This 1947 Nardi Danese 750 Barchetta “Boby” is said to be the only one built, and in addition to being a fascinating, BMW motorcycle-powered engineering exercise also has quite an impressive competition history. According to the seller’s write-up, the car won its very first outing at the 1947 Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti with Nardi and Danese as driver and co-driver. It looks great after a recent restoration and is said to be fully documented and ready to go. Find it here at Marreyt Classics in Aalst, Belgium for 175k euros (~$242,673 today).
Though research shows the car in a number of configurations with detail differences between them, the current, shroud-less grill iteration is both the purest and most attractive. Some static photos show the wire wheels painted a burgundy similar to that used on the upholstery, and we’re not sure if they’ve since been painted black or its simply the effect of motion making them look so. The ad lists several career highlights including 1st in class at the Watkins Glen Cup in 1952 and earlier, continental wins.
The cabin is bare-bones simple but shows beautiful craftsmanship, a semi-triangular tube frame bolstered on either side by wide, box section sills and seats squeezed in between the driveshaft tunnel. In keeping with the car’s Nardi heritage its steering wheel is fantastic, and apart from a single, passenger-side mounted tachometer there is no instrumentation. We can’t make out the gearshift layout, but what appears to be a knob sprouting from a long, centrally placed lever is just about visible—an arrangement backed up by blueprints included in the ad’s gallery.
Hanging out over the front wheel’s centerline is an R75 sourced 750 CC flat twin, complete with an ineffective looking fan presumably designed to force air over the finned barrels. Front suspension is by transverse leaf spring and telescopic dampers with A-arms, with quarter ellipticals and a solid axle in back. Aluminum bodywork contributes to a flyweight 390 kg total weight, making the most of a modest 40 HP.
The seller says they’d like to see the car in the Museo dell’automobile di Torino, and though we agree it’s a significant and interesting machine we’d much rather have it shared with the public at race events, continuing doing what it was built to do.