After three months of tests and trials Spadaconcept the Italian design studio founded by Paolo Spada (former designer at Smart and Honda) together with his father Ercole, (former chief designer at Zagato and BMW), Domiziano Boschi (former Mc Kinsey) and Wojtek Sokolowski has launched the production of its supercar, the Spada TS Codatronca. With this car Spadaconcept cherishes and revives the important heritage of Ercole Spada and the philosophy which characterized each of his creations. The company’s vision is centered on “functional design”, which, according to Ercole Spada, means to allow functionality of an object to express itself through its shape. Following this vision Spadaconcept came up with a genuinely breaking product, something bold an daring. Far from creating a show car where anything is allowed, Spadaconcept has worked within strict feasibility constraints in order to reach the quality standards of a niche, handcrafted production, maximizing performance by introducing aerodynamic lines such to mould a light and essential body. The result is an extremely stable and manageable car, able to achieve good racing performances by exploiting at the best the power of its engine, with an original and nimble shape and essential but elegant interiors.

The first version, named TS (Turismo Sportivo), is a car with an aspired engine of more than 600horse with race performances. Despite the focus at Spadaconcept wasn’t on “pure” power but rather on aerodynamics, lightness and handling, this car can still reach more than 340 km/h and complies with the FIA GT1 regulations. Care for environmental issues has resulted in SpadaVettureSport’s decision to add to the menu an ad hoc “converter kit” which allows fueling the car with E85 green fuel, with a slight increase in torque and power.

With this new sport car Spadaconcept aims at reviving the philosophy that inspired Ercole Spada’s past models, in an attempt to combine aesthetics with functionality and racing performances. This new model is the latest evolutionary step of the truncated tail – “coda tronca” in Italian. The typical and aerodynamic shape which Spada had introduced with the Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ, TZ1 and TZ2 in the 60’s gives this new car unique and nimble lines which bring in lightness and aerodynamics improving performances.

TS Codatronca, will be produced and marketed by SpadaVettureSport a company created and controlled by Spadaconcept in collaboration with a team of selected technical, industrial and commercial partners. SpadaVettureSport has aggregated the highest profile resources around this project by establishing strategic alliances mainly with small firms located in the district of Turin with great past histories and amazing skills. These partners have great tradition and specialization and allow SpadaVettureSport to combine the “best of breed” in technology with the tradition and “saper fare” – i.e. the Italian for know how of Italian small firms. The industrial partner FS Group (a firm based near Turin, who has already realized prototypes for Mercedes, Smart, Range Rover) will realize the body, using material supplied by Elantas Camattini, and PPG. The partner Italtecnica (a small firm located in Cambiano, near Turin, already involved in the tuning of ParisDakar and Le mans cars for Peugeot) will work on braking system, suspensions and engine upgrade, Sparco the manufacturer of tuning products based in Turin – will supply seats and other interior items, Pirelli and OZ Racing will provide respectively tires and wheels.

For the launch of this supercar SpadaVettureSport has signed a cobranding and comarketing agreement with AZNOM, a small company based in Monza operating in the production of accessories and luxury items, who will realise and market a line of amenities with the Codatronca brand. The agreement signed by SpadaVettureSport and AZNOM has a long term perspective and involves joint efforts to approach
the market.

The Codatronca TS version will be presented in world première next spring in Montecarlo. According to SpadaVettureSport the TS version is a first step which will be shortly followed by others upcoming. The more powerful TSS version Turismo Super Sportivo – which is already under test at SpadaVettureSport, will be launched at the end of 2008. In order to realise this unique model Spadaconcept and SpadaVettureSport have put in place a manufacturing system such as to meet the quality standards typical of niche, handcrafted production.

In the present of Spadaconcept there is a strong focus on the core business consulting and design of niche cars, motorbikes and accessories like helmets, seats, etc. but looking to the future, the company has started to explore new fields, especially bioethanol powered cars and it is currently working in the development of an Environmental Friendly Vehicle (EFV).

Spadaconcept extend its Codatronca scale, launched with the TS model, by a futuristic sport car with strong lines and shape; a car without compromise (you love it or you hate it! No space for "nice") however it seems that this car has inspired lot of sports car of that segment as well as production supercars, above all in terms of front design and form language.

Spadaconcept is a design studio-atelier founded by Ercole Spada (former designer Zagato, BMW and IDEA institute), by Paolo Spada (ex designer smart and Honda) and Domiziano Boschi (ex Mc Kinsey).

The studio combines an original formula of design all over the field with a vision from the design to the economic feasibility. This mission has brought during these years to different creations, like the Stilo Helmets for Sebastien Loeb , a eco-globe award for best design of an eclectic van, boats, motorsport sport accessories, watches. However the design studio has rooted its chromosomes in the world of the sport cars: over the passion of the three founders for the authentic sport cars, the pencil of Ercole Spada and Paolo Spada include among their most important realisations one-off and sport cars.

That is the reason why Spadaconcept returns to present a powerful car with the racing instinct. Born by the pencil of Paolo and Ercole Spada the Spada Codatronca Monza, a extreme Barchetta built by SpadaVettureSport s.r.l , originate from a request of a special client deciduous of having a totally customized version of Codatronca around his own requirements.

From this one-off car, SpadaVettureSport is planning to let arise a small series, making another step forward to the research of aerodynamics, lightness, and pleasure of driving. Codatronca Monza has the same guide lines that portrayed most of the project of Ercole Spada, like the mythical tz1 and tz2, were characterize by the back shape called "Codatronca".

The Codatronca Monza has mechanic and electronic components developed by ITALTECNICA, respecting the specification of the project needs, in this way we've obtained from the V8, in aluminium of more than 7lt with a dry pump, with a power of 700hp at 6200 rpm, with an incredible torque of 950Nm at 4200 rpm. The power is transmitted to the ground by the rear wheels thanks to a 6 gear close ratio transmission with a specific range also at the 6th gear to the limit of 7000 rpm that push the Codatronca at 340Km/h with an acceleration from 0 to 100Km/h of only 3,0 sec.

The designers gave more importance to the pleasure of driving instead of speed record, in the perfect style of the gentleman driver. For support that performance, the Codatronca is fitted with a traction control on 3 level of action that progressively excludes only the traction control and after another push leaving the car to the bare control of its lucky owner. For a better check of the car's data, Codatronca has an equipment that can record since 80 hours of telemetry on track, with 40 active channel (steering angle, g meter longitudinal and lateral, single speed for each tyre, lap timer and gps tracking system for track trajectories and lots more) The chassis is a light and stiff aluminium tubular with two roll bar combined for offer the maximum protection also when it's driven on track. The bodywork is made of light and resistant fibre that cover the chassis and the mechanics parts.

The suspension are completely adjustable like the one of the racing cars. A big news is represented by the possibility of set up the anti-roll bar on the front and on the rear separately on 4 level of hardness: rain, soft, medium and hard with an on-board regulation. In that way the wheel can work at its best and the suspension in every condition, especially when the car is on track due to the selection of harden or soften the axles for a perfect grip. The wheels are the Pirelli Pzero Corsa, with size 285/35/19" for the front wheels and 345/35/19" for the back wheels. The rims are of 19" by Oz, these were chosen to assure that the shoulder tyres transmit best the drive feelings of this fantastic tyres. The braking system is Brembo with racing 8 pistons aluminium callipers on the front with discs of 380mm and with 4 pistons aluminium callipers with discs of 355mm on the rear; governed by an Abs system of the latest generation.

The Codatronca shape of the back gave the possibility to create a trunk, with a suitcase set purposely made by Aznom srl.