The final BMW i8 rolled off the assembly line in June this year, but the plug-in hybrid sports car lives on as a limited-run coachbuilt sports car. Not that you’d be able to recognize it, but the retro-styled Taraschi Berardo is actually based on a BMW i8. If you haven’t heard of Taraschi yet, it’s because the Italian brand is a fresh revival of the competition car manufacturer founded by racing driver Berardo Taraschi in 1947.
Named after the company founder, Taraschi
Berardo is a limited-run two-seat coupe that features a hand-built aluminum
body on top of a BMW i8 chassis and powertrain. As you can see, the coachbuilt
sports car looks nothing like the futuristic i8, with its lines taking
inspiration from the 1953 Giaur 750 Sport Champion, one of Taraschi’s most
successful models. Only those with a keen eye for detail will notice that the
Berardo carries over the greenhouse and the butterfly doors from the BMW i8.
The coachbuilt sports car is some 300-mm longer than the donor vehicle, and most of that increase is found in
the longer rear overhang. The front and rear ends are completely different, as
is the lavish interior which features an abundance of brown and cream leather,
as well as wood trim. Come to think of it, the center console looks more like a
piece of classic furniture than a functional car interior element.
We don’t know yet how many Taraschi
Berardos will be made and how much will one cost. We do know that the standard
model packs 420 PS, a healthy upgrade over the stock BMW i8’s
combined output of 374 PS. The Berardo is said to sprint from zero to
100 km/h in 3.9 seconds and reach a top speed of 280 km/h.
The manufacturer also promises 470 PS and 520 PS variants, which should unlock even more performance
from the three-cylinder turbocharged three-pot and electric motor.
