Autoblog

SSC Tuatara makes North American debut at Pebble Beach

Drew Phillips — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 19:03:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Specialty, Design/Style, MISC

Shelby SuperCars (SSC) first showed off its forthcoming supercar, the Tuatara, last month in Shanghai, and now we've gotten our first look at the car here in Monterey. The Tuatara (pronounced twu‐tar‐ah), was unveiled earlier today on the concept car lawn at Pebble Beach.

Designed by Jason Castriota of Ferrari P4/5 fame, the Tuatara is SSC's second supercar. While the car you see here is a design model, the production version will feature a bespoke twin-turbo 7.0-liter V8 producing 1,350 horsepower, a carbon fiber sub-frame chassis, and one-piece carbon fiber wheels. While the car seen here lacks a full interior and isn't a complete runner, the design has undeniable presence, with a futuristic yet organic look that is miles ahead of its predecessor, which looked far more kit-car than supercar. What's more, the engine is said to be an all-new creation, it won't be General Motors-based like its forebearer.

We caught up with company founder Jerod Shelby, who informed us he already has five pre-orders for the car, which will be built in Washington state. Shelby is hoping to build about 16 units per year, but the facility will have a capacity of 40 units should the demand be there. He estimates that deliveries will start in the first quarter of 2013, with each example going for "just in excess of one million dollars."

While the Tuatara's predecessor, the Ultimate Aero Twin Turbo, set a new 'production car' top speed record of nearly 256 mph in 2007 (since eclipsed by Bugatti), the ever-ambitious Shelby tells Autoblog he plans to take an example to the Nürburgring soon in hopes of setting the production car record.

SSC Tuatara makes North American debut at Pebble Beach originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 21 Aug 2011 19:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BREAKING: Saab hires Castriota to be new design head, pen next 9-3 [w/poll]

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 13:28:00 EST

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Saab, Design/Style

Jason Castriota at work - Click above for high-res image gallery of the Bertone Mantide

Intriguing news comes by way of BusinessWeek this afternoon indicating that Saab has hired American designer Jason Castriota to serve as its head designer. Surely you remember Castriota, the man responsible for such memorable designs as James Glickenhaus' one-off Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarina and the somewhat controversial but striking Bertone Mantide.

It seems that the 36-year-old Castriota's first assignment at the reborn Swedish automaker will be redesigning the firm's bread-and-butter 9-3 range into something a bit more unique and upscale. Expect to see the first fruits of his labor sometime in 2012, which, incidentally, is the year that the quirky company hopes to regain profitability.

We have no idea what the designer has in store for the 9-3, but it had better be good to take on the likes of the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. For what it's worth, company CEO Victor Muller said, "The 9-3 design as made by him is basically done, and I can tell you it is spectacular. It is truly aircraft-inspired and Swedish-clean."

Sounds promising... but what else would Muller say? In any case, we're anxiously looking forward to our first glimpse at Castriota's first mainstream project to date. While we're waiting, weigh in on whether Saab's hiring move was a good one or not with our poll below.

*UPDATE: Official Saab announcement added after the jump.

View Poll

Gallery: Bertone Mantide

Gallery: Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarina

[Source: BusinessWeek]

Continue reading BREAKING: Saab hires Castriota to be new design head, pen next 9-3 [w/poll]

BREAKING: Saab hires Castriota to be new design head, pen next 9-3 [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 13:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jason Castriota launching his own design firm

Noah Joseph — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:28:00 EST

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Design/Style

Bertone Mantide - Click above for high-res image gallery

Where in the world is Jason Castriota? One minute he's penning for Pininfarina. The next, he's at Stile Bertone. Now he's rumored to have signed on to create a new line of exotics for Shelby SuperCars. But not before the talented young designer sets up his own shop.

According to an interview granted by Castriota to Car Design News, he's already in the process of establishing his own design consultancy. Though not yet officially launched, the firm is based in both New York and Turin, and is already garnering clients. Five designers working in his new studio are working on project ranging from furniture to sneakers to water bottles.

For his part Castriota hasn't disclosed details on any automotive projects currently under way, including the purported SSC contract. But for someone with a portfolio that includes the Maserati Birdcage, Rolls-Royce Hyperion and Bertone Mantide, we wouldn't expect him to stay away from his apparent true passion for long, so stay tuned.

Gallery: Monterey 2009: Bertone Mantide

[Source: Car Design News]

Jason Castriota launching his own design firm originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Famed designer Jason Castriota to pen for Shelby Supercars

Frank Filipponio — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:29:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Design/Style

Bertone Mantide - click above for high-res image gallery

While definitely one of (if not the) fastest production cars in the world, the SSC Ultimate Aero has seldom been praised for its looks. Somewhat resembling just about every other supercar out there in one detail or another, the styling has charitably been described as everything from derivative to kit car-ish. Shelby Supercars wants to do something about that. Now that they've proven they can get their car up to its claimed top speed of over 255 mph, the next step is to get a few more of them out the showroom doors. To that end, the company is said to be courting supercar designer Jason Castriota to pen a fresh look.

Jerod Shelby, the "Shelby" in "Shelby Supercars," has apparently tapped Castriota to design SSC's next generation hypercar. If Castriota's name sounds familiar, and even if it doesn't, he is the designer of record behind the Pininfarina P4/5, the Bertone Mantide (shown above) the neo Maserati Birdcage and the Rolls-Royce Hyperion. Having recently left his post at Bertone, Jason will become the exclusive designer for SSC's next two cars and will add a degree of credibility to the team, or at least that's the plan. According to the Tri-City Herald, the cars will actually be badged with his name to hammer home that point.

While the new Aeros will carry a price tag double the current cars' at $800,000 to $900,000, the company says it will also develop a "little brother version" that will retail for just $300,000. Production targets are a dozen or so Aeros and about 50 Aero-lites per annum. The cars might also show up in a reality TV series that is being pitched to chronicle the project.

Gallery: Monterey 2009: Bertone Mantide

[Source: Tri-City Herald]

Report: Famed designer Jason Castriota to pen for Shelby Supercars originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bertone Project M episode VII reveals ZR1-based Mantide in all its glory [w/VIDEO]

Noah Joseph — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 09:58:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Videos, Supercars, Misc. Auto Shows, Specialty

Stile Bertone Mantide - Click above for high-res gallery

For fans of Italian automotive design, it's been a deliciously torturous process to watch the slow, webisode-by-webisode reveal of Stile Bertone's highly anticipated Project M, but we've just about made it to the end. After revealing the car's underpinnings as those of the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 and revealing its name ("I always thought M was a randomly assigned initial, I had no idea it stood for...") Mantide, the latest installment has just hit the intertubes to reveal the concept supercar in all its glory.

The finished Mantide cuts an intriguingly aggressive shape, and you can immediately identify that it's been styled by the same hand as the one responsible for various Ferraris of late. Follow the jump to watch the video for yourself, click on these thumbnails to see the first batch of official photos, and drop by our comments section below to share your thoughts. Shout-out to Patrick for the tip!

Gallery: Bertone Mantide

Continue reading Bertone Project M episode VII reveals ZR1-based Mantide in all its glory [w/VIDEO]

Bertone Project M episode VII reveals ZR1-based Mantide in all its glory [w/VIDEO] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 20 Apr 2009 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Episode VI reveals what lies beneath Bertone's Project M

Noah Joseph — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 19:28:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Videos, Supercars, Chevrolet, Misc. Auto Shows, Specialty

Click above to jump to episode six of the Project M web video series

After the first and subsequent four webisodes of Stile Bertone's Project M hit cyberspace, everyone's wanted to know just what the upcoming supercar would be based on. Talented young designer Jason Castriota has designed Ferraris, Maseratis, Rolls-Royces and more, but since leaving Pininfarina to head the reborn Stile Bertone, would his projects employ the same exotic underpinnings? Initial speculation was that the trickle-teased Project M was based on the Nissan GT-R, but those and other rumors can now be finally put to rest with the release of the sixth episode of the Brad Farrell/KineticFic-produced web series.

We won't spoil the surprise for you, except to say that it's genuine Detroit steel which Castriota's playing with here. Follow the jump to view the video and find out for yourself.

Continue reading Episode VI reveals what lies beneath Bertone's Project M

Episode VI reveals what lies beneath Bertone's Project M originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 19:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bertone hires former Pininfarina designer Jason Castriota

Noah Joseph — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:58:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs

It's no news that business has been tough for Italy's most vaunted design studios and coachbuilders. But that hasn't stopped Bertone from hiring Jason Castriota as its new design director. Castriota has spent the past several years at arch-rival Pininfarina, where he worked on such projects as the Maserati Birdcage concept and GranTurismo, Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, custom P4/5 and the Rolls-Royce Hyperion one-off, before leaving with the aim of starting his own studio. But as the Italian-American stylist says himself, Bertone "made me an offer I couldn't refuse".

Castriota, 34, will head a young design team at the resurgent Bertone, starting immediately. He'll have his work cut out for him bringing the stoic design house back to its feet following its brush with bankruptcy, and we'll be looking forward to seeing what he has in store for us.

[Source: CarDesignNews]

Bertone hires former Pininfarina designer Jason Castriota originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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