Sbarro Cadillac TAG Function Car, 1978

In 1991, Franco Sbarro created the Dual Frame, one of the benefits of which is to reduce the weight of cars. Yet just a few years earlier, the same Franco Sbarro had presented the biggest and heaviest of his creations: the Function Car. Just imagine this 7.10 m Cadillac weighing 3 tons and powered by an 8,200 cm3 V8! The sponsor of this road-going liner was Joseph E. Adjadj, a wealthy Saudi businessman (owner of the TAG brand) who had bought another liner in October 1977: Le France!

Telecommuting before its time!

The aim of the Function Car is to offer the functionalities of a business office in the comfort of a luxury car. Based on a Cadillac Eldorado, Franco Sbarro will create a real office on wheels: four armchairs, two telephones, two secretarial desks. There's also a fridge, TV and coffee machine. Access to the car is either through the front passenger side (the front passenger seat is offset in the middle of the car, leaving a space next to the door), or through the huge rear door. The interior was designed by the Swiss company DEM.

On the outside, we're a long way from the canons of automotive beauty. But that wasn't Sbarro's concern: function above all. And in this respect, they succeeded. Let's not forget that we're in 1978, and if today a television in a car, or of course a telephone, surprise no one, these were avant-garde features at the time. The body is at once a two-door coupé, a van or MPV on the inside, and a station wagon in terms of overall appearance. To support the car's weight and length, Sbarro doubled the rear axle, making it a six-wheeler. The interior layout was facilitated by the fact that the basic Cadillac Eldorado is front-wheel drive: there is no transmission tunnel running through the car, which thus offers a flat floor.

Too !

A project to build twenty-five cars was considered, but came to nothing. The TAG Function Car was used for a time by its owner for his European travels. Franco Sbarro bought it for very little (compared to its cost price). It was almost sold to a musician who wanted to install a piano! But given the cost of the operation, she gave up. Since then, it has remained the property of Franco Sbarro.

An example of Sbarro's passion

This unusual car is an example of Franco Sbarro's creativity and insatiable need to meet any automotive challenge. There's quite a gap between the Pilcar, a small electric car designed shortly before, and the 7.20-meter Function Car. And yet it's with the same passion that Franco Sbarro works on all his projects. Passion is his fuel.