Celebrating 95 Years of Design Excellence, By and For True Enthusiasts
Touring proudly presents the Arese RH95, a name reflecting 95 years of Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera heritage, our commitment to the future at our home on Via per Arese, an area long known as the standard-bearer for outstanding Italian design, as well as the initials of the Arese project’s founding patron. The Arese RH95 was born to share our passion for traditional custom coachbuilding; 18 units are expected, with deliveries beginning just one month after the official presentation.
The evolution of Touring’s “Streamline” styling philosophy, introduced with the Disco Volante Coupé and confidently reiterated in the AERO 3, Touring’s first venture into carbon fibre bodywork, is projected even more boldly into the future with the Arese RH95. It not only shares the AERO’s carbon structural methods, it is the first car in our long experience to utilize a centralized engine position, emphasizing yet further its inherent speed and performance bloodlines.
“This Arese RH95 is another milestone in the history of Touring, 95 years after its foundation” declares Salvatore Stranci, General Manager of Touring Superleggera. “Once again we demonstrate our ability to innovate, a practice renewed through the adoption of cutting-edge materials and construction techniques that are unusual for us.”
GENESIS OF THE PROJECT
Touring’s new Arese RH95 represents the next generation of the firm’s AERO range, established with our acclaimed Disco Volante Coupé of 2012. It’s a perfect synthesis between the sinuous volumes and ideal proportions of the Disco Coupé, and the aggressive and powerful form of the AERO 3, introduced in autumn 2020. “In fact,” explains Louis de Fabribeckers, Director of the Touring Style Centre, “Arese RH95 reflects the stylistic features of the entire AERO line in its many distinctive elements, and the cinematic openings of the exterior panels adds theatricality to a car that is art and design in motion.”
Arese RH95 expresses a touch of drama in all its features, and if the novel scissor doors are its most striking expression, every detail is fascinating but subtle. From the bright aluminium side-slash briskly interrupted by the front wheel arch, then continued elegantly along the waistline, inspired by the Disco, to the grille and front air nostril treatment derived from AERO 3, every flank and panel offers a visual delicacy.
The Arese’s stage presence reaches its zenith, however, with the rear clamshell, where the dorsal scoop is the car’s emblematic feature, simultaneously bold and functional, optimizing forced air circulation in the engine compartment. Aside from this dorsal, the shoulder air inlets and a corresponding rear outlet, the sleek rear body contours are otherwise simple and quite voluptuous, with not even a trunk opening to mar the fluid shape of the rear aspect and not a hint of the brutal faux-Le Mans-winner “styling” so typical in much of the current supercar genre—although a brief, enchanting memory tickle of Alfa 33 Stradale might occur to the connoisseur.
Meanwhile, thanks to the scissor-hinged doors and their generous roof cut-outs, ease of passenger compartment ingress/egress
is exceptional. Interior ergonomics, overall visibility, and the AERO series “cocoon” concept of individual cockpits for driver and passenger give the former a highly usable and comfortable workspace, and the latter a viewing and sensory experience of a lifetime.
Touring’s ample choice of interior colours and materials greatly expand the client’s personalization opportunities, and exterior paint and trim choices are also liberal. Car Number One is finished in Verde Pino, with silver accent bands at nose and tail to accentuate its sporty character, and a cockpit blend of caramel and cocoa, with seat facings accented in shades of saffron. The brilliant red of Alfa’s 8C Competizione will grace Car Two, with white nose panels in the fashion of Alfa’s GTA racers from the 1960s. Likewise, Car Three takes livery from the motorsport world, wearing the famous Gulf Orange and Blue.
All examples of the Touring Arese RH95 will be built around the chassis and drivetrain of a well-known exotic, mid-engine donor car, whose active dynamics have been engineered to handle the new body loadings and specifics, and ensure performance and efficiency. Each will be thoroughly tested and quality assured before delivery to the client. Donor specimens may be provided by the client, or if desired, sourced through Touring Superleggera.
CARBON FIBRE
Cognisant from the earliest days of the industry that weight is the enemy, Touring Superleggera has returned once again to carbon fibre for the Arese coachwork. The thicknesses and orientation of the strands are selected for the best weight/stiffness ratio, and in the preparatory phase, the optimal use of materials was analyzed in terms of overall weight, strength, surface appearance and durability. For maximum precision and quality, each CFRP element is produced by vacuum infusion at 120 degrees Celsius.
CERTIFICATION
The Arese RH95 is EU certified according to the European directive relating to small series production: EU-Directive 2007/46 EC.
DELIVERY TIMES AND COSTS
Touring’s Arese RH95 price is on request. Touring Superleggera is able to deliver the completed car six months after receipt of the basic (donor) car. Every part manufactured or modified by Touring Superleggera is covered by an unlimited mileage two-year warranty, subject to the usual terms of industrial production. The availability of parts produced or modified by Touring is guaranteed for life.
EuroSports Auto is looking forward to receiving yet another astonishing creation by Touring Superleggera. “We would like to congratulate Touring on achieving the next milestone – 95 years of Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera heritage and they have outdone themselves once again with this distinctive coachbuilding of the Arese RH95” said deputy CEO Andy Goh.
CUSTOM COACHBUILDING TODAY
Touring Superleggera’s work responds to an ever-growing demand for personalization and exclusivity that comes from all over the world. But the modern coachbuilder’s task does not only require originality and beauty: if the “made-to-measure” car allows one to discover unexplored areas of form and function without the limits of mass production, nevertheless they must of necessity be immediately producible.
And today, to be feasible, even a custom-built car must respect the standards of quality, safety and usability required of production cars, if not exceed them, and offer unparalleled levels of prestige and quality in materials. This is why Touring Superleggera designs and tests parts, accessories and systems with the most advanced engineering practices. In manufacturing, out-of-the-ordinary craftsmanship skills are not sufficient to guarantee quality and reproducibility; Touring therefore adopts computerized processing techniques and sets very high demands for finishing and precision.
Touring takes extreme pride in their reputation as a style centre and manufacturer of the highest proficiently, among the few able to carry out the entire cycle of creation and construction of an exclusive car, from manual design to surface engineering, to structural calculation, to style models and prototypes, up to and including small series production.
Touring Superleggera’s achievements show that the profession of coachbuilder has a great future if done with rigor, respecting the engineering and quality requirements of today’s automotive industry.
Since 2009, when the Touring Superleggera brand was revived, our cars have drawn inspiration from the immense birthright inherited from our founders, focusing on the conception, design and manufacture of very limited series or totally one-off automobiles. It was the singular mix of local Italian artisans with mechanical skills dating to medieval times, and before, and the application of cutting edge present-day engineering disciplines, combined with absolutely uncompromising standards for the results, which made possible our rebirth.
In recent years, Touring has noticed with growing interest, other companies have followed us into the market for custom-built models, which had largely disappeared in the second half of the previous century. At this rapidly growing and constantly evolving bazaar, where the competitive edge lies in staying at the forefront from viewpoints both technical and artistic, Touring’s emphasis is on pleasure in all its meanings, from the aesthetics of eye-pleasing appearance, to surfaces found luxurious to touch and smell, to the thrilling sound of powerful, throbbing engines, to the pure, earthy pleasure of nothing more than everyday driving.
Touring has consistently given the world satisfying, eminently fulfilling art on wheels, from our inception to this morning. The Arese RH95 further confirms the role of Touring Superleggera at the helm of the contemporary Renaissance in custom coachbuilding for the demanding and discriminating enthusiast.
THE HISTORY OF TOURING SUPERLEGGERA
Carrozzeria Touring was established in 1926 by one of the world’s foremost car designers, Felice Bianchi Anderloni, and the company immediately sealed its position as a creator of the finest designs of the time, winning the most prestigious concours d’elegance then extant, at Villa d’Este, among a host of others. The wealthiest individuals and the most exalted brands came to Touring to have their special coachwork designed and built; brands like Alfa Romeo, Isotta Fraschini, Lancia and BMW. In the post-war period virtually all
of Europe’s top sports and luxury car makers sought out Touring for their landmark cars. Ferrari (until 1952, the bulk of that firm’s production), Lamborghini, Maserati, Pegaso, Aston Martin and Bristol are just a few of the many great names whose cars were dressed by Italy’s most distinguished couturier.
The patented “Superleggera” (or extra light) construction method allowed Touring’s designs to excel on the race track, and an unprecedented 11 outright wins on the Mille Miglia followed, together with victories in Grands Prix, Le Mans and every other major series, ample testimony to the technology’s value.
Some of the better-known masterpieces from Touring include the Isotta Fraschini Flying Star (1931), the Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 (1937), 2500 Villa d’Este (1949), and Disco Volante (1952), the Maserati 3500 GT (1957), the Ferrari 166 MM Barchetta (1949), the Aston Martin DB4, 5 and 6 and the Lamborghini 350GT (1963). The back catalogue is truly one of the most noble and extensive of any coachbuilder.
More recently, the historic name was purchased by a private European group specialising in luxury car brands. This led to the Maserati Bellagio (2008), the A8GCS Berlinetta, winner of the “Best Supercar of the Year” award in 2009, and the Bentley Continental Flying Star (2010).
In 2011, Touring Superleggera created the Tornante, a supercar commissioned by Gumpert, and in 2012 a new Disco Volante conception was unveiled to commemorate the 60th anniversary of that bona fide icon of automotive imagination, the Disco Volante C52. True to form, Touring used innovative shapes and volumes to create a stunning new production version of the proposal, which debuted at the Geneva Salon in 2013. Based on the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, the car went on to win the prestigious Design Award at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, before displaying at Pebble Beach and the St. James Palace Concours of Elegance, and again winning at Chantilly.
In 2014 Touring was commissioned by MINI to produce a new concept, exploring fresh frontiers of automotive design. The MINI SuperleggeraTM Vision was displayed at Villa d’Este before winning the coveted “Best Concept Car of the Year” awards at Salon Privé and the Automobile International Festival in Paris. MINI SuperleggeraTM Vision displays Touring Superleggera’s potential to offer manufacturers turn-key projects delivering creativity and flexibility as much as rigour in engineering and executing.
In 2016 The Alfa Romeo Disco Volante Spyder, based on the 8C Spider, was debuted at the Geneva Salon before winning the “Design Award for Concept Cars and Prototypes” at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este and the “Spirit of Motoring” award at the Windsor Castle Concours of Elegance.
For 2017 Touring Superleggera collaborated with Artega on a new project using an electric powertrain, and the new Artega Scalo Superelletra was debuted at the Geneva Salon. This car, with incredible performance, blends perfect styling from Italy’s leading coachbuilder with technological efficiency from Germany.
The Sciàdipersia Coupé was unveiled at the Geneva show in 2018 as a novel vision of the Gran Turismo concept. Based on the Maserati Gran Turismo, this is a true four-seater in which to fully relish longer journeys. One year later, Geneva also saw the launch of Touring’s Sciàdipersia Cabriolet, a glamorous, fast, open-top luxury tourer imminently suitable for la dolce vita.
Finally, in the 2020 year of worldwide pandemic and industrial downsizing, Touring safely navigated the restrictions of lockdown-Italy and introduced the revolutionary AERO3. Launched during Salon Privé at illustrious Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Winston Churchill and a World Heritage Site, it earned instant acclaim from the world’s automotive press.
All of Touring’s present products, as well as their immaculate restorations of historic Touring vehicles, are completed at the Terrazzano di Rho headquarters, Via per Arese, Milano, Italy.
EuroSports Auto is the exclusive distributor for Touring Superleggera automobiles in Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and the non- exclusive distributor in China since 2012.
