Italdesign Aztec History

Unveiled at the 1988 Turin Motor Show to mark Italdesign's 20th anniversary, the Aztec was the studio's most radical road-going statement to date. Its most arresting feature was its two-seater layout in which driver and passenger sat in completely separated, individually canopied cockpits — communication between the two required an electronic intercom. The body offered removable gull-wing visor sections over each station.

Mechanically the Aztec drew on the Lancia Delta HF Integrale's four-wheel-drive system and used a turbocharged 2.2-litre Audi five-cylinder producing around 200 PS, despite the '250 HP' badges fitted to some examples. A Japanese trading company acquired the production rights intending to build 50 cars primarily for the Japanese market, but the DM 500,000 asking price dampened demand and approximately 18 examples were completed and delivered. A Barchetta-bodied open variant also appeared.

The Aztec has since appeared at auction multiple times at rising prices and was featured in the 1990 film Frankenstein Unbound. It remains one of the most unconventional road-legal sportscars ever offered for sale and a defining moment of Giugiaro's late career at Italdesign.