In Corso Marche in Turin, home of Abarth, a new scorpion was born in 1965, a poisonous and very fast scorpion, the 1300 OT.
The 1300 OT ('Gran Turismo approved') was a small, low and streamlined coupé designed by Mario Colucci. Inspired above all in the rear part by contemporary Ferraris, the design of the roof, the truncated tail with the round headlights and the racing red gave this coupé a looks very aggressive. The front part was reminiscent of the Porche 904 and the trumpet exhaust made those present tremble once in motion, transmitting an emotion that remained on the skin.
A detail struck the imagination of enthusiasts, the OT had one periscope air intake on the roof: fascinating, it was the first time something similar had been seen, even if contrary to what was thought this periscope sent air into the passenger compartment, not to the engine, since the ventilation system was absent.
The OT took Abarth's dear concept of starting from one to the extreme large series baseas it had done with the previous Simca/Abarth series: the OT exploited the platform and part of the suspension of the popular Fiat 850, which saw the cantilevered rear engine beyond the rear axle, an economical solution far from the ideal mid-rear engine of cars designed for racing.
However, the lightness is also due to bodywork made of fiberglass – the first from Abarth – allowed true grand tourer performance: the totally Abarth engine, a two-valve twin-cam, expressed approximately 150 hpand the compendium of Abarth experiences always made with the Simca-Abarth series allowed the OT to have a speed of around 250kmwhich for a 1300 was no small thing.
Despite the not exactly affordable cost at the time, the OT was sold in many examples – some with a 2000 cc engine. – especially to private pilots who could thus have a car that in addition to hill climbs it allowed you to try your hand at the great endurance classics such as the Targa Florio, Nurburgring etc. Among the many established drivers who drove the OT in racing, I remember the Bianchi brothers, Hans Herman, Leo Cella etc.
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