As sentences and stories go, here’s an unexpected one. This is the Straddle Tractor Concept designed by Pininfarina—the same Pininfarina responsible for countless Ferraris, Alfas Romeos, Lancias, and Fiats, to name but a few.
Of course, you may already know Pininfarina designs more than just cars. Bikes, too. And trains. Football stadiums. Racing simulators. Coffee machines. Heck, even an Olympic torch. Suddenly, designing a four-wheeled machine for New Holland Agriculture doesn’t look so extraordinary.
In fact, it was designed to look like a champagne flute—no joke—because its intended markets are the “premium wine-growing regions such as Champagne, Médoc, and Burgundy.” Apparently, these high-value vineyards grow their grapes in very narrow, steep, sub-1.5-meter-wide rows.
So, step forward Pininfarina’s design. That champagne-flute-inspired cockpit affords “exceptional” visibility on the vines, and indeed benefits from “flowing and dynamic automotive-inspired lines.” This is a company that designed the Alfa Romeo 6C, don’t forget.
That forward-angled cab apparently adds to the vehicle’s dynamic look—along with the exposed frame—although don’t go expecting some sort of wild, V12-engined sports tractor. If only, eh?
Kevin Rice, who you may remember from a small company called ‘Mazda’ and a relatively unknown concept called ‘RX Vision,’ is Pininfarina’s chief creative officer. He said: “We have leveraged our skills gained in more than 90 years of car design combining a unique and distinctive style and top-level performance, keeping always the human performance at the center.”
Suggestions for what Pininfarina should design next in the space below, please.
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
