1954 Alfa Romeo B.A.T. 7

The famous and renowned coachbuilder Bertone was tasked by Alfa Romeo to build an aerodynamic experiment to measure the effects of streamlining on a car's performance. Scaglione was tasked with aiding in the creation of the design. The vehicle was dubbed the B.A.T. 5, representing 'Berlinetta Aerodinamica Tecnica.' 'Berlinetta' means 'small sedan' or, more precisely, 'coupe.' The design featured rear fenders and curved fins, truly a unique design. It was built upon an Alfa Romeo 1900 chassis.

The B.A.T. 7 was created a few years later and was again an experiment in aerodynamics. The B.A.T. 7 was even more radical in design and was adorned with very large curved tailfins.

The final B.A.T. Concept, the B.A.T. 9, was completed in 1955. It continued the experimentation with aerodynamics but was not as exaggerated as the prior models. The body styling took into account future production requirements and is arguably the most attractive of the B.A.T. automobiles.

Today, all three B.A.T. Concept Cars belong to Cars International Ltd., a specialty dealer located in Canary Wharf, London, UK.

Another prototype vehicle, the Giulietta Sprint Speciale, was introduced to the public at the 1957 Turin Motor Show and later went into limited production until mid-1959. The vehicle was based on the B.A.T. cars and built by Franco Scaglitone, Bertone's chief designer.

Alfa Romeo provided a five-speed gearbox and a powerful four-cylinder engine that produced more than 90 horsepower, good enough to propel the car to a top speed of 125 mph. The performance and handling aspects were phenomenal. The bodywork was steel with an alloy hood and trunk lid. The interior was elegant, comfortable, and functional. There was adequate space for luggage.

by Dan Vaughan

The Berlinetta Aerodinamica Tecnica 7, or B.A.T. 7, took up the styling dictates of the previous model, the B.A.T. 5, and worked them to the limit. Once again, the car was based on the general idea of the 1952 Abarth 1400 coupE, with Alfa 1900 Sprint mechanics. For this 1954 design, as for the other B.A.T. models, though less evidently, Bertone added some elements from his experience working on wing profiles in the aeronautical industry. The result was the exaggerated shape of the large, curved tail fins.

by Bertone

by Alfa Romeo

B.A.T. 7 debuted at the 1954 Turin Motor Show. It was more flamboyant than the 1953 car, with a large central fin dividing the compound curved rear window. Tail, inward curving tailfins helped the car achieve an incredibly low Cd of 0.19, which allowed the 2,200 lb car to make 124 mph from a 1,975cc DOHC, 115-hp four-cylinder engine. The car featured hidden headlamps, fairing around the wheels, and fin shapes based on aeronautical wing profiles.

Alfa Romeo commissioned the famed coachbuilder, Carrozzeria Bertone, in Turin, Italy, to design the three aerodynamic studies known as the B.A.T. cars to explore the effect of streamlining on a standard Alfa 1900 Sprint chassis. The goal was to investigate and apply advances in vehicle aerodynamics.

These road-worthy concepts were called Berlina Aerodinamica Technica, or B.A.T. for short. They were designed by Franco Scaglione for Bertone, and Alfa Romeo to be presented at the Turin Auto Show in 1953, 1954, and 1955. Each B.A.T. concept was successfully introduced to great acclaim at the time. Although the cars were too extreme to make production intact, their influence and aerodynamic lessons were incorporated in the stunning, Scaglione-penned Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale.