ItalDesign History

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ItalDesign History


 
1960 Alfa Romeo 2000
1960 Alfa Romeo 2000

1960 Gordon Keeble GT
1960 Gordon Keeble GT

1961 Aston Martin DB4 GT Jet
1961 Aston Martin DB4 GT Jet

1961 Aston Martin DB4 GT Jet
1961 Aston Martin DB4 GT Jet

1961 BMW 3200 CS
1961 BMW 3200 CS

1963 Chevrolet Corvair Testudo
1963 Chevrolet Corvair Testudo

1964 Bizzarrini GT Strada
1964 Bizzarrini GT Strada

1965 Fiat 850 Spider
1965 Fiat 850 Spider

1965 Mazda Luce
1965 Mazda Luce

1967 Fiat Dino
1967 Fiat Dino

1967 Iso Rivolta Fidia
1967 Iso Rivolta Fidia

1970 Volkswagen Porsche Tapiro
1970 Volkswagen Porsche Tapiro

1971 Volkswagen Karmann Cheetah
1971 Volkswagen Karmann Cheetah

1976 BMW Karmann Asso di Quadri
1976 BMW Karmann Asso di Quadri

1980 Fiat Panda
1980 Fiat Panda

1980 Fiat Panda
1980 Fiat Panda

1980 Fiat Panda  Off Roader
1980 Fiat Panda Off Roader

1980 Morris Ital
1980 Morris Ital

1983 Fiat Uno
1983 Fiat Uno

1984 Saab 9000
1984 Saab 9000

Giugiaro, Designer Of The Best Selling Cars In The World



Giugiaro is credited with designing some of the best-selling cars in the world. He is responsible for much of the creative process, enjoying designing the exterior, while other parts are left to employees.

He began the "folded paper" era of the 1970s, where cars took on sharp edges, like the Lotus Esprit, Volkswagen Golf, Hyundai Pony and the Lancia Delta.

That the Golf, now in its fifth incarnation, is a rounded-off and modernized version of his original is testament to how the proportions were right back in the late 1960s, when he first prepared it.

Much the same applies to the Lancia Delta. One can track the trends of automotive design over the past three decades and continue to find Giugiaro at the forefront. He began the trend toward taller cars, in a quest for more interior room, in 1979. Fiat's Panda and Uno reflect this philosophy.

The Successful Collaboration With Fiat



In these cases, ItalDesign collaborated successfully with the resources of Fiat. He also began the minivan craze in 1978, by designing an MPV, the Megagamma, on Lancia Gamma mechanicals, and thus inspiring the Nissan Prairie - the first of the modern MPVs in 1981 - the Chrysler T-115 (Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager) and the Renault Éspace. And his cars began to go round round just as others were catching up: the Isuzu Piazza, first seen as a show car in 1979.

But there is more to automotive design than roundness and squareness. With the advent of more advanced body-pressing techniques and innovations in the shapes of car lights and other components, Giugiaro combined elegance with practicality.

The Fiat Punto is distinctively Italian with subtle design cues that set it apart from other super minis - with the exception, perhaps, of his own 1993 Seat Ibiza; in Korea the Daewoo Leganza, inspired by his earlier Jaguar Kensington concept, lent a presence hitherto absent from the Korean chaebol's Opel-based Nexia, Cielo and Espero models.

Some years earlier his Toyota Aristo and Lexus GS 300 did the same for the Japanese giant's luxury division. At the very top end, the EB 112 sedan for the now-defunct Bugatti shows how Giugiaro was able to combine limousine luxury with a powerful chassis and motor, in a form which to some is less awkward than the extravagant EB 110 coupé by his contemporary, Marcello Gandini.

Giugiaro's designs (Asterisk denotes production model At Bertone)

1960


Alfa Romeo 2000/2600 Sprint*
Ferrari 250 GT Bertone
Gordon Keeble GT*



1961


ASA 1000 Coupé*
Aston Martin DB4 GT Jet
BMW 3200 CS*
Maserati 5000 GT Bertone

1962


Alfa Romeo 2000
Spring Ferrari 250 GT Bertone
Iso Rivolta 330/340 GT*
Simca 1000/1200 S Coupé*

1963


Alfa Romeo 2600 HS
Alfa Romeo Giulia GT*
Chevrolet Corvair Testudo
Iso Grifo*
Mazda Luce 1000/1500

1964


Alfa Romeo Giulia Sport Special
ASA 1000 Spider
Bizzarrini GT Strada*
Innocenti 186 GT
Iso Grifo Spider

1965


Fiat 850 Spider*
Fiat Abarth 1000 OTR
Ford Mustang Automobile Quarterly
Mazda Luce 1500/1800*

1966


Fiat 850 Vanessa
Isuzu 117 Coupé*
Maserati Ghibli*
De Tomaso 2000 Competizione
De Tomaso Pampero
De Tomaso Mangusta*

1967


Fiat Dino*
Iso Rivolta Fidia
Oldsmobile Toronado Thor
Rowan Elettrica

1968


Maserati Ghibli Spider*
De Tomaso Mangusta Spider

1969


Abarth 1600 Coupé
Alfa Romeo 33/2 Iguana
Suzuki Carry L40/L40V*
Suzuki Microutilitaria

1970


Volkswagen-Porsche Tapiro

1971


Alfa Romeo Alfasud*
Alfa Romeo Alfasud Caimano
Maserati Bora*
Volkswagen Karmann Cheetah

1972


Lotus Esprit*
Maserati Boomerang
Maserati Merak*

1973


Audi Karmann Asso di Picche
Volkswagen Passat*

1974


Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT/GTV*
Hyundai Pony*
Hyundai Pony Coupé
Maserati Coupé 2+2 Medici I
Volkswagen Golf/Rabbit*
Volkswagen Scirocco*

1976


Alfa Romeo Alfasud Sprint*
Alfa Romeo New York Taxi
BMW Karmann Asso di Quadri
Maserati Quattroporte*
Medici II

1978


Audi 80/4000*
BMW M1*
Lancia Megagamma M8

1979


Isuzu Asso di Fiori (later 1981 Isuzu Piazza*)
Lancia Delta*

1980


Fiat Panda*
Fiat Panda Offroader
Fiat Panda 4x4 Strip
Morris Ital*
Medusa

1981


De Lorean DMC 12*
Isuzu Piazza*

1982


Capsula Lamborghini Marco Polo
Lancia Orca
Lancia Prisma*

1983


Fiat Uno*
Hyundai Stellar*
Renault Gabbiano

1984


Isuzu/Holden Gemini/Chevrolet Spectrum* Isuzu Gemini Coupé
Lancia Thema*
Lotus Etna Marlin Maya
Saab 9000*
Seat Ibiza*
Together

1985


Fiat Croma*
Fiat Duna/Premio*
Fiat Duna Weekend*
Hyundai Pony Excel*
Hyundai Presto*
Maya II ES
Maya II EM
Seat Malaga*

1986


Machimoto
Oldsmobile Incas
Orbit
Renault 21/Medallion*

1987


AMC/Eagle Premier/Dodge Monaco*
Yugo Florida*

1988


Asgard Aspid Aztec
Hyundai Sonata*
Renault 19*

1989


Seat Proto T

1990


Bugatti ID 90
Jaguar Kensington
Seat Proto C
Seat Proto TL

1991


Nazca C2
Nazca M12
Seat Toledo*
Subaru Alcyone/SVX*

1992


Biga Columbus
Fiat Cinquecento ItalDesign

1993


Bugatti EB 112
Fiat Cinquecento Lucciola
Fiat Punto*
Fiat Punto Cabriolet*
Lexus GS 300/Toyota Aristo*
Nazca C2 Spider
Seat Cordoba/Volkswagen Polo Classic*
Seat Ibiza II*

1994


Firepoint Lexus Landau

1995


Daewoo Bucrane Lamborghini Calá

1997


Alfa Romeo Scighera
Daewoo Leganza

Also see: Ital Design (USA Site)
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