Giuseppe Merosi
Giuseppe Merosi (born December 17, 1872 in Piacenza , † March 27, 1956 ) was an Italian designer of automobiles .
Life
Merosi learns to be a land surveyor. As a teenager, he liked to take part in cycling races. Around 1895, together with a friend, Vittorio Bassi, he founded a company to manufacture bicycles . In 1899 he moved to Orio & Marchand , a manufacturer of sewing machines and motorcycles, which were intended to manufacture automobiles at the time. There he was initially a test driver and racing driver for motorcycles, a little later he was appointed chief designer. It is unknown how the always modest self-taught artist Merosi came to the technical knowledge that qualified him as chief designer. Around 1905 Merosi worked for Fiat for about a year and then in 1906 became chief designer of Bianchi's automotive department . In 1909 he moved to the company Alfa Romeo, which was just being founded, as chief designer .
Merosi relied on large-volume four - cylinders with a modern arrangement of the valves and two overhead camshafts . The first Alfa was the 24 HP , which was launched on June 24, 1910. From a displacement of 4.1 liters, an impressive 42 hp were achieved, and the car reached a top speed of 100 km / h, which was very impressive at the time. In the first year 50 pieces were already sold. The cars quickly gained a reputation as robust and reliable vehicles combined with an elegant design. Further four-cylinder models followed in the years to come.
At that time, Alfa recognized the great importance of motorsport for both development and image. In 1911, two Alfa 24 HP took part in the Targa Florio . Early 20s the program was the six-cylinder - G1 and RL / RM added. In 1923 , Ugo Sivocci won the Targa Florio for the first time with the RL . In the same year Merosi developed the P1 racing car , which, however, was not yet competitive.
After the designer Vittorio Jano took over the development of the racing cars with the much more successful P2 in 1923 , Merosi faded into the background and left Alfa Romeo in 1926.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Griffith Borgeson: Alfa Romeo: The Merosi and Jano Years . In: Automobile Quarterly, Volume 24 Number 2 . Retrieved October 1, 2009.
- ↑ Google Books . In: Automobile quarterly, Volume 44, Issue 3 . Princeton Institute for Historic Research. Retrieved October 1, 2009.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Merosi, Giuseppe |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Italian automobile designer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 17, 1872 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Piacenza |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 27, 1956 |