We have seen a 250 PS city car live. And it's not electric

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All components are approved. Let's acknowledge it now, because this makes all the difference and allows the Giannini Spettacolo to be driven safely on the road. Basically, the 1.4 T.JET turbocharged engine delivers the power of 180 PS, but through the boost that is activated by pressing a button on the steering wheel it goes up to 250 PS.

The price is around €133,000 (approx. £115,000) and to get one (there will be just 200 examples) you will have to wait five months after ordering, because each car will be hand-assembled and personalised (the configurator allows you to choose from a wide range of graphics and you can even put numbers on the bodywork). Each Giannini Spettacolo will also come with a certificate of authenticity to maintain its value over time.

The Spettacolo is also important for Giannini because with it the historic Roman sports car brand (born in 1917) will return to racing by participating in the Time Attack Italia 2024 championship run by Old School Garage.

Gallery: Giannini Spettacolo

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Abarth in the heart

The Giannini Spettacolo is based on the 500 Abarth, and the choice is certainly not random. Giannini Automobili was in fact founded by Domenico and Attilio Giannini as a mechanical workshop and specialised in engine tuning, achieving increasing success (24 Italian category titles, 12 world speed records, 2 world endurance titles). In the 1960s, its tuned Fiat 500s challenged and often beat the Abarth 595 and 695, whose myth Spettacolo now wants to revive.

The Spettacolo was born from the collaboration between Fabrizio Grandi's Roman company Impero, Giannini's licensee, and Angelo Vicino's Turin company Maestri Design, a company specialised in the creation of special cars, with Paolo Mancini at the head of the project. It has muscular yet aerodynamic lines. Think of the design of the front bonnet that recalls the nose of a Formula 1 single-seater thanks to the design made possible by the air intakes.

The light weight (985 kg, unladen mass) is guaranteed by the aluminium front and rear bonnets and the carbon wheel covers with patented one-piece nut. On board, the rear seat, designed by Paolo Mancini, sees two carbon monocoque seats divided by a tunnel instead of the classic bench seat.

From road to track

The 1.4 T.JET turbocharged engine of the Spettacolo, as mentioned above, is capable of delivering up to 250 PS for a top speed of 174 mph, and for those who wish, it is possible to activate the 'track' mode.

"In 150 days we have created, from the design to the engineering, from the tooling to the construction of the car up to today's presentation, an elegant car but with a sporty spirit, a typical gentleman driver's car, and today I can say, a true Spettacolo," said Angelo Vicino, CEO of Gruppo Maestri.

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