The prolific genius
I HAD A QUICK browse of the 30 or so cars I have owned since my first in 1986 and was surprised to see that only one
of them had been designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro. That was a 1989 Lancia Delta Integrale 16V that I ran as a company car
– the only company car I have ever had – from 1999 when I was editor of another motoring magazine. It was a joyously
fractious relationship full of breakdowns, fuel stops and smiles, but this tempestuous marriage lasted only until the
first service bill. At that point the ashen-faced accounts department bailed out, the car was sold for a pittance, I opted out of the scheme and spent the cash on a 1966 Lotus Elan S2 as my daily driver.
The thing is, I expect that everyone has owned a car designed by the Car Designer of the Century (official) at some point, even if not by choice. Sure, there are those that seek out his hallmark features (gently falling curves, panoramic glasshouse etc), but such is his ubiquity within motoring, such is the vastness of his i
