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Cadillac NART Zagato
Back in the late ‘60s, the first sign of tightening emission laws threatened import sports cars, especially those exotics like the Ferrari. So, Luigi Chinetti, an exclusive Ferrari importer for the North American market realized his domestic customers would look for alternatives if foreign cars didn’t meet emission regulations.
So, he made a plan to build exotic cars with domestic components. And because Cadillac had just introduced the mighty 400 HP V8 with 500 CID, Chinetti bought the Eldorado with that engine. He sent it to the famous Zagato design house in Italy.
In Italy, they turned the Eldorado into a two-seater sports coupe with new styling, mounting the engine behind the passengers. Thy abandone the front wheel drive, so the car was now a rear wheel drive coupe. Unfortunately, due to production delays and GM’s lack of interest for such venture, they only made one Cadillac NART Zagato.