1 OVERVIEW Salvatore Salerno started building a small, fast sports car with American power and European styling / handling in 1959. To achieve this, he acquired a mid-1950s Triumph TR2/TR3 frame, a Willys 6 cylinder F-head engine and a Borg-Warner 3 speed transmission with overdrive. Most importantly, he chose one of the most stylish bodies to wrap around his creation—the Devin sports car body which was derived from the Italiandesigned Ermini sports car. The Triumph chassis utilized an 88 inch wheelbase with a front/rear track of 45 inches which was a nice size for performance driving. Salerno altered the Devin body by glassing in the hood and made it a flip front which opened up at the cowl. This allowed the driver greater and faster access to the engine area. He also sectioned the body and made it taller. This had the effect of making the cockpit lower for the driver and passenger. A hood scoop was also added which tunneled fresh air into the cockpit and was operated with a vent control on the dashboard. He fitted his car with a tonneau cover—one that is still usable and with the car today. The Salvatore Salerno Special is a rare example of an unrestored, unmodified sports car that was built and finished in era making it one of less than ten known American Specials in original condition. It has a level of finished engineering that most handbuilt specials of the time did not achieve. It looks like a well-finished factory effort that would have been very practical for everyday use except for the lack of a top. And it has been fortunate that the Salvatore Salerno Devin had a list of loving owners that cared for it and never let it go into dis-repair - making it a true time capsule for all to appreciate. The only work completed on it after its long-term storage was maintenance to make it running and performing well. It’s as Salvatore left it for us to enjoy. The Salerno Special’s most recent appearance was at the 2024 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance where it received a class award for preservation and condition. It also appeared at the 2022 Gasparilla Concours d'Elegance where it won an award of distinction.
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