At the dawn of 1966, after the Tipo 33 project conceived by Satta’s team was yielded to Autodelta, Giuseppe Busso proposed a project for a new rear-engine sports vehicle, which however had to feature the GTA’s four-cylinder engine: the Scarabeo. The engine was installed transversally to the rear, in one block with clutch and gearbox. From here
, the movement was transmitted to the differential through an unusual shaft placed at a 45° angle. For the suspensions, Busso was inspired on the scheme used in the front of the Renault R8, with which Alfa Romeo had excellent relations, while the tubular chassis took up the ambitious solution - already seen on the 33 – of the tubular ladder frame on the sides of the cockpit, which contained the fuel tanks. The study of the bodywork was assigned to OSI from Borgaro Torinese: a first, fascinating model with the steering wheel on the right side was presented at the Paris Motor Show in October 1966; later on, a second simplified prototype (displayed here) and a barchetta were designed, but the latter was never completed.
| Engine | Rear, vertical transversal, 4 in-line cylinders, cylinder block and head in light-alloy, 2 overhead camshafts with double chain control |
| Cylinder capacity | cc 1570 (mm 78x82) |
| Maximum power | 115 hp at 6000 rpm |
| Weight | kg 700 |
| Maximum speed | Km/h 200 |
| Vehicles produced | 3 |
O.S.I. Former Ghia president Luigi Segre and Arrigo Olivetti founded O.S.I. in Turin in 1960. Even though the “Officine Stampaggi Industriali” (Industrial Moulding Workshops) would survive for eight years only, they were still able to leave a deep imprint on Italian car design. Besides Segre and the profitable cooperation with Ghia, Tom Tjaarda, Sergio Sartorelli, and Giovanni Michelotti were also part of the design team. Though they remained anonymous, many other workers were no less talented, and were later partially integrated in the Fiat Style Center on Dante Giacosa’s request. Once the internal Style Center was shut down in 1967, and the following year OSI went back to dealing exclusively with mouldings.
