Bertone Runabout Joins Tutto Bene Hillclimb 2026: Slow Down toGo Fast, the Bertone Way

Bertone Runabout Takes Part in the 2026 Tutto Bene Hillclimb

• Bertone will take part in the third edition of the Tutto Bene Hillclimb on September 9, 2026, with the new Bertone Runabout.
• The event returns to Mottarone with its distinctive formula combining automotive culture, design, landscape and the pleasure of driving, under the motto “slow down to go fast.”
• Produced in a limited series of 25 examples, the Runabout is the first model in the Bertone Classic range and combines a 475 hp supercharged V6 with a six-speed manual transmission and rear-wheel driv

Turin, Italy – Bertone will take part in the third edition of the Tutto Bene Hillclimb, scheduled for September 9, 2026, with the new Bertone Runabout.

Created by BorromeoDeSilva together with Race Service, Tutto Bene has quickly established its own place in the international automotive calendar. The event brings together an eclectic selection of classic and contemporary cars on the roads of Mottarone, above Lake Maggiore, with an approach that deliberately moves away from the traditional competitive hillclimb.

There are no timed runs and no classification. Instead, Tutto Bene puts the emphasis on the cars, the road, the landscape and the people who share a genuine interest in automotive culture. Its philosophy is captured by two expressions that have become closely associated with the event: “slow down to go fast” and “only cool cars allowed. ”

It is a setting that suits the Bertone Runabout particularly well.

The Runabout was conceived around a similarly simple idea: that the pleasure of a sports car does not come from performance figures alone, but from the way the driver experiences the machine and the road around it.

Its story began in 1969, when Nuccio Bertone presented the Autobianchi A112 Runabout at the Turin Motor Show. Designed by Marcello Gandini, the original was a small, radical open barchetta reduced to a handful of very clear ideas. Its low stance, horizontal beltline and forward wedge created an instantly recognizable silhouette, while its nautical references introduced a sense of lightness, freedom and playfulness that set it apart from the car design of the period.

The influence of the concept travelled well beyond the show stand. The Runabout became one of the early expressions of the Italian wedge and introduced ideas of proportion and geometry that would become central to automotive design during the following decades.

More than fifty years later, Bertone returned to the Runabout to produce 25 examples that carry forward its distinctive approach to design — one defined by individuality, clarity, a strong sense of aesthetics and character — together with the original vision of simplicity, lightness, playfulness and the pleasure of driving, now supported by contemporary engineering, materials and performance.


In this sense, the Runabout arrives at Mottarone as both a reference to Bertone’s DNA and a contemporary expression of the same design culture. The philosophy of Tutto Bene provides an appropriate setting.

“Slow down to go fast” is not simply about reducing speed. It expresses a way of enjoying a car without turning every road into a competition. The road to Mottarone, with its succession of corners and changes in elevation, gives drivers the opportunity to experience the character of their cars while remaining part of a shared journey.

The Runabout was designed for exactly this type of involvement.

Its mid-mounted 3.5-litre supercharged V6 develops 475 hp and 490 Nm of torque, transmitted to the rear wheels through a six speed manual gearbox. With a curb weight of 1,057 kg, its performance comes together with compact dimensions, low mass and a chassis conceived to keep the driver closely connected to the car. The interior follows the same philosophy. The driver and passenger sit low and close together in a cockpit shaped around a hull-like tub. The dashboard is reduced to a strong horizontal line, with a single instrument in front of the driver and the Runabout’s characteristic nautical compass at its centre. A gated manual gearshift and physical controls keep the experience deliberately tactile and direct.

The intention is to leave space for the things that make driving memorable. This combination of design and experience is also what brings the Runabout into the wider culture represented by Tutto Bene, which “vibes” with what matters: character — cars that have something to say about design, engineering or the culture from which they came.

The Runabout sits naturally within that mix. It brings together one of Bertone’s most recognizable design ideas with contemporary coachbuilding and turns a concept that once existed only as a vision into a car that can now be driven.


On September 9, that story will move from design culture back to the road.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

EDITOR’S NOTES

Founded in 1912, Bertone is one of the most influential names in automotive design. Under Nuccio Bertone, the company shaped some of the twentieth century’s most celebrated vehicles, defining a design vocabulary based on sculptural purity, expressive geometry and cultural resonance. Throughout its history, Bertone created landmark models for Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Ferrari and Fiat. Cars and designs that have become icons of global automotive culture.


The concept vehicles and limited-series work positioned Bertone as both a pioneering design house and an artistic institution.


Today, Bertone enters a new phase as a producer of ultra-limited coachbuilt automobiles.



This chapter is reinforced by the Ricci family’s advanced engineering and industrial capabilities, which strengthen the brand’s technical foundation and ensure coherence between design vision and execution. From its atelier in the French Riviera, Bertone integrates design, engineering and prototype construction under one roof.

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