1953 Siata 300BC Roadster

Giorgio Ambrosini founded Societa Italiana Auto Transformazioni Accessori, or SIATA, in 1926. Most of their early work was based on the manufacture and fitting of performance components to racing automobiles. With much success, they later became a de facto motorsports outlet for Fiat, which officially abstained from racing activities for many years but provided racing customers with access to Siata-modified Fiats for competition use.

When World War II came to a close, Siata was given substantial financial assistance in reconstruction from Fiat, which helped make them one of the better-staffed independent builders. In 1948, they officially became an independent manufacturer with the introduction of the Amica. A succession of roadsters and coupes soon followed.

The Siata automobiles offered tremendous performance at a relatively bargain price. When New York-based dealer Antonio Pompeo commissioned a run of spiders that were built on the Amica platform and based on Otto Linton's race-winning one-off Orchidea Spider prototype, the brand's popularity and success was taken to new levels. Pompeo equipped his barchettas with the proven Crosley inline four-cylinder engine.

The Siata 300 BC Barchetta entered production in 1951 and was nearly exclusively distributed to the United States. The Barchetta bodywork was penned by Mario Revelli de Beaumont and built by Bertone. Approximately 40 examples were produced.

Some of the earlier examples were given the 750 cubic centimeter Crosley engine. Later examples were often powered by a specially tuned Fiat 1100 motor, putting them on par as the four-cylinder Ferraris.

This particular example is the 18th of approximately 40 examples that were bodied by Bertone. It was originally owned by Bob McNeal, and was occasionally raced by Ron Hunter. In 1961, it was sold to Ken Johnson, who retained the car until March 1985, when it was purchased by Dr. John Kimball, of Denver, Colorado. Dr. Kimball commissioned a restoration in preparation for historic racing. The paint finished was changed from British Racing Green to the current Rosso.

The current owner acquired the car in 1988. It is currently fitted with a 1100-cubic centimeter Fiat motor that was stamped with the same number as the chassis (it could be the original engine). The car also has a Crosley engine, which may also be the car's original owner.

The car has minimal gauges, Nardi wood-rimmed steering wheel, racing windscreen, and knock-off wire wheels.

By Daniel Vaughan | May 2015