All you need to know about Isotta-Fraschini.
Born: 1903 Nationality: Italian
Two Milanese entrepreneurs, Cesare Isotta and Vincenzo Fraschini, imported Renaults and assembled other cars from 1899. They built the first under their own names in 1903, a 12 hp four-cylinder model was quickly followed by 16 hp and 24 hp cars.
Two years later they entered a 100 hp 17-litre Tipo D in the Coppa Florio race which didn't gain any honours. A brief merger with the French Lorraine-Dietrich company in 1907, in an attempt to meet French demand for the cars and also to use that company's innovative transmission, didn't succeed and Isotta-Fraschini went independent in 1908. One of its cars won the famous Targa Florio race in 1908.
In 1911, there were three Isotta-Fraschini models, the Tipo KM, TM and IM, and the company's products were quite popular in the US. Three IMs competed in the Indianapolis 500, but didn't complete the course. The experience of making large engines led the company into making aircraft motors, and during the first World War it concentrated on that business.
In 1919, a Tipo 8 was produced, aimed particularly at the US market. It had a 5.9-litre engine that was the first in-line eight ever produced in series. The Tipo 8A, with a 110 bhp 7.4-litre engine, came along in 1924, and a Tipo 8ASS with 135 bhp and a shorter wheelbase subsequently joined the range as a more sporty model.
Isotta died in 1921, and Fraschini left the firm in 1922, the year it went into a financial downturn. Dependent as it was on the US luxury market, the Depression that began in 1929 made things considerably worse.
In 1931 the Tipo 8B provided a better chassis, 150 bhp from its 7.4-litre powertrain which also now had a four-speed gearbox. By this time, Isotta-Fraschini as a status symbol was up there with Rolls Royce and Hispano-Suiza, but couldn't make money, and only 30 of the 8Bs were built between 1931 and 1939. In 1938, Isotta-Fraschini was sold to the Caproni industrial group, which planned a new 3-litre six-cylinder that never went into production. Instead, Caproni converted the assembly line for commercial vehicles.
The second World War began and again company's output was mainly military. In 1947, the 8C Monterosa was the car by which Isotta-Fraschini - now owned by the Italian state - tried to get back into the car business. It was a six-seater, with an absolutely beautiful open tourer body designed by Zagato, powered a 3.4-litre V8 mounted in the back of the car and driving the rear wheels through a five-speed transmission.
However, only four prototypes were built before the company closed its doors and went into administration in 1948. It was liquidated a year later.
In 1955, the Isotta-Fraschini name associated with aircraft engines was incorporated with Breda Motori, a military-industrial company, and products for rail, naval and industrial applications were made until 1980, when that business was taken over by the Fincantieri shipbuilding company.
In 1996, a concept T8 car was shown at the Geneva Motor Show by businessman Giuliano Malvino, who had bought the Isotta-Fraschini automobile name from the Italian state. Using an Audi A8 powertrain, it had that car's 4.2-litre engine and quattro 4WD, and had an all-aluminium body. But for many it wasn't a popular idea - one reviewer even said its appearance was a "most brutal" aspect of the show.
The car never went into series production, despite the expectation of its owner that it would be selling 5,000 units a year within three years.
Last year saw the latest attempt to revive the name, when businessman Gianfranco Castiglioni from Varese acquired the rights to Isotta-Fraschini. He is said to have ambitious plans to relaunch the marque.
Best Car: The Tipo 8B of 1931
Worst Car: Some would say the Tipo 8A, which had very heavy steering
Weirdest Car: The company didn't survive into the age of weirdness, but a Tipo 8 reputedly commissioned by a Maharajah with 24-carat gold and ivory trim would possibly have qualified if it had actually been built.