wagons. Most five-door family-haulers fall under the former, but once in a while something more shapely comes along and redefines the latter. If this image is something to go on, the Bellagio Fastback is definitely one of those rarities.

Created by the revived Carrozzeria Touring, the Bellagio Fastback is a wagon variant of the Maserati Quattroporte - itself already one of our favorite sedans and a beautiful point of departure. And from the looks of things, Touring has done a far more elegant job than the StudioM Cinqueporte we reported on previously. Carrozzeria Touring will be showcasing the Bellagio alongside its new Superleggera sportscar in a few days at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on the shores of Italy's glamorous Lake Como along with such elegant motors as the Bugatti Veyron Fbg by Hermes, BMW Concept CS, Zagato Bentley Continental GTZ and Cadillac CTS Coupe. Follow the jump for more information on the cars participating in this year's Concorso.

[Source: Carrozzeria Touring and Villa d'Este]

Continue reading Villa d'Este 08 Preview: Carrozzeria Touring Maserati Quattroporte Bellagio Fastback

Villa d'Este 08 Preview: Carrozzeria Touring Maserati Quattroporte Bellagio Fastback originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 22 Apr 2008 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With Italian coachbuilders like Bertone and Pininfarina struggling to retain profitability, now may not be the best time to establish (or re-establish) another. But that isn't about to stop Holland-based Zeta Europe BV, which owns Borrani wheels and has acquired the rights to the defunct Carrozzeria Touring. The coachbuilder was originally established in 1926 and popularized the advanced Superleggera construction method, consisting of small-diameter tubular frames draped with thin-gauge aluminum sheetmetal and employed on numerous Alfa Romeos, Maseratis, Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Aston Martins, among others. The name Superleggera was revived for the recently-terminated lightweight Lamborghini Gallardo, though strictly speaking the supercar did not use the classic construction method.

Carrozzeria Touring is now gearing up for a revival with a new Superleggera, to debut in a week at the famous Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, the classic motor show where a trophy honoring Touring's founder is awarded each year. Aside from the teaser silhouette image shown above, little is known about the new Superleggera, but we're looking forward to finding out. The coachbuilder is also anticipated to show the Ballagio Fastback, an estate wagon based on the Maserati Quattroporte (like the one on which we previously reported), previewed by a teaser mixed in with the classic images on the company's new website.

[Source: VirtualCar and AutoWeek]

Carrozzeria Touring coming back with new Superleggera and Bellagio Fastback originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.