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| Founded | 1947 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Carlo "Francis" Lombardi |
| Defunct | 1973 |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Automotive |
The Carrozzeria Francis Lombardi was founded in 1947 in Vercelli, Italy, by noted pilot Carlo "Francis" Lombardi. They originally engaged in some aeronautical design, but this soon ended. Their most famous car was the Lombardi Grand Prix, which was also marketed under a variety of other names such as O.T.A.S. and Abarth. The company was closed in 1973. [1]
Founded in 1947, they focussed exclusively on automobiles after 1950. Their first efforts were coupés on Fiat 1100 and 1400 basis; these were soon followed by station wagons with wood-panelled bodywork on 1100-basis. Francis Lombardi also made six-seater limousines from Fiat sedans of the period such as the 1400 and 1800. Intended for ministerial or representational use, they had stretched wheelbases and luxuriously fitted interiors. [2] Famously, they built a Vatican-commissioned Fiat 2300-based limousine with a glass roof for Pope Paul VI in 1963 - this was the first "true" Popemobile. [3]
Francis Lombardi also developed four-door versions of the Fiat 600, 850, and 127. [2] This series of small four-door saloons was called Lucciola ("Firefly" in Italian) by Lombardi. The first one was the 600 Lucciola which appeared in early 1957; in addition to four doors without a B-pillar (the rear door opening backwards) it also had a floor mounted shifter unlike the regular 600. [4] Francis Lombardi's greatest commercial success was with the luxuriously appointed Fiat 500 called "My Car"; which supported an annual production of about 6,000 cars in the sixties, up from about 1,500 towards the late fifties. The Fiat 850 Lucciola was also used by Spain's SEAT for their 850 four-door sedan, although eventually they developed their own, longer version. [5]
At the end of the sixties, the Lombardi Grand Prix appeared, the closest thing to an independent design from the firm. This model had a convoluted history and was sold in small numbers under a variety of names until 1972, fitted with Fiat engines in various states of tune. Francis Lombardi continued to focus on modifying cars as well, building coupés on Fiat as well as on NSU basis (1000 TTS). [2] In the 1970s they made special versions of the Fiat 128 and Lancia 2000, but in 1973 their doors were closed for good. Ten years later, Carlo Lombardi died.
The Fiat 131 is a family sedan manufactured and marketed by Fiat from 1974 to 1984 after its debut at the 1974 Turin Motor Show. Available as a two-door and four-door saloon and 5-door estate across a single generation, the 131 succeeded the Fiat 124.
The Fiat 600 is a rear-engine, water-cooled city car, manufactured and marketed by Fiat from 1955 to 1969 — offered in two-door fastback sedan and four-door Multipla mini MPV body styles.
The Fiat 1100 is a small family car produced from 1953 until 1969 by the Italian manufacturer Fiat. It was an all-new unibody replacement for the Fiat 1100 E, which descended from the pre-war, body-on-frame Fiat 508 C Balilla 1100. The 1100 was changed steadily and gradually until being replaced by the new Fiat 128 in 1969. There were also a series of light commercial versions of the 1100 built, with later models called the Fiat 1100T, which remained in production until 1971. The Fiat 1100 D also found a long life in India, where Premier Automobiles continued to build the car until the end of 2000.
The SEAT 850 was a car launched in 1966, based upon the Fiat 850. Originally only available with the same 2-door sedan body as used in Italy, two different 4-door versions also appeared in 1967. The very rare corto (short) used the bodywork developed by Francis Lombardi for the Fiat 850 "Lucciola", while the largo (long) version used a floorpan lengthened by 15 cm and bodywork developed specifically by SEAT. The car was produced in Spain from April 1966 to 1974 and it was quite popular during that time.
The Fiat 850 is a small rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive car manufactured and marketed by Italian car manufacturer Fiat from 1964 to 1973.
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The Lombardi Grand Prix is a small, rear-engined sports car on Fiat 850 underpinnings. It was developed by the Carrozzeria Francis Lombardi with an in-house design by Giuseppe Rinaldi. The car was built from 1968 until 1972 and was also marketed as the OTAS 820, as a Giannini, and as the Abarth Grand Prix and Scorpione. It was first shown in March 1968, at the Geneva Motor Show. The design had a Kammback rear and a very low nose with flip-up headlights, and a large single windshield wiper. The headlights were electrically powered. The bodywork was all steel, except the rear panel. The design was originally shown as a prototype based on the front-wheel drive Autobianchi A112, and was adapted by Lombardi for the 850 sedan's floorpan. At Turin 1969 a targa version was also shown; called the "Monza", this open model has a rollover bar. At least two were built but it is unknown whether any were sold.
Progetto K Automodelli, or sometimes simply referred to as PK ("Project K" in English), was an Italian diecast model company. Brands produced were usually Italian cars of the 1950s through the 1970s. Most models were diecast in plastic or resin – some had diecast bases and some were plastic. Though earlier models were made in Rome, the company's main factory was eventually moved to Sesto Fiorentino, a village just to the north of Florence in Firenze. The first models were made about 1977; the last about 2011.
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 Coachbuilders of Italy | |
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