TSV MODEL BOASTS AN ENGINE OUTPUT OF 700BHP, 0-100Kph in 2.7sec AND A TOP SPEED OF 355KPH

A few months back I made a geeky statement to some of the evo staff that if Darth Vader drove a car, it would certainly be a black Mercedes Benz CLS. I take that back. It would without a doubt be the SpadaConcept Codatronca, one of the wackiest and most intriguing looking sports cars to come from any Italian design house in a very long time.

Ercole Spada, one of the founding members of SpadaConcept of course has a very long history of designing production, racing and concept cars. He has worked for the likes of Zagato, Audi and BMW among several others and has designed some very memorable cars ranging from the Aston Martin DB4 GT to the BMW E32 7-Series and E34 5-Series.

His new entity, SpadaConcept founded with his son Paolo and two other members has just unveiled their first offering, the controversial looking Codatronca.

The car's design certainly has a few retro touches, with the truncated rear end evocative of the Alfa Romeo TZ's rear and side profile. On the other hand, the front end, angular edges and other parts of the car are completely alien and look like nothing on the road today although a hint of Lamborghini Reventon can be seen in the front and just a little inkling of a 1968 Corvette C3's bulging wheel arches from the front three-quarters view.

The company states that the 1380kg Codatronca was designed to look different on purpose, rather than to blend in with the current design trends most manufacturers follow; adopting a hydroformed aluminium space-frame, combined with a magnesium roof structure and engine cradle. Beneath the skin however, the TS Codatronca holds a surprise; it is based on the chassis of the Corvette and uses many of its mechanical parts and aluminium V8 engine courtesy of the Z06 - albeit with significant updates and revisions applied by SpadaConcept and their tech partner Italtecnica.

There are three variants, with the range topping 'Turismo Sportivo Veloce' model boasting an engine output of 700bhp, 0-100kph in 2.7sec and a top speed of 355kph- thanks to twin centrifugal superchargers, titanium valves and twin intercooolers.

Typical to any sports car purist's desire, the Codatronca's engine is driven to the rear wheels via a short-throw 6-speed manual transmission. The good thing about the extensive use of Corvette underpinnings is the wide availability of spare parts and technical expertise for reparation of the Codatronca virtually anywhere in the world.

According to SpadaConcept, the Codatronca is in their opinion the quintessential purist sports car, designed for the automotive enthusiasts who are unwilling to compromise on quality and originality, and are tired of the commonality of today's sports cars. Lofty ambitions no doubt, but nonetheless, accurate as far as originality and uniqueness are concerned. For those of you with deep pockets who are reading this and admiring the pictures you see here, there's some good news for you.

Firstly, the Codatronca is definitely heading for a hand-built limited production run. Furthermore, the car is scheduled for release in the Middle East market, although a precise date was not available (at the time of going to press) but in an exclusive interview with evo Middle East, the company confirmed that sales will be conducted by a private dealer (cars priced between $ 326K and $ 386K depending on level of trim) with subsequent service support by Chevrolet. Expect an exclusive local road test later this year, in these very pages...