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Last updated: 05/26/2021 |
Art Deco Cars That Are Still Beautiful Today 1956 Pegaso
Between 1951 and 1958, Spanish company Pegaso built sports cars that challenged the likes of Ferrari, Jaguar, and others. It only made 68 cars total, though, which is why you've probably never heard of it. That's a shame because the company created something really interesting. Pegaso was actually created by state-owned company Enasa in the 1940s to build trucks following the Spanish Civil War. Per a 2014 Hagerty article, Pegaso was led by engineer Wilfredo Ricart, who had worked at Alfa Romeo before World War II. Ricart worked alongside Enzo Ferrari at Alfa, and apparently the two didn't get along. When he returned to his native Spain, Ricart decided to use this national truck company to challenge Ferrari. The car he created, the Pegaso Z-102, was incredibly innovative. It featured a 3.2-liter dry-sump quad-cam V8 and a rear-mounted transaxle long before such things were commonplace. Bodywork came from a number of prominent coachbuilders, including Touring and Saoutchik The Z-102 was one of the fastest cars in the world at the time, capable of cresting 150 mph. But it was expensive. Rafael Pueche, the owner of the 1955 Pegaso featured in this Petrolicious video, notes the Z-102 cost twice as much as an equivalent Ferrari of its day and around four times as much as a Jaguar XK120. The Spanish government killed the Pegaso sports car once it realized how much it cost to make and sell. Ultimately, the Pegaso Z-102 was perhaps too advanced for its own good, making it the sort of car you typically only see on a concours lawn. That's why it's great to see Pueche exercise, letting its amazing V8 sing.
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