Pininfarina has designed this rather striking tractor

As sentences and stories go, here’s an unexpected one. This is the Straddle Tractor Concept designed by Pininfarina; the same Pininfarina responsible for countless Ferraris, Alfas, Lancias and Fiats, to name but a few.

Of course, you may already know Pininfarina designs more than just cars. Bikes, too. And trains. Football stadiums. Racing simulators. Coffee machines. Heck, even an Olympic torch. Suddenly, designing a four-wheeled machine for New Holland Agriculture doesn’t look so extraordinary.

In fact, it was designed to look like a champagne flute – no joke – because its intended markets are the “premium wine-growing regions such as Champagne, Médoc and Burgundy”. Apparently, these high-value vineyards grow their grapes in very narrow, steep, sub 1.5-metre wide rows.

So, step forward Pininfarina’s design. That champagne-flute inspired cockpit affords “exceptional” visibility on the vines, and indeed benefits from “flowing and dynamic automotive-inspired lines”. This is a company that designed the Alfa Romeo 6C, don’t forget.

That forward-angled cab apparently adds to the vehicle's dynamic look – along with the exposed frame – although don’t go expecting some sort of wild, V12-engined sports tractor. If only, eh.

Kevin Rice – who you may remember from a small company called ‘Mazda’ and a relatively unknown concept called ‘RX Vision’ – is Pininfarina’s chief creative officer. He said: “We have leveraged our skills gained in more than 90 years of car design combining a unique and distinctive style and top level performance, keeping always the human performance at the centre.”

Suggestions for what Pininfarina should design next in the space below, please.