Sbarro Super Twelve History

Presented at the March 1982 Geneva Motor Show, the Super Twelve was one of Sbarro's most mechanically inventive one-offs. Its engine was a custom 2.6-litre inline-twelve assembled by mating two Kawasaki Z1300 six-cylinder motorcycle units end-to-end on a common crankshaft, producing around 240–250 hp at 8,000 rpm.

The body was a low, broad wedge of polyester just 3.1 metres long, weighing approximately 800 kg, giving the car a power-to-weight ratio competitive with contemporary supercars. The mid-mounted engine drove the rear wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox, and Sbarro claimed a 0–100 km/h time of five seconds.

Only one Super Twelve was built. It demonstrated Franco Sbarro's recurring interest in using motorcycle powertrains in automotive applications — an approach that required purpose-built adapter engineering and underscored the workshop's genuine technical capability beyond mere replica craftsmanship.