The Stile Bertone Mantide: Awesome, yes … but worth $2 million? (Stile Bertone)

You’d never guess it from simply looking at the bodywork, but the car that Italian coach builder Stile Bertone unveiled at the Shanghai auto show — the Mantide — is basically a Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 beneath that crazy skin.

There’s no doubt that the Mantide presents an interesting profile; however, is all of that extra bodywork just for show, or is it truly functional? It’s highly functional, according to Stile Bertone’s Design Director, Jason Castriota. In fact, in the latest episode (episode IX) of Inside Project M, Castriota states that Mantide’s coefficient of drag (Cd) is .298, which is a significant improvement over the Corvette ZR1 donor car’s .38 Cd. He also said that the Mantide has 30 percent more downforce than the ZR1 at speed. Now, clearly there’s more to building a super performance car than just aerodynamics and downforce, and you can find out all about Castriota’s latest creation at the Inside Project M Web site. While you’re there, you can watch the Project M trailer and all nine episodes which chronicle the behind-the-scenes details of the project.

So, is the Mantide really worth the $2 million price tag? Would it change your mind (either way) if there were only to be one ever built? What if there were as many as 10? Right now, Bertone isn’t giving any definite production numbers, but in an e-mail message to Phil Patton of the New York Times, Castriota said this: “At the moment there is considerable interest around the world as we have been contacted by potential clients in Asia, Europe and America.”

One additional note: Take a look at this rear 3/4 view of the Mantide. Do you see the way the quarter panel folds over (sort of like a wing?) just above the rear tires? Now, look at the styling of this 1954 Alfa Romeo BAT 7. Do you see it? Of course, I’m not saying it’s an exact match (the designs are 55 years apart), but it’s fairly close, right? Besides, I just saw the entire collection of Alfa Romeo BATS on display at The Auto Collections at the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas, Nev., so this particular example is fresh in my mind.

So, aside from my Alfa Romeo example, can you spot any other design similarities between the Mantide and other cars from the past?

More related stuff:
How can I measure the drag on a car?
How Aerodynamics Work
How does downforce help a NASCAR race car?
Alfa Romeo Sports Cars
2009 Chevrolet Corvette