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Centro Storico Fiat

Inaugurated in 1963, Centro Storico Fiat is hosted by an Art Nouveau building that was built as the first expansion (1907) of the workshops located on Corso Dante, the company's first home.

The facility began to witness important moments in Fiat's history straight away: the first of these dates back to 4 May 1966, when in the building's central hall Vittorio Valletta, a key figure in the more than a century of history of the company founded by Senator Giovanni Agnelli, signed the agreement with the USSR that led to the construction of the Togliatti plant.

Centro Storico Fiat now hosts a collection of automobiles, mementos, models and advertising manifestos spanning the company's entire history: from its first vehicle, the 3½ Hp, to the impressive Mefistofele, which in 1924 beat the all-time world speed record. Then there are the first tractor, the Fiat 702 of 1919, the 18BL truck, which transported Italian troops in the First World War, the Littorina, a rail transportation leader beginning in the Thirties, and the G91 fighter, an aircraft designed by Giuseppe Gabrielli and later adopted by NATO.

The exhibit itinerary, which will surprise visitors with Fiat ship engines, bicycles, refrigerators and washing machines, includes a reconstruction of several facilities symbolic of the company's history and changes in its working methods.

In the same building are located the corporate archives, available by appointment: more than 7,000 linear meters of print documents, 400,000 technical designs, 5,000 automotive and industrial history volumes and magazines, more than six million images (prints, slides, plates and negatives) and over 200 hours of historical films.Of particular interest is the archive of designer Dante Giacosa, the “father” of the mini cars: the Fiat Topolino (“little mouse” in Italian), the Fiat 600 and the Fiat 500, which motorized the Italian population.

Media of the day

Books

Lorenzo Morello Photos
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Lancia: a history of technological innovation

Centro Storico Fiat is publishing a book by Lorenzo Morello, former Fiat Auto Motor Engineering Director. The book examines the mechanical design evolution of 35 models in detail, from the 1907 12 HP (Alfa) to the new 1976 Gamma (γ).

Dante Giacosa Photos
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Centro Storico Fiat republishes "I miei 40 anni di progettazione alla Fiat" ("Forty Years of Design with Fiat") by Dante Giacosa

Dante Giacosa (1905-1996) provides an inside view of the creation of some of the most important models in company history. His memories are available online for free, also in e-book format.

Riccardo Chivino Photos
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Fiat in Poland, Yugoslavia and Russia in the memoirs of Riccardo Chivino

The Centro Storico Fiat is publishing and providing the on-line memoirs free of charge of one of the protagonists of the Fiat presence in Eastern Europe during the Cold War.​​​​​​