Italian Motorport’s Pioneers: Tomaso Trussardi
In these pages we will see a succession of characters from the Motor Valley and beyond, who in one way or another have made their passion a life vocation to export Made in Italy worldwide, innovating and creating excellences. Tomaso Trussardi.
Let’s start with a suggestion: what is your first memory of a racing car? What did you feel when you saw it?
I can’t say exactly if this is really my earliest memory of a racing car, but it is certainly the first thing that comes to mind when I think about it. I’m talking about when I went to Monza with my dad and got on a white and green barchetta, probably a Minardi, one of those two-seater formulas that are used for customers or sponsors’ purposes on track. Well, I got in this car and did just one lap of the track because, being only ten years old, I was not ready to physically bear the G forces of a Formula. However, despite this “halfway adventure” I remember that I felt a very strong emotion, made of a mix of adrenaline and the feeling of control that the driver exerted on the car, which I liked very much.
When did you first have the opportunity to drive a racing car? How did you feel?
Thanks to my father’s passion I had the opportunity to drive several sports cars, especially Lancia and Alfa Romeo, as he was a passionate Alfista. One of the first sports cars I drove was a Lancia Thema Ferrari 8.32, which I remember being very powerful and really exciting to drive. On other occasions I remember driving some Porsche models that we had the opportunity to use with my brother.
What does Motorsport represent for you today?
For me it is passion and laboratory, I would not know how to define it in any other way. I see Motorsport as a forge for what will be the technologies of the future, even from a historical point of view, when the contamination – still ongoing – between the automotive and aerospace sectors began, which has given a significant boost to both. An example above all is the use of carbon fiber, which began in Formula One and later was also borrowed from aerospace; Bercella is also a spokesperson for this trend, being an important player in both sectors.
After the Maserati Restomod project, your 3200 GT will become a one-off called MV 3200 GTC, where MV stands for Motor Valley and C for Carbon. What do these two elements represent for you and why did you want to incorporate them so strongly into the name and design of the car?
This is a passionate, didactic and territorial project; without these elements the idea would not have existed. It is educational because through the intermediation of the Dallara Academy we have had access to university skills, and thanks to Innovation Farm we have met the technical institutes of the Motor Valley area; following these first steps we carried out a reverse engineering activity on the car to obtain the digital mathematics, on which those of the new car were based. We then started from here to make it, obviously using composite materials to make it lighter.
What is Restomod for you?
For me it was essential to be able to reinvent and modernize the car while keeping its spirit intact and respecting its history. Therefore, we took the Maserati 3200 GT and we “simply” imagined it updated, lighter, wider, more powerful, more impressive, and all this was only achievable through the aid of carbon fiber, an unbeatable material in terms of versatility, which was just what was right for us.
How did you first get in touch with Bercella? How did you understand that we were the right partner for this type of project?
I had the pleasure of meeting Franco Bercella through Emanuele Burioni, who together with me is the creator of this project, which first of all has the intention of enclosing what is the spirit of the Motor Valley. To do this, we needed leaders who could take over the program, managing it in its complexity, and when I talked to Franco, I was immediately impressed by the enthusiasm he showed towards Restomod and its purposes, so it was natural to start this path with Bercella.
Speaking of the future, how do you expect this project to support the Motor Valley and, more generally, the Italian industry?
In general, remaining on a B2B perspective, the market is necessarily controlled by the car manufacturers, also in terms of visibility. By moving instead to B2C, and therefore going towards the end customer, it is more possible to diversify the business activity. This unfortunately meets the legislation, which is still very strict towards the sector in which Restomod is making its way, although it is a totally different area from that of modern cars, as it is the customer who is different. Our customer is a person who already owns important cars, and who wants to give prestige to this emerging sector by buying a different car, far from today’s characteristics.
Let’s think about the gearbox, for example; the MV 3200 GTC will keep its manual gearbox, which is now quite unique on modern cars, even on those of the Motor Valley manufacturers. Without forgetting that we are still making an analogical car, compared to the latest digital infotainments!
Your social accounts are different and very popular, needless to say that social networks have given a sounding board that was previously unthinkable: how do you think they can enhance the project, in addition to traditional communication?
Instagram is truly a wonderful place, because by posting my passion for cars, I came into contact with other enthusiasts and other realities related to the automotive sector, who are now partners in the project; and it is certainly a very innovative boundary for business.
Your followers know that you are constantly active on several projects related to special cars: can you anticipate something about your future commitments?
A dream of mine would be to one day be able to homologate this car, because it would be everyone’s satisfaction to be able to see the Maserati Restomod project really on the road and available for more people.