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StarLight Garage presents the forgotten Giocattolo Group B car, a car with an Italian body and an Australian heart who beats at a powerful ritme.
A car that earns a nice place in Gran Turismo.
Giocattolo Motori Pty Ltd was a short-lived Australian car company, founded in 1986 by sports car enthusiast Paul Halstead and Formula One designer Barry Lock. The company's name comes from the Italian word for "toy".
The Giocattolo was originally based on a heavily modified Alfa Romeo Sprint with a mid-mounted Alfa V6 engine. By the fourth prototype, the V6 engine had proved to be too difficult and expensive to import and install in the car, so the company instead used a Sprint 4-cylinder body shell. The V6 was replaced by a rear-mounted Holden V8 engine built by Holden Special Vehicles. As well as being cheaper, these engines had more power than the Alfa engines they had originally intended to use; the reported top speed of the V8-powered Giocattolo was 160 mph (260 km/h). It is unknown what happened to the factory Sprint engines and gearboxes that were taken from the cars.
Including the Alfa-powered third prototype (which was rebuilt and re-fitted with the Holden V8 after an accident with a police car almost destroyed the vehicle), just fifteen Giocattolos were built before the company folded in 1989. Thirteen of the fifteen cars are believed to still be in existence and one is unaccounted for. The other - Build No. 007 - was infamously destroyed in a fiery high-speed crash at Eastern Creek Raceway in February 2001, killing its driver, 29 year-old Todd Wilkes.
The third prototype appeared on the TV show Beyond 2000.
Specifications
Manufacturer: Giocattolo Motori
Production: 1986-1989
Designer: Barry Lock
Body and chassis
Class: Sports car
Body style: Coupé
Platform: Alfa Romeo Sprint
Drive: Rear Wheel Drive
Powertrain
Engine: Holden 5.0 V8 (Alfa Romeo 2.5 V6)
Engine location: Mid Rear
Power: 211 hp / 180kW @ 4800rpm
Induction System: Aspirated
Fuel type: Petrol - Unleaded ULP
Fuel delivery: Multi-Point Injection
Method of delivery: Electronic Sequential
Transmission: Manual
Standard Equipment
16" Alloy Wheels
Spoiler - Rear High Rise
Disc Brakes Front Ventilated (Front)
Disc Brakes Rear Ventilated
Independent Front Suspension
Independent Rear Suspension
Suspension - Lowered
Suspension - Race
Sports Seats - 1st Row
Tacho
Note: Engine specifications based on Holden 5.0 V8
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