The Autobianchi Bianchina is a minicar produced by the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

automaker

Autobianchi Autobianchi () was an Italian automobile manufacturer, created jointly by Bianchi (company), Bianchi, Pirelli and Fiat in 1955. Autobianchi produced only a handful of models during its lifetime, which were almost exclusively small cars, with the b ...

, based on the

Fiat 500 The Fiat 500 (, ) is an Economy car, economy / city car that was manufactured and marketed by Fiat Automobiles from 1957 until 1975. It was sold as a two-door semi-convertible or saloon car and as a three-door panel van or estate car. Launched ...

's chassis and mechanicals. It was available in various configurations: ''Berlina'' (saloon), ''Cabriolet'' (roadster), ''Trasformabile'' (fixed profile convertible), ''Panoramica'' (station wagon), and ''Furgoncino'' (van). The car was presented to the public on 16 September 1957 at the Museum of Science and Technology in Milan. Initially, the car was equipped with the smallest Fiat engine, air-cooled 479 cc, producing . In 1959, the engine power was increased to and in 1960, the cabriolet version was launched. In the same year, the Trasformabile, whose engine cylinder capacity was increased to 499 cc and , was made available in a Special version with bicolour paint and an engine enhanced to . This body style featured a fixed

B-pillar The pillars on a car with permanent roof body style (such as four-door sedans) are the vertical or nearly vertical supports of its window area or greenhouse—designated respectively as the A, B, C and (in larger cars such as 4-door stati ...

and partial roof, like the rest of the opening was covered with a foldable fabric hood, while the Cabriolet version had no B-pillar. The Trasformabile was the only version to feature

suicide doors A suicide door is an automobile door hinged at its rear rather than the front. Such doors were originally used on horse-drawn carriages but are rarely found on modern vehicles, primarily because they are less safe than front-hinged doors. ...

, and in 1962, it was replaced by a four-seat saloon. The engine and chassis were the same in both. In 1965, a minor facelift was made and in the Berlina, the regular engine gained a half horsepower. In France, the various Bianchina models were sold under different names: the Berlina became the ''Lutèce'', the Familiare the ''Texane'', and the Cabriolet was marketed as the ''Eden Roc''. In the United States, the importer marketed them with Fiat badging rather than as Autobianchis. The Panorama was also assembled by Neckar Automobilwerke AG in West Germany as the "Neckar Panorama".

Production

File:1961 Bianchina.JPG, Trasformabile File:Bianchina Cabriolet.jpg, Cabriolet File:Autobianchi Berlina 1962 (front) - Flickr - mick - Lumix.jpg, Berlina File:Autobianchi Bianchina familiare.jpg, Panoramica File:Autobianchi Bianchina Furgoncino tetto basso.JPG, Furgoncino (low roof) File:Bianchina Furgoncino 2.jpg, Furgoncino (tall roof) The Bianchina was produced from 1957 to 1970, for a total volume of approximately 275,000. ''Source: Club Bianchina and Bianchina Classic Club''

Autobianchi Bianchina Giardiniera

Autobianchi also used the Bianchina name for the Autobianchi Bianchina Giardiniera.''Bianchina - Giardiniera'', www.autobianchi.org
Retrieved on 30 July 2014

In popular culture

The 1966 movie ''

How to Steal a Million ''How to Steal a Million'' is a 1966 American heist comedy film directed by William Wyler and starring Audrey Hepburn, Peter O'Toole, Eli Wallach, Hugh Griffith, and Charles Boyer. The film is set and was filmed in Paris, though the characte ...

'' with

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Kathleen Hepburn ( Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress. Recognised as a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen legend from the Classical Holly ...

and

Peter O'Toole Peter Seamus O'Toole (; 2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was an English actor known for his leading roles on stage and screen. His numerous accolades include the Academy Honorary Award, a BAFTA Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and four Golde ...

features Hepburn's character driving a red Autobianchi Bianchina cabriolet. Italian comedy character

Ugo Fantozzi Ugo Fantozzi () is a fictional character, appearing in Italian literature and film, created by Paolo Villaggio. The character, initially part of Villaggio's television monologues, later became the protagonist of a series of short stories publish ...

, created by

Paolo Villaggio Paolo Villaggio (; 30 December 1932 — 3 July 2017) was an Italian actor, comedian, film director, and writer. He is noted for the characters he created with paradoxical and grotesque characteristics: Professor Kranz, the ultra-timid Giandom ...

and protagonist of television monologues, short stories, and films, famously drives a white Bianchina, usually somewhat damaged and with a

four-leaf clover The four-leaf clover is a rare mutation of the common three-leaf clover that has four Leaflet (botany), leaflets instead of three. According to traditional sayings, such clovers bring good luck, a belief that dates back to at least the 17th cent ...

decal on the left side. The car is known for its tendency to become badly damaged throughout these stories. A pink with black polka dots Trasformabile is featured in the 1986 music video, "Nobody's Fool," by glam metal band, Cinderella. In the animation film ''

Despicable Me 2 ''Despicable Me 2'' is a 2013 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. It is the sequel to '' Despicable Me'' (2010) and the second installment in the '' Despi ...

'', the car of Lucy Wilde resembles a Bianchina Trasformabile. The car is owned and driven by Lolita Lobosco in the eponymous Italian detective series broadcast in the UK by

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

in its

Walter Presents Walter Presents is a video-on-demand service of the UK's Channel 4, part of its streaming platform. Launched on 3 January 2016, it specialises in foreign-language drama and comedy with English subtitles. It is named after Walter Iuzzolino, w ...

series (S1 E2, 01:01:30).

References

External links

Registro Autobianchi

Bianchina Classic Club
(Italian only)

( Autobianchi Bianchina Furgoncino) {{Autobianchi Autobianchi vehicles, Bianchina 1960s cars 1970s cars Cars introduced in 1957 Cars discontinued in 1970 Rear-engined vehicles Station wagons City cars