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1948 - Cisitalia 202 SC Berlinetta by Pinin Farina
French re…
See original version (French)
1948 - Cisitalia 202 SC Berlinetta by Pinin Farina
French re…
See original version (French)
Lot no. 69
Description
1948 - Cisitalia 202 SC Berlinetta by Pinin Farina
French registration title of 1953
French registration title of 1953
Vehicle sold without Technical Inspection
Sold without Contrôle Technique
Chassis n° 019
A monument to 20th-century design, this incredible find has been hidden away for over 50 years and is highly eligible for the Mille Miglia, among other events.
A monument to 20th-century design, this incredible find has been hidden away for over 50 years and is highly eligible for the Mille Miglia, among other events.
- Piero Dusio, born in 1899, is an authentic character from a novel, and even Netflix could devote a series to him... After a short career as a footballer (with Juventus in Turin, pardon the pun), which ended in injury in 1923, he went into business, in textiles to be precise, specialising in sports uniforms, and football uniforms. His fortune soared when Benito Mussolini entrusted him with the task of dressing the army. Now rich, he turned to his other great passion, motor racing, first timidly, then driving nothing less than Alfa Romeo 8Cs, the pinnacle of pre-war Italian racing cars. And although the war put an end to his career as a semi-amateur driver, and he returned to the world of football by becoming president of Juventus in 1940, he nevertheless decided in 1943 to create his own racing car, under the aegis of the newly-born Compagnia Industriale Sportiva Italia, otherwise known as Cisitalia.
- To do so, Dusio hired two of the best Italian designers of the time, Giovanni Savonnuzzi (later to create the Supersonic lines at Ghia) and engineer Dante Giacosa, who had already proved his worth at Fiat (where he was soon to become Technical Director). In 1946, the D46 single-seater racing car (internal project number 201) saw the light of day. Although it borrowed many mechanical elements from the Fiat 500 Topolino, the chassis and mechanical preparation, as well as the beauty of the overall package (with its streamlined suspension), were seductive and proved that the recipe was the right one: numerous drivers, including Sommer, Nuvolari, Chiron, Taruffi... and Dusio, helped it build up a solid record of success.
- A single-seater racing car is all well and good, but to shine in competition, and particularly at the Mille Miglia, you need a real road car, and that's how the 202 came to be extrapolated from the well-born D46. At the 1947 Mille Miglia, 3 Cisitalia 202 competition prototypes took 2nd, 3rd and 4th place overall... for a trial run, it was a master stroke, and the civilian 202 was officially presented on 6 September 1947, the eve of the Italian Grand Prix, before going on to shine at the Villa d'Este and then at the Paris Motor Show. Savonuzzi was responsible for the Berlinetta's sublime design, elegant and highly aerodynamic. Although Vignale built the first cars, most of the series came out of the workshops of Pinin Farina and his brother, who ran Stabilimenti Farina. The car was very expensive on the market, but it could count on the indefatigable Max Hoffman to sell it well in the United States. In 1951, it was one of 8 cars (chassis 041 or 042) exhibited at New York's famous Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), where one example (chassis 057, donated by Pininfarina in 1972) is still on display today. That's how important it was in terms of design...
- While the first cars were made of aluminium, the rest of the series, called Gran Sport, were made of steel. After 172 cars were built, the Cisitalia 202 bowed out in 1952, some time after Piero Dusio went into exile in Argentina (where he relaunched Cisitalia Argentina and AutoAr, with the support of Juan Péron), ruined by the development of an F1 car, and bailed out Ferdinand Porsche, imprisoned in France for collaboration. But that's another story...
- The car that illustrates these pages is exceptional in more ways than one. First of all, with chassis no. 19, it is one of the very first Berlinetta 202s ever built. Secondly, because it has been in the same hands since 1973, away from the public eye and major events ever since. And finally, because it is presented to us in incredible original condition. Although there are hints of blue paint under the current red, a trace of a front-end impact, and a non-original engine (although the Cisitalia cylinder head cover is still present), it has a patina like no other, with all of its original interior still in place. Research (to be continued) has enabled us to find a photo of the car in France in 1951 (original attached to the file), and the list of successive owners since then. It is also likely that the car was delivered new to Monaco, where it was registered until August 1951. Aguttes now offers you a unique opportunity to acquire one of the great automobiles of the twentieth century, an essential milestone of world design, a breathtaking history, and an incredible candidate for the greatest events, internationally renowned concours d'élégance and the Mille Miglia in particular.
- Piero Dusio, born in 1899, is a true novelistic character, and even Netflix could devote a series to him... After a short career as a footballer (at Juventus Turin, no less), which ended in 1923 due to injury, he went into business, specifically in textiles, specialising in sports and football uniforms. His fortune skyrocketed when Benito Mussolini entrusted him with dressing the army. Now wealthy, he devoted himself to his other great passion, motor racing, first tentatively, then driving nothing less than Alfa Romeo 8Cs, the pinnacle of pre-war Italian racing cars. Although the war put an end to his semi-amateur racing career and he returned to the world of football, becoming president of Juventus in 1940, he nevertheless decided in 1943 to create his own racing car under the aegis of the newly formed Compagnia Industriale Sportiva Italia, otherwise known as Cisitalia.
- To achieve this, Dusio hired two of the best Italian designers of the time, Giovanni Savonnuzzi (who later designed the Supersonic line for Ghia) and engineer Dante Giacosa, who had already proven himself at Fiat (where he would soon become chief technical director). And in 1946, the single-seater racing car named D46 (internal project number 201) was born. Although it borrowed many mechanical elements from the Fiat 500 Topolino, the chassis and mechanical preparation, as well as the overall beauty of the car (with its streamlined suspension), proved appealing and demonstrated that the formula was the right one: numerous drivers, including Sommer, Nuvolari, Chiron, Taruffi... and Dusio, helped it build up an impressive list of achievements.
- A single-seater racing car is all well and good, but to shine in competition, especially in the Mille Miglia, you need a real motorway car, and that's how the 202 was developed, based on the well-designed D46. At the 1947 Mille Miglia, three Cisitalia 202 competition prototypes took second, third and fourth place overall... for a first attempt, it was a masterstroke, and the civilian 202 was officially unveiled on 6 September 1947, the eve of the Italian Grand Prix, before shining at the Villa d'Este and then at the Paris Motor Show. Savonuzzi was the designer of the Berlinetta's sublime, elegant and highly aerodynamic lines. And while Vignale built the first cars, most of the series came out of the workshops of Pinin Farina and his brother, who headed Stabilimenti Farina. The car was very expensive on the market, but it could count on the tireless Max Hoffman to sell it well in the United States. It marked a real turning point in post-war automotive design and, in 1951, was one of eight cars (chassis 041 or 042) exhibited at the famous Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA), where one example (chassis 057, donated by Pininfarina in 1972) still stands today. This shows its importance in terms of design...
- While the first cars were made of aluminium, the rest of the series, called Gran Sport, was made of steel. After 172 units had been built, the Cisitalia 202 bowed out in 1952, shortly after Piero Dusio went into exile in Argentina (where he relaunched Cisitalia Argentina and AutoAr, with the support of Juan Perón), ruined by the development of an F1 car and the bail paid to secure the release of Ferdinand Porsche, who had been imprisoned in France for collaboration. But that's another story...
- The car featured on these pages is exceptional in more ways than one. Firstly, because with its chassis number 19, it is one of the very first Berlinetta 202s ever built. Secondly, because it has been in the same hands since 1973, sheltered from prying eyes and major events ever since. Finally, because it is in incredible original condition. Although there are shades of blue paint under the current red, a trace of front impact damage, and a non-original engine (the Cisitalia cylinder head cover is still present, however), it has a patina like no other, with all of its original interior still intact. Our research (which is ongoing) has enabled us to find a photograph of the car in France in 1951 (original attached to the file), and a list of successive owners since then. It is also likely that the car was delivered new to Monaco, where it was registered until August 1951. Aguttes now offers you a unique opportunity to acquire one of the great automobiles of the 20th century, an essential milestone in global design, with a breathtaking history, and an incredible candidate for the biggest events, including internationally renowned concours d'élégance and the Mille Miglia.
Est. 160 000 - 240 000 €
See original version (French)
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