Founded as the
Societa Anonima Fabrica Italiana
di Automobili Torino, the management were quick
to decide that Fiat should join other marques
on the race track, knowing that success would
result in car sales. Success came quickly when,
in 1907, Felice Nazzaro won the
Targa Florio,
the Kaiserpreis and the French GP! Fiat’s
first sports-car was the Balilla, a car derived
from the small saloon design of the same name.
Fitted with a four-cylinder 995cc OHV engine
good for 36bhp, the car featured many innovations
for the time, including hydraulic brakes.
The
Mille Miglia model was a further evolution
of the original, and not only featured a more
powerful engine but a lovely “torpedo” body
style. After the war followed the short-lived
1100S and ES models, born out of the very specialized
508CMM coupes of 1937, however the first true
post-war sporting Fiat was the 8V, powered
by a 2 litre 70-degree V8 pushrod engine good
for between 105 and 115bhp.
Never considered
a technological leader, Fiat nonetheless was
quick to adapt to the new technologies of the
day, particularly when the engineers saw merit;
and so the 8V used a tubular chassis with coil
sprung/wishbone independent suspension. Fiat
then switched to the use of a basic under-pan,
the resultant 1100’s, 1200’s and
1500’s all featuring coil sprung suspension
and rigid rear axles. Most unusual, and least
successful, was the “Trasformabile” of
1955 -
1959, although cabriolets built between
1959 and
1966 sold in large numbers.
The Fiat
Coupe and Spyder versions of the rear-engined
850 models built between
1965 to
1973 were
solid performers, while the 1966 derivatives
based on the 124 saloon, the Sport Spyder and
Sport Coupe proved Fiat capable of making
truly great cars. That
Pininfarina styled and
built the Spyder also made them amoungst the
worlds most beautiful.
Also see: The History of Fiat
