microcar AUTOBIANCHI bianchina cabriolet, cute italian midget

Description for Other Makes 1966

Bianchi, ounded by Edoardo Bianchi in 1885 and now remembered primarily as a bicycle manufacturer, as also active in passenger car manufacturer from 1899. Bianchis were in general high-end luxury cars, ade with high attention to detail. The company's factory in Abruzzi was destroyed by bombing during World War II. Edoardo Bianchi himself died in 1946 in a car accident, nd the ownership of the firm passed to his son, iuseppe. Even though a new, odern facility was constructed in Desio after the war, conomic conditions forced Giuseppe not to resume passenger car production, ut rather to focus on bicycles, otorcycles and commercial vehicles. Bianchi bicycles are still manufactured.

Bianchi turned to large industrial groups Fiat and Pirelli with a proposal to form a new company to produce automobiles. Thus, he Autobianchi company was born, ith the agreement signed by the three parties on 11 January 1955 and share capital of 3 million lira, 3% of which belonged to the Bianchi family. A new, odern, urpose-built plant for the production of Autobianchi cars was erected on an area of 140,000 square metres in Desio.

The first car to be produced by the new company was the Bianchina, hose name was a tribute to Edoardo Bianchi's first 1899 car. The Bianchina was based on Fiat 500 mechanicals - with its two-cylinder, ir-cooled engine mounted in the rear - but featured a completely new stylish body designed by Luigi Rapi, ho was in charge of Fiat's special body unit and helped to set up production in Desio

The Autobianchi Bianchina is a minicar produced by the Italian automaker Autobianchi, ased on the Fiat 500. It was available in various configurations: Berlina (saloon), abriolet (roadster), rasformabile (convertible), anoramica (station wagon), nd Furgoncino (van). The car was presented to the public on 16 September 1957 at the Museum of Science and Technology in Milan.

Initially, he car was equipped with the smallest Fiat engine, ir-cooled 479 cc producing 15 hp (11 kW). In 1959, he engine power was increased to 17 hp (13 kW) and in 1960, he cabriolet version was launched.

Cabriolet series 1 1960 21 499 1,050

Cabriolet series 2 D 1961-1964 21 499 5,500

Cabriolet series 3 F 1965-1969 21 499 2,750