Autocostruzione

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Autocostruzione SpA

logo
legal form Corporation
founding April 5, 1962
resolution 1967
Reason for dissolution financial difficulties
Seat Milan , Italy
management Oronzio de Nora
Niccolò de Nora
Romolo De Stefani
Number of employees Early 1966: 62,
early 1967: 35
Branch Vehicle manufacturer

ASA 1000 GT Coupé

The Italian automobile manufacturer Autocostruzione SpA ( ASA for short ) in Milan existed from 1962 to 1967. Its goal was the license production of a small sports car project for the mass market that had been developed by Enzo Ferrari . Production began in early 1964, but it never reached the desired number of pieces. The resulting financial difficulties led to the discontinuation of production and the dissolution of the company in 1967. How many cars were built is not known. Estimates range from 100 to over 250 vehicles.

prehistory

At the Ferrari press conference on December 19, 1959, the Ferrari 854 project was presented to the public. This announcement came as no surprise to most journalists from the auto magazines, as the rumor had been circulating in advance that Ferrari was working on a small sports car for mass production. The Ferrari 854 was to have a four-cylinder engine with a displacement of 850 cc with an output of 75 hp at 6800 rpm. The plan was to produce 3,000 to 5,000 units per year for a unit price of $ 2,600.

But as early as 1960 it was clear to Enzo Ferrari that the Ferrarina, as it was called in the press, would not be produced by Ferrari, so the search for a manufacturer began. For this purpose he had the engine, which had already been further developed, installed in a Fiat 1200 chassis and a body made by Pininfarina . Despite an intensive search, no interested party could be found who wanted to build the car. To underline the attractiveness of the project once again, the Mille was presented at the Salone dell'automobile di Torino in October 1961 at the Bertone stand . A further development of the 854 with now 1000 cc and 96 hp at 6800 rpm. Giorgetto Giugiaro designed the coupe with glazed headlights in the style of the Ferrari 250 GTO and Giotto Bizzarrini developed the chassis, also based on the Ferrari 250 GTO.

history

On April 5, 1962, ASA, Autocostruzione Società per Azioni (German: Autobau Aktiengesellschaft), was founded for the purpose of license production. The racing drivers Gerino Gerini , Lorenzo Bandini and Giancarlo Baghetti and the designer Giotto Bizzarrini were involved in the company . Production was taken over by the electrochemical company de Nora in Milan, which at the time was headed by Oronzio de Nora and his son Niccolò. ASA's head office was at 65 via San Faustino in Milan.

ASA presented the 1000 GT as a Coupé and Spider at the Turin Motor Show in autumn 1962. The coupe was a slightly modified copy of the Bertone Mille and was manufactured by Carrozzeria Touring . The Spider followed Touring's design, but was made of plastic and was produced by Carrozzeria Corbetta .

When there was nothing to be seen of production by the 1963 Turin Motor Show, the auto press suspected that the company might have withdrawn prematurely in view of the competition from Abarth and Alfa-Romeo. But at the beginning of 1964 the first vehicles were delivered. Most of the vehicles produced during this period went to the US Ferrari importer Luigi Chinetti senior . He was friends with Enzo Ferrari and Oronzio de Nora and played a key role in founding ASA. But production didn't really get going. If anything, one car was made a week, well below the estimated 100 over the same period. The price was also higher than expected. For example, an ex-factory car cost 2,520,000 lire, which was around $ 4,000 and was $ 1,400 more expensive than estimated. In addition, an ASA was available on the US market for around $ 6,000 and a Corvette 427 was available for around $ 4,500.

From 1965, attempts were made to use the car in motorsport. Two 1000 GTs drove in the 1965 Targa Florio. ASA also presented the racing version of the 1000 GT, the 411 , at the Salon de l'Automobile in Paris in the autumn of the same year . This was a coupe from the Carrozzeria Marazzi . It basically followed Touring's design, but had backward-sloping headlights. To save weight, the body was made of light metal and the side and rear windows were made of plastic.

At the beginning of 1966, the first financial difficulties emerged at ASA. Nevertheless, ASA presented the roll bar at the Geneva Motor Show . Today this model is better known as the RB613 , but this was only one version of two. The roll bar was a coupe with a front engine based on the 1000 GT. the body had a plastic notchback from Carrozzeria Corbetta based on a design by Luigi Chinetti junior . The engines were a six-cylinder 1.3-liter engine (for the RB613) and a four-cylinder 1.8-liter engine (for US racing). The Roll-Bar was first used in the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1966 . There were two RB613 registered, which ended the race without success. ASA vehicles were also there again at the 1966 Targa Florio. Also in 1966, ASA began to manufacture the 1000 GT Coupé with plastic bodies. In the press, these vehicles were also referred to as Series 2. The cars are very similar to the ASA 411 due to their backward-sloping headlights. In contrast to it, however, they do not have a quick tank cap, but a fuel filler flap, a hood without an air scoop, retractable side windows and side air outlets.

Production was stopped in 1967.

Production numbers

The information on the number of cars produced contradicts one another. In the 1966 and 1967 editions of the World Car Catalog of the Italian Automobile Club, 52 units of the ASA 1000 GT were given for 1964 and 190 for 1965. The sum of this results in a much larger production figure than has been published in more recent publications. An estimated 100 vehicles are assumed there. This estimate is justified by the fact that although there was a larger continuous number range for the chassis numbers, this was only used infrequently. It is estimated that 50 to 75 1000 GT were built as coupes, 32 of which were officially exported to the USA. Furthermore, very few 411s and Spiders were made. Officially there were only three or four RB613s from the roll bar. The plastic-bodied coupe, also known as the 1000 GT Series 2, was also made several times.

Models

ASA sports and racing cars

construction time designation annotation
1964-1967 1000 GT Introduced in 1962 as a Coupé and Spider. Series production began in 1964. From 1966 it was also fitted with a plastic coupé body.
1965-1967 411 Racing car version of the 1000 GT. Equipped with a light metal body and plastic side windows.
1966-1967 Roll bar Racing car with front engine based on the 1000 GT. Notchback coupé with targa roof. The only model built was the RB613 with a 1.3 liter engine. A version with a 1.8-liter engine was intended for American motorsport.

ASA GTC

The ASA GTC (also known as the ASA 1000 GTC) was introduced to the public in 1963 by Giotto Bizzarrini and Piero Drogo . The vehicle was a front-engined hatchback coupe . Parts of the ASA 1000 GT were used for the construction. An ASA engine served as the drive, the displacement of which was reduced to 996 cm³ (other source gives 998 cm³) so that it could ride in the prototype class up to 1000 cm³. It is currently unknown whether the vehicle took part in a race in this configuration.

In 1966 a similar racing car was used in the Targa Florio with the starting number 216. It should have been the ASA 1300 GTC. However, the vehicle is also known as the ASA 411 GTS. Despite the great similarity, the notchback is the most obvious difference to the ASA GTC from 1963.

Racing

There is confusion about the sporting use of ASA vehicles at the Targa Florio in 1965 and 1966. What is certain is that ASA vehicles took part in these races.

At the Targa Florio 1965 there is a statement in some publications that two RB613s with starting numbers 158 and 162 were on board. The RB613 was only introduced in 1966 and photos from the race show two ASA 1000 GT with these starting numbers. Their placement cannot be clearly established either. So for the starting number 158 the overall position 22 or 23 and for the 162 position 17 or 18 respectively. However, there is agreement on the placement in the prototype class up to 1600 cm³. There the number 162 reached place 3 and the 158 place 4.

Three ASA 411s were registered for the 1966 Targa Florio . They had the starting numbers 202, 214 and 216. Pictures from the race show an ASA 411 with the starting number 214, but the 202 is an ASA 1000 GT Coupé with a plastic body, which was provided with an additional quick tank cap for the race (below it is also the fuel filler flap can still be seen) and number 216 is a mid-engine coupé with a notchback that is very similar to the ASA GTC. Only the ASA 411 (number 214) finished the race and came in 21st place in the overall ranking and 5th in the prototype class ranking up to 2000 cm³.

The roll-bar racing cars made their first appearance at the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1966 . Two ASA RB613 were there at the start. One was used by the North American Racing Team , the second was a works car. The two Italians Ignazio Giunti and Spartaco Dini took turns at the wheel of the company car . The works car broke down after 31 laps due to clutch damage, the North American car, with two French drivers at the wheel, had an accident after 50 laps and also broke down.

In 1967 the Ring-Free Oil Racing Team used a roll bar at the Sebring 12-hour race and the Daytona 24-hour race .

De Nora Collection

On June 10, 2013, four vehicles from the de Nora family's collection were auctioned through the Artcurial auction house. There were an ASA 411, two ASA 1000 GT and an ASA RB613.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Sergio D'Angelo: World Car Catalog 1966 , published annually by The Automobile Club of Italy, published in Great Britain in 1966 by ILIFFE BOOKS LTD, London, pp. 46, 47, 626, 702
  2. ↑ a b Sergio D'Angelo: World Car Catalog 1967 , published annually by The Automobile Club of Italy, published in Great Britain in 1967 by ILIFFE BOOKS LTD, London, pp. 38, 39, 546, 596
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Lowell Paddock: La Ferrarina in automobile Quarterly Volume XXI Number 3, Automobile Quarterly Inc., Kutztown, 1983, pp. 284-291.
  4. ↑ PDF file: Artcurial “Automobiles sur les Champs 5” , page 68 Artcurial website. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  5. ↑ a b c d PDF file: A Brief History of ASA PDF file from melbourneclassics.com. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  6. ↑ 1959 Ferrarina Tipo 854 Website of Historic Automotive Promotion. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
  7. ↑ 1961 ASA 1000 GT (Bertone) website from Car Styling. Retrieved January 13, 2019
  8. ↑ Durante Vincunt website of Industrie De Nora SpA . Retrieved January 12, 2019. (Just to confirm the name, as there were differences.)
  9. ↑ a b c Automobil Revue catalog 1966 , page 178, 179
  10. ↑ a b Lot 237 - 1965 ASA 411 GT COUPE Collection De Nora Website from Artcurial. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  11. ↑ Picture: ASA Roll-bar (1966) - Geneva novelty - fast coupé with rollover protection - Geneva Motor Show 1966 website from Zwischengas.com. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
  12. ↑ a b Lot 239 - 1966 ASA RB 613 BERLINETTE Collection De Nora Website from Artcurial. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  13. ^ ASA Roll-Bar - press release (1966, ital) - page 2 website from Zwischengas.com. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
  14. ↑ Jerry Titus: ASA GTC in Sports Car Graphic Volume 3 Number 5, September 1963, pp. 62, 63.
  15. ↑ Automobil Revue catalog 1963. The latest innovations, page 2
  16. ↑ ASA 1000 GTC website from auto top news. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  17. ↑ Photogallery Targa Florio 1966 - Targa Florio 1966 - ASA 411 GTS website from Targapedia. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  18. ↑ Photogallery Targa Florio 1965 - Targa Florio 1965 - ASA website from Targapedia. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  19. ↑ Photogallery Targa Florio 1966 - Targa Florio 1966 - ASA website from Targapedia. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  20. ↑ Lot 238 - 1966 ASA 1000 GT COUPE Collection De Nora Website from Artcurial. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  21. ↑ Lot 240 - 1965 ASA 1000 GT COUPE Collection De Nora Website from Artcurial. Retrieved January 20, 2019.