Enrico Nardi (1907 in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

– 23 August 1966) was an Italian racing car driver and designer. He worked at

Lancia Lancia () is an Italian car manufacturer and a subsidiary of FCA Italy S.p.A., which is currently a Stellantis division. The present legal entity of Lancia was formed in January 2007 when its corporate parent reorganised its businesses, but it ...

between 1929 and 1937 as a truck engineer, racing car driver, and later, advisor to Vincenzo Lancia. He was moderately successful as a driver by 1932, when, with

Augusto Monaco :''The article concerns Augusto Monaco (1903-97), an Italian automobile engineer. See elsewhere for Augusto Monaco (born 1970), a futsal-player representing Argentina national futsal team in 2000 FIFA Futsal World Championship'' Augusto Camillo Pie ...

, he created the '' Nardi-Monaco ''Chichibio''.Setright, p.1491. Nardi himself also competed in

Mille Miglia The Mille Miglia (, ''Thousand Miles'') was an open-road, motorsport endurance race established in 1927 by the young Counts Francesco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi, which took place in Italy twenty-four times from 1927 to 1957 (thirteen before Worl ...

, sharing a Fiat 508 Balilla with J. McCain in 1935 and with M. Trivero in 1936, as well as a Lancia Augusta Berlina with Vittorio Mazzonis in 1937, and a Lancia Aprilia ''speciale'' in 1938 with Pier Ugo Gobbato (1918–2008), the son of

Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." ...

CEO Ugo Gobbato. Working at

Scuderia Ferrari Scuderia Ferrari S.p.A. () is the racing division of luxury Italian auto manufacturer Ferrari and the racing team that competes in Formula One racing. The team is also known by the nickname "The Prancing Horse", in reference to their logo. ...

from 1937 until 1946, Nardi became known for setting up the Fiat 508 (chassis for the 1940 Auto Avio Costruzioni 815), and doing the development work following Massimino's design; he also co-drove an 815 with owner Lotario Rangoni in the 1940

Nardi-Danese

After World War II, he and

Renato Danese Renatus is a first name of Latin origin which means " born again" (natus = born). In Italian, Portuguese and Spanish it exists in masculine and feminine forms: Renato and Renata. In French they have been translated to René and Renée. Renata ...

established a workshop in ''Via Vincenzo Lancia'',

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

, building racing cars, prototypes and small-series special designs. *''750 Nardi'' *''Nardi-Danese 1500 sport''. Fitted for the Roman driver Marco Crespi, 8-cylinder as in the Auto Avio Costruzioni 815. * Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 variations Nardi himself raced the ''

monoposto An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have th ...

'' (one-seater, or GP type), in

Coppa d'Oro delle Dolomiti The Dolomites Gold Cup Race (translation: ''Coppa d' Oro delle Dolomiti'') was a motor racing, car race on public roads open to traffic, which was run in the Dolomite Mountains of northern Italy for ten years from 1947 to 1956. It took place alo ...

hillclimb, winning in 1947 and 1948). It was also entered by three drivers in the 1952

Targa Florio The Targa Florio was a public road endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near the island's capital of Palermo. Founded in 1906, it was the oldest sports car racing event, part of the World Sportscar Championship between 195 ...

, but failed to finish.

Nardi & C. S.a.S.

His own workshop was established in Via Lancia (1951), focusing on prototypes and tuning equipment. Amongst the prototypes were: *an F2 prototype developed with Gianni Lancia (1952). *two ''Raggio Azzurro'' (''Blue Ray'') prototypes, designed by

Michelotti Michelotti is an Italian surname, derived from the given name Michele. Notable people with the surname include: * Biordo Michelotti (1352–1398), Italian mercenary soldier leader * Giovanni Michelotti (1921–1980), Italian automotive designer ...

and built by Vignale on 4th-series

Lancia Aurelia The Lancia Aurelia is a car produced by Italian manufacturer Lancia from 1950 to the summer of 1958. It is noted for using one of the first series-production V6 engines. Several body styles were offered: 4-door saloon, 2-door GT coupé (B20 ...

's (B20 1955, B24 1958). *the 4CV, a 750 cc

Panhard Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense, was formed b ...

-powered racer intended for

Le Mans Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le ...

(1953), as well as the 750 LM Crosley (1950–54). A 750 Spider was presented at 37th Paris salon (1950), body by Pietro Frua. *The ''Bisiluro Damolnar'' (''bisiluro'' meaning ''twin torpedo'') was built by Mario Damonte, Carlo Mollino, & Nardi, using a Gianni engine. It ran at

(1955) and is currently in the

Museo della Scienza e della Tecnologia "Leonardo da Vinci" Museo Nazionale Scienza e Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci in Milan, dedicated to painter and scientist Leonardo da Vinci, is the largest science and technology museum in Italy. It was opened on 5 February 1953 and inaugurated by Prime Minister ...

in Milano. *''Silver Ray'', a

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymout ...

Golden Commando V8 350 bhp-engined

-bodied coupe for William Simpson of Coral Gables FL (1960). *single-seater on VW Beetle components, Formula Vee prototype, for

Hubert Brundage Hubert is a Germanic masculine given name, from ''hug'' "mind" and '' beraht'' "bright". It also occurs as a surname. Saint Hubertus or Hubert (c. 656 – 30 May 727) is the patron saint of hunters, mathematicians, opticians, and metalworkers ...

(1959). ''Officine Nardi'' (meaning, "Nardi workshop") ceased to work with car prototypes in the mid-50s and specialized in speed-enhancing parts such as manifolds, crankshafts, camshafts. It has become most known for the Nardi steering wheel, initially (in 1951) using

walnut A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a tru ...

but mostly using African

mahogany Mahogany is a straight- grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus '' Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Un ...

wood. The Nardi wheel was first fitted to a 1952

Pegaso Pegaso (, "Pegasus") was a Spanish manufacturer of trucks, buses, tractors, armored vehicles, and, for a while, to train apprentices, and have a good brand image, some sports cars. The parent company, Enasa, was created in 1946 and based in the ...

. Nardi also made floor gearshift conversions for the Peugeot 403 and 404 models. Nardi died from blood poisoning from

exhaust gas Exhaust gas or flue gas is emitted as a result of the combustion of fuels such as natural gas, gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, fuel oil, biodiesel blends, or coal. According to the type of engine, it is discharged into the atmosphere through a ...

, after which his workshop was run by Barbero (1966–69) and Iseglio.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nardi, Enrico Italian automobile designers Italian racing drivers Engineers from Bologna 1907 births 1966 deaths Sportspeople from Bologna