2004 Covini C6W Geneva Show Car
This is the 2004 Covini C6W Geneva Show Car, or in other words, the world’s only 6-wheeled road legal supercar ever built. The C6W was built by Italian car manufacturer, Covini Engineering, which was started by Ferruccio Covini in the year 1978. The company is located in Castel San Giovanni, Piacenza, and is best known for developing a number of diesel-powered sports cars such as the T46, B24, T40, and C36. Covini’s first ever car built was known as the 4x4 Covini T44, an off-road vehicle with interchangeable panels. Notably, the Covini B24 went on to become the first ever diesel-powered car to reach 200 km/h (124 mph). The C6W project actually began sometime around 1974, but was abandoned due to the inability to find suitable tires that would allow the car to operate correctly. The idea was brought back to life sometime around the 1980s, and by 2003, it was fully revived, and ready to be built. In 2004, this example shown here of the C6W was shown for the very first time at the Geneva Motor Show, and just one year later at the 2005 Salon International de l’Auto, an enhanced and updated version made it’s public debut. The six wheels allow for this roofless machine to offer better handling and braking than a four wheel car. The initial plan called for a limited run of 6-8 cars per year, but all in all, approximately 3 examples were constructed, consisting of the prototype/test bed car, the Silver Geneva show car, and most recently, a red example that was finished around 2016. The tubular steel frame and fiberglass/carbon fiber bodywork for the C6W were completely bespoke and built from scratch, and the 6-wheel design was inspired by the 1976 Tyrrell P34 (Project 34), a six-wheeled formula one race car. The entire project was sponsored by a newspaper called “Al Volante”, and was funded both publicly and privately.