Supercars

MOST of us can only dream of being part of a supercar dynasty like Lamborghini or Ferrari.But life inside these ultra-rich families is far from simple – as they are haunted by hidden pasts and sordid scandals.
Flavia Borzone claims to be the lovechild of Tonino Lamborghini – the son of the luxury car firm’s founderCredit: instagram/@flavia_borzone
A DNA sample was secretly taken from Tonino’s daughter, Elettra Lamborghini
Just this week, Flavia Borzone, 35, was in court over her claim to be the secret lovechild of Tonino Lamborghini – the son of the luxury car firm’s founder.
Tonino is suing Flavia after she publicly alleged he had an affair with her mother in the late 1980s.
In the latest twist to the scandal, it has emerged that Flavia hired private detectives to collect a DNA sample from Tonino’s daughter, Elettra Lamborghini.
The private detectives snatched a straw, dubbed ‘the straw of a thousand secrets’, that was used by Elettra to drink a coffee.
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Experts at the University of Ferrara tested the sample and found a DNA match between Elettra – who appeared in the reality show Geordie Shore – and Flavia.
It is just the latest in a long line of scandals that have rocked the supercar dynasties.
Bugatti founder’s double tragedy
Bugatti founder Ettore Bugatti suffered a brutal double tragedy in his life.
His brother Rembrandt, a talented sculptor, took his own life in 1916 after the outbreak of war stopped him from selling his work, which now sells for millions.
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Ettore Bugatti’s life was torn apart by the deaths of his son and brotherCredit: Getty
Ettore’s brother Rembrandt took his own life during WW1Credit: Getty
Ettore’s son Jean Bugatti died in a crash testing one of his carsCredit: Getty
The artist was heartbroken when many of the animals he used to base his sculptures on were slaughtered after Germany besieged Antwerp.
Bugatti suffered another ordeal when his eldest son, Jean, died testing one of his cars. The 30-year-old lost his life when he swerved to avoid a cyclist and crashed.
BMW heiress fleeced by gigalo
A gigalo fleeced BMW heiress Susanne Klatten out of £5.9million after meeting her in an Austrian spa.
He went on to attempt to blackmail Ms Klatten, threatening to release naked photographs of them together if she did not give him more cash.
Swiss gigalo Helg Sgarbi was jailed for six years in 2009 for his cruel crimes against Ms Klatten and other women.
Ms Klatten initially handed Sgarbi £5.9million after he told her the Mafia was out for him. But he then took the scam a step further.
BMW heiress Susanne Klatten was fleeced out of £5.9million by a gigaloCredit: AFP
Helg Sgarbi was jailed for six years in 2009 for his wicked crimes against Ms Klatten and other womenCredit: Reuters
Sgarbi threatened to release naked pictures of Ms Klatten which were taken in this Holiday InnCredit: Reuters
She said: “He asked me to meet him at the Holiday Inn in Munich. When I went there he showed me two photographs, in one of them I was naked and so was he.
“I could tell they were from a video and I was scared. There was a letter which said he would tell all to the press and my family. He wanted money and I had already given him seven million Euro.
“He just wanted more money and at that point I decided to go to the police because I realised I was being blackmailed.”
Ms Klatten’s father, Herbert Quandt, was also engulfed in scandal over his ties to the Nazi party.
Quandt’s BMW collaborated with the Nazis and employed around 50,000 forced labourers in its arms factories.
Roughly 80 slave labourers died per month at the plants – and many were executed.
One of the slave labourers, Takis Mylopoulos, said: “We were treated very badly, we were whipped and had to drink water out of the lavatories.”
Porsche boss pals with Hitler
Ferdinand Porsche, the founder of the luxury car firm, showing Adolf Hitler his Volkswagen Beetle designCredit: Hulton Archive – Getty
Porsche was arrested for war crimes as an SS officerCredit: Getty – Contributor
The man who created Porsche was a devoted Nazi and pal of Adolf Hitler.
Ferdinand Porsche developed the V-1 flying bomb – which was nicknamed the doodlebug by Brits during the Blitz – and Nazi tanks.
He also worked closely with Hitler, receiving a contract from the dictator to create a ‘Volkswagen’, meaning a car for the masses.
The result of this alliance was the Volkswagen Beetle.
Shamefully, prisoners of were were used as slave labour at the Volkswagen car plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, while Porsche was general manager.
By 1945, Porsche had been arrested for war crimes as an SS officer and was languishing in a French prison of war camp.
Porsche was released from custody in 1947 after his family posted bail of one million French francs.
In 2022, the Austrian city of Linz announced that it planned to rename ‘Porscheweg’ street, which honoured the carmaker.
A report commissioned by the city senate said: “Porsche played a central role in the NS [National Socialism] war economy and actively promoted the forced labour of prisoners of war and concentration camp inmates.”
Ferrari lovechild
Ferrari founder Enzo had a secret lovechild, Piero, with his mistress
Enzo’s wife refused to let Piero (pictured) use his father’s surname while she was alive
Enzo Ferrari, who started the supercar company, was known for his wild love life.
The playboy, who was played by Adam Driver in a biopic last year, bedded factory workers and had a secret lovechild with his mistress Lina Lardi.
Enzo’s wife Laura was so furious about the affair that she refused to let the lovechild, Peiro, have her husband’s surname while she was alive.
Enzo continued to visit his widow’s grave every morning after she died in 1978.
And Piero Ferrari, who is now the vice-chairman of the family firm, was by his father’s bedside when he died.
Lotus founder’s missing millions
Lotus boss Colin Chapman was embroiled in scandal over missing taxpayer cash
A judge said Chapman would have been jailed for at least 10 years had he been in the dockCredit: Getty
Lotus founder Colin Chapman died before he could be charged over a case that cost the taxpayer millions.
The British Government invested more than £50million in a scheme to build a sports car in Belfast.
However, £10million of the cash was not spent on the project, which was the brainchild of Chapman and an American car tycoon called John DeLorean.
The DeLorean Motor Company filed for bankruptcy in October 1982 – just a few days before DeLorean was arrested in a cocaine trafficking case. Undercover federal agents had filmed him agreeing to bankroll a cocaine smuggling operation.
He was later acquitted over the cocaine case as he argued police had entrapped him.
However, the mystery over the missing taxpayer cash sparked an investigation which led to the imprisonment of Lotus Group accountant Fred Bushell.
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It emerged that Bushell had siphoned off £5million for himself.
Chapman died aged 54 from a heart attack in 1982 but the judge in Bushell’s case said that if he had been in the dock he would have been jailed for at least 10 years. More