1948 Cisitalia 202 SC

Coupe by Farina
Chassis number: 103
Engine number: 146

Italian Industrialist Piero Dusio built up the Compagnia Industriale Sportiva Italia (Cisitalia) before the start of World War II. It was a successful conglomerate with interests in the textile and hospitality industries, along with sporting goods and banking. Among his many talents, Dusio was also an accomplished athlete and a great racing driver. One of his dreams was to build a car of his own.

The first Cisitalia were 1.1-liter D.46 Monopostos. These single-seaters were the first racing cars to use a full space-frame chassis. They had a fully independent front suspension setup and a pre-selector gearbox. Power came from a reworked Fiat engine that offered 660 horsepower thanks, in part, to the addition of a high-performance cylinder head, dry sump lubrication, and twin Weber carburetors.

Next came a series of two-seat sports cars based on the D.46 Monoposto. The 202SMM was a space-frame sports car that made its debut at the 1947 Mille Miglia where Tazio Nuvolari drove one of the five cars entered to a 2nd place finish behind Biondetti's Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 Berlinetta.

Next, Dusio turned his attention to developing a sporty road car - the 202 SC, or Sports Coupe. The advanced tube-frame chassis was clothed with an elegant and sporty body created by local coachbuilder, Pinin Farina.

Displayed at Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este and the Paris Auto Show in 1947, the Cisitalia was hailed as a masterpiece of automotive design. In the summer of 1951, the Museum of Modern Art in New York presented Eight Automobiles, an exhibition devoted to systematically studying the aesthetic principles and techniques of modern motorcar body design. The Cisitalia 202 was selected to represent 'The Aerodynamic Style.' The 202 SC remains in the Museum of Modern Art's permanent design collection.

With a retail price of $6,000 in the United States, at a time when the Jaguar XK120 was selling for $3,000, sales of the Cisitalia were slow. Between 1947 and 1952, approximately 170 examples were built.

Chassis number 103

Torinese coachbuilders Stabilimenti Farina and Vignale constructed many of the 202 SC bodies to help fulfill the substantial order from Cisitalia.

This car was one of the 202 SCs constructed by Stabilimenti Farina and wears body number 8837. It has a 23-slot grille, two-piece windscreen, Veglia gauges, and a Nardi steering wheel - all characteristics of the early 202 SC models.

The car was delivered to imported car dealer Fergus Motors in New York City and sold to its first owner Joseph B. Ferguson Jr. of Bridgehampton, New York. Ferguson entered his new 202 SC into two significant East Coast races. On September 17th, 1949, Ferguson raced the car in the Watkins Glen Grand Prix. It wore race number 53 and achieved an 11th place overall finish and 2nd in Class. Period photos of the car reveal that it was originally finished in a light green paint scheme.

The car was later entered in the Bridgehampton Road Races held on June 9th, 1951. It captured a 5th place finish in the 10-lap Sagaponack Trophy race followed by a 15th overall in the 25-lap Bridgehampton Cup Race.

In 1960, it was sold to Fred Steinhauer of Wellsville, New York. In 1963 or 1964, it was sold to James Hayden. Mr. Hayden disassembled the car in preparation for a restoration, but the work was put on hold, and the car rested in the garage for the better part of four decades. Mr. Hayden passed away in 2000, and his nephew Jim Castellano inherited the Cisitalia. A restoration soon followed.

The car remained with Mr. Castellano for a while before being sold to the current owner.

It is believed that 170 Cisitalia 202 SC models were originally built.

by Dan Vaughan

Prior to World War II, Italian industrialist Piero Dusio had proven his abilities through amateur racing competitions. He had a passion for racing and the talent to back it up. More importantly, he had the financial means to create his own sports car and to compete in a more competitive arena. He had done well with the Consorzio Industriale Sportivo Italia, which was a conglomeration with interests in various industries such as sporting goods, banking, and textiles. When World War II emerged, his dreams of building racing cars were put on hold. At the conclusion of the war, he convinced Dante Giacosa and Giavonni Savonuzzi to aid in the creation. Both of these individuals were renowned engineers who had worked with Fiat and were more than capable of building a competitive racer.

The first creation of the Cisitalia Company was the D.46 monoposto powered by a 1100cc engine. They were the first racing cars to use a full space-frame chassis. Since the engineers had experience with Fiat technology, many of the components were from Fiat, such as the engine and four-speed gearbox. The engine was modified with dry-sump lubrication and twin Weber downdraft carburetors which resulted in an increase of horsepower to 60.

Seven monopostos debuted in 1946 at the Coppa Brezzi in Turin's Valentino Park. The competition was fierce but the Cisitalia, driven by Dusio, was still able to cross the finish line ahead of the pack. Though this was an impressive accomplishment, it was not as entertaining as watching Tazio Nuvolari cross the finish line in hot, and angry pursuit. His steering wheel had come detached and he was forced to drive the car by the steering hub with one hand as the other held a hold of the detached wheel.

The next iteration of vehicles produced by Cisitalia was a road-going sports car named the 202. The first vehicle off the production line was a space-framed chassis which was sent to Carrozzeria Colli to receive its body. The second was another coupe sent to Alfredo Vignale to receive its body. The third vehicle was given an open roadster body that was clothed by Garelli and further improved by Stabilmenti Farina.

Production of the 202 continued until 1952, with a total of 17 spiders and 153 coupes being constructed.

by Dan Vaughan