Collections

Fiat began in 1899 when the Societa Aninima Fabbrica Italiana di Automobili – Torino was formed and has been building cars for over 100 years. Many consider the most famous Fiat to be the 500 “Topolino” (topolino translates to “little mouse”, a term of endearment the Italian people gave the small 500A).  Launched in 1936, the […]

Envisioned by Louis Bertetto, president of the Automobile Club Milano, and Romulus Tavoni, former sporting director for Ferrari, as an entry-level racing formula in 1964, Formula Monza 875 was both an affordable and educational series for up-and-coming drivers. The “875” in the name was tied to the ready-to-race car’s price limit – 875,000 lire, or

The charter establishing Fiat was signed in 1899. A year later, the factory opened and produced 24 cars in the first year. By 1908, Fiat had expanded throughout Europe and the U.S. World War I began in 1914 and production focused on supplying the army. After the war, during Mussolini’s rule, the company’s international presence

The first appearance of the Irat name was in 1914 but there is no record of car production until 1921. Apart from the bodies, the whole of the car was made at the factory in France. Output was about 200 cars per year up to the end of the 1920s. Irat became interested in American

Bill Buckle of Sydney, Australia, was a distributor of the German Goggomobil in the late 1950s. In an effort to get away from the punishing import taxes imposed by Australia, he found it cheaper to import the chassis and then build his own fiberglass body. Buckle designed an open sports car–the Goggomobil Dart Roadster. Formed

Borgward began in 1921, when German entrepreneur Carl F.W. Borgward established the Bremer Kuhlerfabrik Borgward & Co., an automotive radiator company in Bremen, Germany. A two-horsepower, three-wheeled courier motorcycle called the Blitzkarren or “Lightning Cart” was his first design. In 1929, Borgward, along with Wilhelm Tecklenborg, acquired the Bremer Hansa Lloyd Werke, a company formed

Hanomag was an established name when the company produced its first car. They built their first steam engine in 1836; by 1905 they were producing steam trucks. When the steam locomotive market declined, the company began looking for an alternative product. They turned to a small economy car that was affordable among the middle class.

  Constructed in 1932, this one-of-a-kind, propeller driven car was discovered in a barn in France in 2000 having been placed there by the original owner in the late 1930s. Little could be seen of it through the rubble. It was completely rebuilt but many of the mechanical components are original, such as the frame,

In early 1940, Rudy Stoessel, Paul Erdos, and Burt Chalmers opened a small body shop in Hollywood called Coachcraft, Ltd., and began building custom bodies for movie stars and wealthy locals. In 1945, William “Shem” Hewson raised capital to form the Hewson Pacific Corp., and planned to produce the “Hewson Rocket” and sell it for