Unless you were one of the elite few who managed to ascertain where in Geneva the car was being displayed, there's a good chance you've not seen the Bertone B.A.T. 11 concept in person. Lucky for you, there's now a chance to see it in person - and without leaving the continental U.S.
The B.A.T. 11 is scheduled to make its North American debut on August 3 at the 2008 Meadow Brook Concours d'Elegance in Rochester, Michigan. The timing is perhaps ironic, as last year's show hosted a reunion of the original B.A.T. (Berlina Aerodynamica Technica) cars from the 1950's. The cars, including B.A.T 5 in 1953, B.A.T. 7 in 1954, and B.A.T. 9 in 1955, were crafted by Bertone atop the Alfa Romeo 1900 Sprint chassis in an attempt to merge show-car styling with studies in aerodynamics.
B.A.T. 9 somehow made its way to the U.S. in the early 1960s, when a then-sixteen-year-old Gary Kaberle scraped together enough money to purchase the car from a local Dodge dealer. Kaberle sold the car 23 years later to finance medical treatment of his late wife, but commissioned Bertone in 2006 to create the B.A.T. 11 in her memory.
Although little more than a non-functioning model, B.A.T. 11 theoretically continues the Alfa lineage by utilizing running gear sourced from the slinky Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione. The car's styling, penned by Bertone designer David Wilkie, strongly recalls the bodywork of B.A.T. 7 but still retains a futuristic look.
For more information on attending the Meadow Brook Concours d'Elegance and seeing B.A.T. 11 in person, visit http://www.meadowbrookconcours.org/.