On the eve of the 1997 Geneva Motor Show, Lilli Bertone promised her husband, Nuccio, that she would forever carry the company in his name. And this year’s Geneva Motor Show was the natural choice for the world premiere of the Nuccio concept, which celebrates the design house centennial and pays homage to the son of the company’s founder.

The Italian design house says that the new concept is tasked to “carry the moral legacy of the Master into the new millennium, confirming Bertone once again among the international leaders of car design.”

The Nuccio is a fully functional prototype powered by a mid-mounted, 480HP 4.3-liter V8. It measures 4,800mm in length, 1,950mm in width and 1,220mm in height, with a 2,600mm wheelbase.

Bertone says that the Nuccio harks back to some of its best concept cars such as the 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo, the 1970 Lancia Stratos Zero and the 1971 Lamborghini Countach.

Some design elements from the era include the cab-forward design, the tapered, trapezoidal windscreen and the “twin peaks” on the orange roof.

The same color is used in the concept’s interior, which features classic analog instruments with a prominent central tachometer and anatomical sports seats.

A nod to the future is the 26-inch LCD screen mounted behind the seats. It replaces the conventional windscreen, which due to the shape of the car and the mid-engined layout would offer no visibility, projecting the image from the rear view camera.

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