Pegaso Z-102 Thrill

The Pegaso Z-102 Thrill: Among all the Pegasus produced, the 1953 Z-102 Berlinetta Thrill certainly stands out, one of the most original cars not only of the Iberian brand but also of the Milanese coachbuilder Touring and of all the 1950s. Derived from the “production” berlinetta, from which it inherits the front, it concentrates the most important innovations in the completely redesigned rear. There is in fact a large panoramic rear window but above all, behind the side windows, a pair of wing profile “flying buttresses” that stand out from the side up to the roof, also underlined by the two-tone red and black paintwork. According to the coachbuilder, this solution has a double function, safety as a roll-bar integrated in the body, and aerodynamics, because the air flow passing between the airfoils and the cabin eliminates harmful vortices; as evidence of the validity of the theories, the “flying buttresses” were taken years later on the Ferrari 599 GTB. After failing to participate in the New York International Auto Show, it was presented at the 1953 Turin Motor Show together with the equally futuristic Alfa Romeo B.A.T. 5, made by Bertone and designed by Franco Scaglione, and received unanimous approval. It is said to have been commissioned by dictator Francisco Franco himself to donate it to Evita Perón, as he already did with a “standard” Z-102B Touring berlinetta painted in the colors of the Spanish Falange to General Craveiro Lopes, president of Portugal, but the “Thrill “does not take the road to Argentina remaining in Spain, in the hands of an owner who uses it for a long time before being restored and kept in a private collection. The Pegaso Z-102 Thrill won the coppa d’oro at the Concorso d’Eleganza di Stresa in 1953.