This rare Iso Grifo A3/C was the star lot at RM Sotheby’s 2018 Rétromobile auction. Sadly, it didn’t sell.
Giotto Bizzarini joined ISO in 1962 after having made his name at Ferrari with the 250 SWB, 250 TR and 250 GTO, and then leaving Ferrari in the notorious ‘Palace Revolt’ of 1961. After a short spell at the ATS, he worked with Renzo Rivolta to develop the A3/L as a GT car and the A3/C as an endurance racer.
Iso Grifo A3/Cs won their class at Le Mans in 1964 and 1965. The car in this picture is a rare ‘riveted’ A3/C made by Carrozzeria Sports Cars in Modena. The body is made of duralumin, an alloy of aluminium, copper and magnesium that is very light and elastic but very difficult to weld. It therefore needed to be riveted in a similar way to an aeroplane. This enabled the creation of an ultra-light car weighing only 969 kg.
This car was originally owned by Jean-Philippe Smet, better known as Johnny Hallyday, the ‘Elvis Presley of France.’
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