AMSTERDAM - It’s reported that Florida-based architect and real estate developer Bob Gittleman approached Philadelphia car dealer Chinetti Motors in the early 1970s. He was interested in the Ferrari Daytona, but wanted something slightly different being a keen shooting brake connoisseur.
“Dealership owner Luigi Chinetti Jr. was a gifted stylist and Gittleman commissioned him to design the car. They together envisioned a one-off winged wonder. The extraordinary butterfly rear windows allowed easy access to the walnut covered boot, especially when parallel parked. Behind the steering wheel only walnut panelling: the instruments were mounted centrally in the dashboard. It was an exquisite thing,” says Graham King, a senior reporter at Motor1.
In 2016, Gittleman’s custom Ferrari Daytona was auctioned for millions of dollars. “Gittleman kept the car until the 1980s, but since then it has passed through a number of owners and has been shown at all the best events. I saw it myself at the Goodwood Festival of Speed a few years ago,” he says.
RE-INVENTING THE CONCEPT
While Shooting Brake vehicle designs might not be the most popular choice of body shape for today’ motorists, one fanatic wants to own the most unique Shooting Brake of them all. The unnamed connoisseur has commissioned Netherlands-based Niels van Roij to built a modern interpretation of the Shooting Brake using a 2006 Ferrari V12 donor car.
“It was a true car design devotee that reported to us with the special request to design an ode to the Daytona Shooting Brake. Designing it is an honourable task and a great opportunity. The project is equally ambitious as it is demanding. Rendering the legendary classic ‘70s shooting brake into a contemporary piece of car design will be complex. We intend to celebrate the radical original, whilst ensuring we are not bound by it in our imagination," says Niels van Roij.
“The two-seat model we are using as the base for the car was produced from 2006 until 2013 and will undergo significant design changes to almost every single body panel. Bespoke headlights will be designed and the bonnet line as well as fenders and front bumper will change. At the rear the car will experience most modifications with a new roof line, re-designed rear fenders and different tail lights. Of course the extraordinary butterfly rear windows will be returning,” he adds.
The project is expected to be complete by the end of 2021, so watch this space to see the full reveal of the one-off Daytona Hommage by Niels van Roij.
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