Sbarro SV-1
Car of the Day #188: 1973 Sbarro SV-1 – Forgotten rotary
It's a coincidence that the Sbarro “Safety Vehicle 1” was introduced only a year before the similarly-styled Bricklin “Safety Vehicle 1”. Or is it?
To start, both wear ’70s wedge styling, with the Sbarro offering more glass area and a less streamlined nose, almost like a beefed-up Saab Sonnet III.
Both have gullwing doors. The Bricklin is front-engined and powered by a conventional V8 engine…and, naturally, the Sbarro packs a rotary engine from the NSU Ro80.
Yes, contain your excitement: this is a mid-engined, rotary-powered car, like the ones us enthusiasts dream about.
The Mercedes-Benz C111 and Chevrolet Aerovette? This is like those, kind of, because it was built in the famous car-making nation of *checks notes* Switzerland in 1973.
