1951 Fiat 1400 Cabriolet

Fiat introduced its first all-new postwar passenger car, the Fiat 1400, in 1950, and it soon became the basis for many of the great Italian carrozzerie. This unique Fiat 1400 Cabriolet was designed by Giovanni Michelotti and bodied by Carrozzeria Vignale specifically for the 1952 Turin Motor Show, and it was later shown at the Concorso d'Eleganza dell'Automobile at the Villa Borghese in Rome. After seeing the car there, California resident Dorothea Herrsher purchased it from Vignale. She was very proud of her new toy, and in October 1952 she exhibited it at the Oakland Sports Car Show, where it was first in class. Its final public appearance was at a 1953 concours at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, where Herrsher was escorted by actor John Hart, who played The Lone Ranger. It was featured on the cover of the February 1953 issue of Motor Trend. The Fiat was later driven by actor Kirk Douglas in the 1955 movie The Racers. The car was later registered in 1964 and was not seen for many years. Its current owner acquired the car in 2015 from Kahn Chinn (who had owned it for 40+ years), and it was returned to Italy for a complete restoration to ready it for its 2018 appearance at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

This car is fitted with a 4-cylinder 1374 cc engine producing 44 horsepower, attached to a 4-speed manual transmission and capable of 75 mph while achieving 20 mpg.