FIAT 1500 Cabriolet Model History

FIAT (Originally an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana di Automobili Torino) started building passenger cars in Turin, Italy in 1899. Over the next century, they grew immensely, branching out into many other industries, inluding trains, planes, marine engines, and civil engineering projects. Through a series of acquisitions and partnershops, they grew their market by manufacturing and selling cars in many other countries, around the world.

During the 60s they were the 4th or 5th largest car maker, behind the “Big Three” of Detroit. FIAT’s bread and butter has always been economy family cars. However there have always been sportier cars in the model lineup as well. At various times in its life, FIAT has had active racing programs.

The type 118 cabriolet cars was the result of a joint venture with the design studio Pininfarina (well known for their work with Ferrari). The mechanicals were adapted from FIAT’s popular 1300/1500 family sedan, and the bodies were built at Pininfarina.

The result was an inexpensive but sporty roadster that was well-regarded by reviewers of the time. In general, these cars were not particularly fast, but handled well and had style to spare. (For those looking for more performance, the 1500S and 1600S, with exotic OSCA twin-cam engines, were also available.)

The history of the type 118 FIAT cabriolets of the 60s can be tracked to the type 103 FIAT “Nuova 1100” sedans, first introduced in 1953.

Here is a timeline of these models up to the 1500 Cabriolet:

Marque Model Type Engine HP (SAE) Production
FIAT 1100 103 1089cc 36 (41) @ 4400 1953-1956 picture
FIAT 1100 Familiare 103 1089cc 36 (41) @ 4400 1954-1956 picture
FIAT 1100 TV (Turismo Veloce) 103 1089cc 50 (55) @ 5400 1954-1956
Pininfarina 1100 TV Coupe 103 1089cc 50 (55) @ 5400 ? picture
FIAT 1100 TV Trasformabile 103 1089cc 50 (55) @ 5400 1955-1956 (571 total) picture
FIAT 1100 (Saloon, Familiare) 103 E 1089cc 40 (45) @ 4400 1956-1957 (115,000 total)
FIAT 1100 TV (Turismo Veloce) 103 E 1089cc 56 (61) @ 5200 1956-1957
FIAT 1100 TV Trasformabile 103 E 1089cc 56 (61) @ 5200 1956-1957 (450 total)
FIAT 1100 103 D 1089cc 43 (48) @ 4800 1958-1960 (150,000 total) picture
FIAT 1200 “Gran Luce” 103 G 1221cc 58 (63) @ 5300 1958-1960 (400,000 total) picture, picture
FIAT 1200 Trasformabile 103 G 1221cc 58 (63) @ 5300 1957-1959 (2360 total)
FIAT 1100 De Luxe (Lusso) 103 H 1089cc 50 (55) @ 5300 1959-1960 (227,000 total) picture
FIAT 1100 (Export, Speciale) 103 H 1089cc 55 @ 5200 1960-1962 (272,067 total) picture, picture
FIAT 1100D (saloon, famliare) 1100D 1221cc 55 @ 5800 1962-1966 (332,000 total) picture
FIAT 1100R (saloon, famliare) 1100R 1089cc 53 @ 5200 1966-1969 (341,000 total) picture
FIAT 1300/1500 (saloon, famliare, 1500L) 1961-1967
FIAT/Pininfarina 1200 Cabriolet 118 G 1221cc 58 (63) 1959-1963 (11,000 total) picture, more info
FIAT/Pininfarina 1500S Cabriolet 118 S 1491cc 80 (90) @ 5800 1959-1962 (80 total) picture, more info
FIAT/Pininfarina 1600S Cabriolet 118 SA 1568cc 1962-1963 (3089 total 1600S) picture, more info
FIAT/Pininfarina 1500 Cabriolet 118 H 1481cc (80) 1963-1965 [1] picture, more info
Pininfarina 1500 Coupe 1481cc 1960-1967 (2,210 total)
FIAT/Pininfarina 1500 Cabriolet 118 K 1481cc 75 (83) 1965-1966 [1] picture, more info
FIAT/Pininfarina 1600S Cabriolet 118 SB 1568cc 90 @ 6000 1963-1966 (3089 total 1600S) picture, more info
Pininfarina 1600 Coupe 1568cc 1960-1967 (300 total)

saloon = sedan estate, familaire, family = wagon trasformabile = convertable

[1] 118-cars total production is somewhere between 22,630 (source?) and 47,000 (Sedgewick).

In 1967, the product line began to switch to the 124 platform, with the 124 spider replacing the cabriolets, the 124 sedan replacing the 1300/1500, and the 128 sedan replacing the 1100/1200. These new product lines sustained FIAT through the 70s, until they pulled out of the US market in the early 80s.

In 1962, the 1200 Cabriolet was introduced. This car shares much of the drivetrain and suspension design with the 1200 sedan, introduced

The front suspension and engine arrangement is quite familiar, using the same basic subframe layout.

Bibliography

Sloniger. FIAT Guide. New York: Sports Car Press, 1960.

Norbye, Jan P. The New FIAT Guide. New York: Sports Car Press, 1969.

http://www.carsfromitaly.com/fiat/1100.html

http://www.vencar.cz/history.htm

http://home.planet.nl/~hoog2700/page05.html

http://www.fiat.co.nz/future/future.htm