Superleggera (pronounced soo-per-lee-ghera)
(1) In automotive coach-building, a method of construction which combined a framework of thin steel tubes with aluminum outer panels, producing a lightweight structure.
(2) In recent years, a designation used as a model name to refer to a “lightweight” vehicle even if not a classic superleggera structure.
1935 (a patent for the technique issued in 1936): From the Italian superleggera (super light) (feminine singular of superleggero), the construct being super- + leggero. Super was from the Latin super-, from the Proto-Italic super, from the primitive Indo-European upér (over, above) which was cognate with the Ancient Greek ὑπέρ (hupér) (above) and the Proto-Germanic uber (now familiar in English and translated as “over” although this doesn’t wholly convey the sense in Modern German). Leggero (light in weight, slight, thin) was from the Old French legier, from the Vulgar Latin leviārius, from the Latin levis, from the Proto-Italic leɣis, from the primitive Indo-European hlengwih-, from hléngus, from hleng (lightweight). The cognates included the Sanskrit लघु (laghú), the Ancient Greek ἐλᾰφρός & ἐλᾰχῠ́ς (elaphrós & elakhús) and the Old English lēoht (the ultimate source of the English light). Superleggera is a noun & adjective; the noun plural is superleggeras (or in the Italian the masculine plural is superleggeri, the feminine plural superleggere).
Carrozzeria Touring and superleggera
It was in 1926 that two Milanese lawyers discussed how bored they were with mundane, if lucrative, legal work and much preferred the exciting world of the automobile, the industry then something like that of IT in the early twenty-first century in that a critical mass of users had been established, growth was consistent and new ventures were coming and going amid a milieu of M&A (mergers & acquisitions). The lawyers negotiated a controlling interest in Milan-based coachbuilder Carrozzeria Falco, changing the company’s name to Carrozzeria Touring. Contracts to provide bodywork soon followed including from some of the industry’s major manufacturers including Citroën, Isotta Fraschini & Alfa Romeo and for some time they continued to adopt Falco’s methods which was an adaptation of the “Weymann” system which involved laying fabric over lightweight frames supported by a traditional separate chassis. Touring produced elegant coachwork of a high quality and attracted the patronage of both Benito Mussolini (1883-1945; Duce (leader) & prime-minister of Italy 1922-1943) and Victor Emmanuel III (1869–1947; King of Italy 1900-1946) although perhaps more influential was the Queen who was often photographed alighting from one of Touring’s large cars, a more imposing sight than the exit of her diminutive husband.
1938 Alfa Romeo 8C-2900B LeMans with Touring Superleggera (left), a wrought-iron artwork installation based on the idea using the Volkswagen Beetle as a model (centre) and Lindsay Lohan with conventional (body-on-chassis) Beetle (Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005)).
Touring proved innovative in its use of strong, lightweight alloys to support the fabric skins and they enjoyed much success also in applying the technique to aircraft components such as wings and fuselages but during the 1930s with both the military and civilian airlines wanting to fly higher, faster, for longer and in all weather, the shift was beginning towards all-metal construction. This was an organic evolution of the Weymann technique but the weight and other characteristics of sheet aluminum differed greatly from stretched-fabric and the system needed substantially to be re-engineered and it was the lessons learned from fabricating fuselages which led to Touring developing superleggera, the design patented in 1936. The essence of superleggera was a skeleton of small diameter tubes which formed a body’s core shape, to which were attached thin aluminum-alloy panels which provided both aerodynamic form and strength. Compared with earlier methods, as well as being inherently light, the method afforded great flexibility in fashioning shape and Touring took advantage of the properties of the metal to create both complex and flowing curves. Some of their cars of the era did have lovely lines and in addition to the collaboration with Alfa Romeo which yielded sports cars, gran turismo machines and racing cars, the house attracted business from Lancia, Bianchi and others.
1938 Lancia Astura IV series coupé by Touring (left), 1949 Ferrari 166mm barchetta by Touring (centre), and 2014 Ducati 1199 Superleggera (right).
In the post war years, an era in which demand was high and regulations rare, the number of cars built according to the superleggera system increased as Touring licensed the use of its patent to others including Hundon in the US, Pegaso in Spain and Bristol, Aston Martin & Lagonda in England. Bristol particularly took to the idea because of their long experience with airframes but perhaps the most influential stylistically was the 1948 Ferrari 166 MM Touring barchetta, a charismatic shape which provided a template which would remain recognizable in Ferraris for a quarter-century, the motif of the egg-crate grill still in use today. While superleggera was unsuited to volume production, for the exclusive ranges at the upper end of the market it was ideal and both Lamborghini and Maseratis emerged built with the technique. Although the two are sometimes confused because there are visual similarities under the skin, the space-frame method differs in that it can support the whole structural load whereas a superleggera is attached to an existing chassis.
1960 Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato (left), 1961 Aston Martin DB4 Convertible (centre; the Volante designation wasn't then in use) and 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Saloon.
In the public mind, the most enduring connection was with Aston Martin which was granted a license to use the design and the Superleggera construction method at its Newport Pagnell plant for a fee of £9 for each of the first 500 bodies and £5 for each subsequent unit and the DB4 & DB5 (the latter made famous in the early James Bond films) were both built thus. However, they represented something of the end of the era because governments were starting to pass laws which demanded road cars attain a certain degree of crash-worthiness, something the superleggera technique couldn’t be adapted conform to without sacrificing the very lightness which was its raison d'etre. Additionally, the manufacturers were moving swiftly to replace body-on-frame with unit-construction. Touring attempted to adapt to the changing environment by offering its services as a coach-builder for small, exclusive production runs and made the necessary capital investment but it had become crowded field, the supply of coach-builders exceeding the demand for their skills. Touring ceased operations in 1966 but four decades on, there was an unexpected revival of the name, the company re-established as Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera, offering automotive design, engineering, coach-building, homologation services, non-automotive industrial design, and the restoration of historic vehicles. A number of very expensive one-off and limited-production ventures for Maserati, Alfa Romeo and Bentley followed but what attracted most comment was the Sciàdipersia, shown in coupé form at the Geneva Motor Show in 2018, the cabriolet introduced the flowing year. Based on the underpinnings of the Maserati Grantourismo, although owing no visual debt, it was very much in the tradition of the three Maserati 5000 GTs Touring built in 1959-1960, the first of which had been ordered by the Shah of Iran. Superleggera however is now just a name with an illustrious history, the method of construction no longer in use and when used as a model designation, it now simply denotes what a literal translation of the Italian suggests: lightweight.
The original Maserati 5000 GT "Shah of Iran" by Touring (left; chassis #103-002) and Touring's Maserati Sciàdipersia in coupé form (centre; 2018) and roadster (right; 2019).
There are obvious visual similarities between the classic superleggera method and the geodesic structure used in airframes and some buildings, most famously the “geodesic dome”. The imperatives of both were strength both aim to create strong and lightweight structures, but they differ in their specific design and application. As used in airframes, the geodesic structure consisted of a network of intersecting diagonal braces, creating a lattice framework which distributed loads as evenly as possible while providing a high strength-to-weight ratio. This was of great significance in military airplanes used in combat because it enhanced their ability better to withstand damage better, the stresses distributed across the structure rather than being restricted to a limited area which could create a point-of-failure. The geodesic framework was based on geometric principles which had been developed over centuries and typically employed hexagons & triangles to render a structure which was both rigid & light. Superleggera construction differed in that it involves the creation of a lightweight tubular frame, covered with aluminum body panels of a thinness which wouldn’t have been possible with conventional engineering. The attraction of the superleggera technique was the (relatively) minimalistic framework supported the skin, optimizing weight reduction without compromising strength. So, structurally, the difference was the geodesic design used a network of intersecting braces to form a lattice, while the superleggera construction used a tubular frame covered with panels.
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