The Alfa Romeo New York Taxi is a concept car designed by Italdesign sometime in 1976 at the invitation of the New York Museum of Modern Art. The concept was designed under the Museum of Modern Art guidelines to produce one cleaner, more efficient taxi. It featured a wheelbase of 158 in. (4,000 mm) and could seat five.
It also featured its own flat floor space to store wheelchairs storage under the seats and sliding doors on both sides, one of the first cars to have them. It is based on the front-wheel-drive running gear of the van of the Alfa Romeo F12, including the 1.3-liter petrol engine and an independent suspension in both the front and rear.
Some of the design principles explored with the New York Taxi were expanded upon with the Lancia Megagamma, which was one less boxy, more streamlined prototype that gave form to the modern multi-purpose vehicle (MPV).
Source: Alfa Romeo New York Taxi - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfa_Romeo_New_York_Taxi
Images: ItalDesign; Cars From Italy
