Carrozzeria Ghia
Parent Ford of Europe | | |
Subsidiaries | Ghia-Aigle |
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Carrozzeria Ghia SpA (established 1916 in
Through the years, Ghia has produced many bodies for several automobile manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Ferrari, Fiat, Ford, Jaguar, and Volkswagen.
History
Ghia initially made lightweight aluminium-bodied cars, achieving fame with the Alfa Romeo 6C 1500, winning Mille Miglia (1929). Between the world wars, Ghia designed special bodies for Alfa Romeo, Fiat, and Lancia, one of the most famous was the Fiat 508 Balilla sports coupe (1933). The factory was rebuilt at Via Tomassi Grossi, after being demolished in an air raid during World War II (1943). After Ghia's death (1944), the company was sold to
Following differences between Boano and the company's
In June 1953, Pierre Lefaucheux, Renault's chairman, requested Carrozzeria Ghia assistance with the Renault Dauphine.[2]
In 1953, Boano left for Fiat, the factory moved to via Agostino da Montefeltro, and Luigi Segre took over. Ghia then brought in
From then on, the Ghia studios were an integral part of Ford of Europe's styling operation – producing mostly concept cars although some production models were styled by the firm – the most notable being the Ford Fiesta Mk1 in 1976, which was penned by Ghia's Tom Tjaarda. Aside from this, the most publicly visible sign of Ford's ownership of Ghia has been its use of the name to denote the luxury trim level of its European models for many years (below).[citation needed]
Ghia L6.4
After the Dual-Ghia project had ended, the more up-to-date Ghia L6.4 appeared in 1961. Fewer Mopar parts were used, but the car's bespoke nature meant an astronomically high price and when production ended in 1963 only 25 (or 26) cars had been built. The car's 6,277 cc (383 cu in) Chrysler V8 has 340 hp (254 kW) SAE, and suspension and transmission parts were also hand-picked from Chrysler's production line. Both the front and the rear seats consist of separate buckets.[3]
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1962 Ghia L6.4
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1962 Ghia L6.4
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Rear view
Ghia 450 SS
At the
The result was the Ghia 450 SS, continuing Ghia's collaboration with Chrysler by using that company's recently introduced 273-cubic-inch (4.5 L) "LA" V8 engine with 235 hp (175 kW). So many of the car's parts and systems came from the Plymouth Barracuda that the earliest cars came with a Barracuda manual with some pages crossed out.[5] The 450 SS used the same design language as the smaller G230 S, but its hand beaten steel panels sat on a more traditional and sturdier ladder frame. Unlike the smaller car, the 450 SS was a 2+2 design, offering vestigial rear seat accommodation.[4] It was only built as a two-door roadster, with a standard hardtop included. Over the years, many have credited Giorgetto Giugiaro with this design,[6] but he only left Bertone for Ghia in late 1965 – too late to have much impact on the 450 SS, which was actually designed by Sergio Sartorelli. Giugiaro did revise the grille, front bumper, and rear before the car was presented.[5] Presented at Turin in 1966, 57 examples were built until late 1967 (with late examples registered as model year 1968), although various sources state numbers as low as 52.[5][6]
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Ghia G 230 S based on Fiat 2300
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Ghia 450 SS hardtop
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Ghia 450 SS convertible
The Ghia name
From 1973, the Ghia name became Ford's top
In the British market, however, the practice of using the Ghia name in such a capacity was finally phased out in 2010. The Titanium name has instead replaced Ghia as the flagship trim level, and is now used globally across all of Ford's markets to denote the top trim level. The British Ford Fiesta retained the Ghia trim designation for the longest period of any model: 31 years 8 months, uninterrupted, from February 1977 to November 2008. In the rest of Europe, the Ghia trim was discontinued as well. Starting in 2013, the Vignale branding started being used by Ford to designate the top trim levels.[7] The Ghia studios has produced various concept cars under the Ford banner.
Ghia cars
- 1929 Alfa Romeo 6C 1500
- 1933 Fiat 508 Balilla sports coupé
- 1947 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500
- 1950 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Supergioiello
- 1950 Ferrari 195 Inter coupé
- 1951 Ferrari 212 Inter coupé
- 1951 Renault Frégate
- 1952 Chrysler Special Coupé
- 1953 Abarth 1100 Sport Ghia Coupé
- 1953 Fiat 8V Supersonic
- 1953 Cadillac Series 62 Coupe by Ghia
- 1953 Alfa Romeo 1900 Supersonic 'Conrero'
- 1954 Alfa Romeo 1900 Coupe
- 1954 Dodge Firearrow III Sports Coupé
- 1954 Fiat 8V Coupé
- 1954 Jaguar XK120 Supersonic
- 1955 Jaguar XK140 Coupé
- 1955 Lincoln Futura
- 1955 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia
- 1956 Aston Martin DB2/4 Supersonic
- 1956 Chrysler Norseman
- 1956 Chrysler Plainsman Two-door Station Wagon
- 1956 Renault Dauphine
- 1957 Dual Ghia Convertible
- 1958 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce prototype
- 1958 Renault Caravelle
- 1961 Ghia L6.4[8]
- 1963 Ghia 1500 GT
- 1963 Ghia G230 S (based on Fiat 2300)
- 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car
- 1966 Ghia 450 SS
- 1978 Ghia Microsport
- 1981 Intermericcanica Ghia Cabrio Mustang
Notable designers
- Giacinto Ghia
- Mario Boano
- Luigi Segre
- Giovanni Michelotti
- Pietro Frua
- Giovanni Savonuzzi
- Giorgetto Giugiaro (1965–1967)
- Sergio Sartorelli
- Tom Tjaarda 1958–
- Ercole Spada 1970–
- Filippo Sapino
Gallery
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A rare Ghia-designed Fiat 500 Jolly
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1954 Plymouth Explorer concept car by Ghia
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1954 Chrysler Ghia Special GS-1 coupe
References
- Auto Motor u. Sport. Heft 25 2010: Seite 41. 18 November 2010.
- ^ "D'une nécéssité aux prototypes "109"..." [From a necessity to the "109" prototypes] (in French). Dauphinomaniac. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021.
- ^ Björklund, Bengt, ed. (June 1962). "Sportiga skönheter 1962" [Sporty Beauties 1962]. Illustrerad Motor Sport (in Swedish). No. 6. Lerum, Sweden. pp. 22–23.
- ^ a b "1966 Ghia 450 SS". auto.howstuffworks.com. Archived from the original on 30 January 2008. Retrieved 25 December 2007.
- ^ a b c Koscs, Jim (5 November 2018). "The mystery of the Ghia 450/SS, a Barracuda-based Italian beauty". Hagerty. The Hagerty Group, LLC. Archived from the original on 9 December 2020.
- ^ a b "Ghia 450 SS Coupé". Carrozzieri-italiani.com. Archived from the original on 26 October 2022.
- ^ "Ford Mondeo Vignale revealed – it's back to the days of Ford Ghia". Cars UK. 4 September 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
- ^ Brennan, Jim (11 May 2009). "Chrysler's Italianate Diversions, Part Two: the Ghia L6.4". Automotive Traveler. Archived from the original on 17 February 2011.
External links
- Ghia – overview and models on Coachbuild.com
- An enthusiast site on Ghia history (archived)