BMC 1800 Berlina Aerodinamica
Criminally, this brilliant Pininfarina styling exercise was never considered for production. The running gear was pure BMC 1800, but the style was utterly unique for 1967.
This BMC-Pininfarina 1800 predates the Citroën CX by seven years - one wonders how BMC may have fared had they the courage to put this beauty into production - it would have certainly appealed in Europe and undoubtedly would have created a high-technology reputation for the (by then) struggling manufacturer.
Ahead of its time
Pininfarina 1800 Berlina Aerodinamica stunned the world when it first appeared in 1967 at the Turin Motor Show. (Picture: Ian Nicholls)
There's no doubt that had BMC had the foresight to produce this car, then things might have been somewhat different in the lead-up to the Leyland takeover of the following year. Styled by Italian coachbuilder Pininfarina, the Berlina Aerodinamica was as svelte and slippery as the standard Austin/Morris 1800 was frumpy and unappealing to contemporary motorists.
Unveiled at the 1967 Turin Motor Show, seven years before the introduction of the very similar-looking Citroen CX, and nine before the Rover SD1, the styling of this concept car was hugely influential.
There was never very much wrong with the production 1800 to drive thanks to keen dynamics and reasonable performance (expecially in the later 2200cc guise) but it was brought down by its stark interior and rather challenging styling. Plenty of subsequent speculation from commentators has concluded that with this styling, the 1800 could have gone on to be a huge international hit - although we're not so sure that buyers would have been ready to take the leap in the late 1960s - and the 1800 may well have benefitted more from a less extreme restyle of its interior and exterior and the option of a column gearshift (something very popular in Europe at the time).
It was rather a similar story with the later 1100 version, which was a far more appealing proposition than the Allegro...
Not its best angle, but the styling of this car pre-dated the move towards fastback executive saloons by nearly a decade...
A hatchback rear end placed it at an advantage over the Citroen CX and Lancia Gamma
This kind of profile would become very familar in subsequent years...
Although this car was never produced as an 1800 replacement, it may have been a source of inspiration for the design of the Rover SD1, as this comparative analysis demonstrates.
Please let us know your thoughts - What do you think about the Pininfarina 1800
Feedback:
REGARDING the 'Yellow Peril'/SD1 link - the sketch of the blue car was by Stephen Ferrada, not DEB. I wonder where Stephen is these days? Mr Woolley would probably know. This picture was 'traded' with a National Newspaper, when they were about to publish a spy shot of a real SD1 early in 1976.
There was a nice story about the day in 1968 that Harry Webster took the Yellow Peril home to Kenilworth. Someone from Chrysler Whitley (now Jaguar Whitley) saw the car there and rushed back to his office in a panic, thinking that BL were about to go into production with it!
IAN ELLIOTT
Related pages:
Links: