From the famous Topolino to the award-winning Cinquecento and the modern Seicento, here’s the definitive story of the baby Fiats, with particular emphasis on the Nuova 500. Read, too, about the motorsport success of Abarth versions. Covers years 1936 to 2010
The story of Fiat’s timeless Pinifarina-styled Spider (convertible), the elegand Boano-designed Coupé and Abarth’s hard-charging 124 Spider-based rally car.
The interest and fascination these novel cars generate have made micro vehicles significant collectibles over the past decade, and yet information published on micro trucks has been almost non-existent. Old brochures printed by numerous micro-car builders depict the various truck versions available. In the case of Iso, everything from hook and ladder to vans to pickups were featured, but few if any examples were thought to have been built beyond the prototype stage. Full colour photography, text and specs describe previously unseen Iso production micro trucks, as well as featuring the changes necessary for converting the production Iso into a micro truck. Also featured are rare Topolino Fiat vans, as well as more common production micro trucks from Autobianchi, Moto Guzzi, Vespa Ape, New Map Solyto and Diahatsu. Rare Topolino Fiat vans ready for full restoration are also shown. Whereas very few 1950 Fiat 500 Topolino C Furgone models exist, there is only one known 1948 Fiat 500 Topolino B Furgone believed to have survived. As well, this volume covers the somewhat more familiar production versions built by Moto Guzzi and New Map Solyto. For micro car enthusiasts wanting to expand their collection, this volume includes the more commonly available micro trucks from Autobianchi, Vespa and Diahatsu along with helpful hints on restoration. Illustrated with 91 colour photos, many of never-before-seen micro trucks.
This book examines the dramatic increase in automotive assembly plants in the former Socialist Central European (CE) nations of Czechia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia from 1989 onwards. Enticed by relatively lower-wage labour and significant government incentives, the world’s largest automakers have launched more than 20 passenger car assembly complexes in CE nations, with production accelerating dramatically since 2001. As a result, the annual passenger car production in Western Europe declined by more than 20% between 2001 and 2015, and alternatively in the CEE it increased by nearly 170% during this period. Drawing on case studies of 25 current and former foreign-run assembly plants, the author presents a rare historical account of automotive foreign assembly plants in the CE following this dramatic geographic shift. This book will expand the knowledge of policy-makers in Europe in relation to their pursuits of FDI and will be of great interest to scholars and students of business, economic history, political science, and development.
Having left motor racing in the early 1950s - at least officially - Alfa Romeo returned to the sport once again at the start of the following decade due to the commitment and enthusiasm of Autodelta. This Alfa offshoot distinguished itself by preparing and racing about 30 of the manufacturer's different cars that really did make history. Among them, the Giulia TZ holds a place at the head of the crowd. It had a 1.5-litre, 113 hp engine from the Giulia SS, front and rear suspension of modern conception, disc brakes and an especially bold body shaped by Zagato on a modern tubular chassis. Those were the strong points of this car, which scored results of absolute prestige in its brief career at Sebring, in the Targa Florio, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Tour de France. Vito Witting da Prato, already the author of a meticulously written book on the Alfa Romeo SZ, covers the winning, human, technical and sporting factors of this unforgettable car in a monumental work. A book which, to the precise text and painstaking historical reconstruction, has been added illustrations of previously unpublished pictures and technical designs by Autodelta.
This new revised and updated edition is the ultimate buyer's/seller's/user's guide for American automobiles manufactured from 1805 to 1942. With more than 5,000 photos and histories of cars and their companies written by one of America's most respected automotive historians, this is the most extensive automobile reference available.
Obert's Fiat Guide is a compilation of ten years of C. Obert & Co's quarterly newsletter, Ciao! News. Written by the late Genevieve (Genny) Obert, the guide will "wow" Fiat, Abarth, Lancia and Yugo enthusiasts with fascinating and useful information. Divided into two sections -- articles and tech tips - the guide provides a comprehensive look at Fiats, Abarths, late model Lancias and the Yugo. Articles cover a breadth of topics from "The Field Spotter's Guide to Early Fiats" to "The ABCs of Fiat 124 Coupes." Tech tips are written with the unique perspective of a true Fiat aficionado, Chris Obert, owner of the Fiat parts and service shop, C. Obert & Co's (formerly called Fiat Plus). Enjoy the ride!
The vivid personality, great intelligence and strong determination of Carlo Abarth are revealed through the pages of his large biography. Described is Abarth's personal life, his early motorcycling projects and races, and the Cisitalia period and its unfortunate decline. Includes the long and successful new adventure in car-tuning which made Abarth and his cars renown all over the world. This book also contains technical data for each model produced, supported by company chassis drawings and engine cutaways. Exhaustive and accurate listing of competitions which saw Abarth cars dominating the racing fields year by year. The book is richly illustrated by appealing and never published before photos, many of them belonging to the personal Abarth photo archive.
Direct injection spark-ignition engines are becoming increasingly important, and their potential is still to be fully exploited. Increased power and torque coupled with further reductions in fuel consumption and emissions will be the clear trend for future developments. From today’s perspective, the key technologies driving this development will be new fuel injection and combustion processes. The book presents the latest developments, illustrates and evaluates engine concepts such as downsizing and describes the requirements that have to be met by materials and operating fluids. The outlook at the end of the book discusses whether future spark-ignition engines will achieve the same level as diesel engines.