Pirelli and Fiat: Over a Century of Skill and Passion
One of the most iconic photos of twentieth-century Italian industry is that of Alberto Pirelli, Vittorio Valletta, Giuseppe Bianchi and, smiling on board a white compact car, Gianni Agnelli. They were there as outstanding witnesses for the launch of the Bianchina, the result of a partnership between Fiat and Pirelli. This was yet another milestone in a shared history between the two companies that began in the early years of the twentieth century and that still continues today with the Stellantis Group.
Pirelli and Fiat – industrial and manufacturing expertise in the world of automobiles in all their forms. The historic partnership between the two companies has involved much more than just an outstanding range of tyres supplied by the company with the “Long P” logo to the car manufacturer in Turin.
It all started with the races and victories that Fiat clocked up with its Pirelli-shod cars. This was the case, for example, of the “Pneus Pirelli” mounted on the Fiat car that Felice Nazzaro drove to victory in the 8th Targa Florio, or the Gran Premio d’Italia Vetturette on 3 September 1922, which was won by the Fiat 1500 driven by Carlo Salamano. In other words, races in all their various forms. Including rallying. Here, the debut came in 1970 with the Italian Championship won by Paganelli-Russo in his Fiat 124 Sport Abarth, and this was followed up in later years by an endless series of cars fitted with Pirelli tyres: the Pinto-Macaluso team won the European Rally Championship in 1972; other teams took over from 1973 to 1975 and were often victorious, such as in the Portugal rally, winning twice. All the cars raced on Pirelli CN36: a legend. In the second half of the decade came the Fiat 131 Abarth Rally and a new Pirelli tyre, the P7. Once again, there was a slew of teams and victories: in 1977 with the cars driven by Markku Alén, Jean-Claude Andruet, Fulvio Bacchelli, Michèle Mouton, and Timo Salonen; in 1978 with the Fiat team, which saw the addition of Sandro Munari and Walter Röhrl. The decade ended with the third Constructors’ Championship title for Röhrl-Geistdörfer’s Fiat 131 in 1980.
In other words, plenty of racing. And victories. And, of course, industrial developments, which were transferred from the circuits to everyday cars, in the most authentic tradition of Pirelli, which has always combined research for racing with applications for the rest of its production. This was also true of the Cinturato CN54, which was directly derived from the experience acquired in rallying and which transferred the features of high-performance tyres to those mounted on medium-small cars such as the Mini, the A112, the Fiat 127 and the Fiat 500. And the Topolino before that: all unforgettable milestones in Italian mobility. From the day it was born, in 1936, the Topolino was equipped with Pirelli Superflex Stella Bianca tyres measuring 4.25-15. When Fiat decided in the mid-1950s to ask Dante Giacosa to design a new runabout, the results – the Fiat 600 and the Nuova 500 – were fitted with Pirelli Rolle 5.20-12. And so it was for the Fiat models that came later, all fitted with Pirelli tyres, all named after the most famous Alpine passes: Cisa, Rolle, Sempione, Stelvio, and many others.
The two companies have been working together for over a hundred years. And their industrial and entrepreneurial accomplishments have had their effects also on national and international history. In the 1960s, Pirelli and Fiat joined up with Agip and Italcementi to create SISI (Società Iniziative Strade Italiane), a consortium company that promoted their shared interest in the road network after the construction of the Autostrada del Sole. Also in the 1960s, Pirelli invested in Eastern European countries after Fiat signed an agreement for the construction of a factory in Russia. And about ten years previously the two companies, together with Edoardo Bianchi, had created Autobianchi: a decision that was part of their broader strategy of participating in the creation of companies that could then become good customers. And it was this that gave life to the Bianchina from which Agnelli’s confident, smiling face can be seen emerging. Today, twenty years since his passing, we remember the Avvocato.
One of the most iconic photos of twentieth-century Italian industry is that of Alberto Pirelli, Vittorio Valletta, Giuseppe Bianchi and, smiling on board a white compact car, Gianni Agnelli. They were there as outstanding witnesses for the launch of the Bianchina, the result of a partnership between Fiat and Pirelli. This was yet another milestone in a shared history between the two companies that began in the early years of the twentieth century and that still continues today with the Stellantis Group.
Pirelli and Fiat – industrial and manufacturing expertise in the world of automobiles in all their forms. The historic partnership between the two companies has involved much more than just an outstanding range of tyres supplied by the company with the “Long P” logo to the car manufacturer in Turin.
It all started with the races and victories that Fiat clocked up with its Pirelli-shod cars. This was the case, for example, of the “Pneus Pirelli” mounted on the Fiat car that Felice Nazzaro drove to victory in the 8th Targa Florio, or the Gran Premio d’Italia Vetturette on 3 September 1922, which was won by the Fiat 1500 driven by Carlo Salamano. In other words, races in all their various forms. Including rallying. Here, the debut came in 1970 with the Italian Championship won by Paganelli-Russo in his Fiat 124 Sport Abarth, and this was followed up in later years by an endless series of cars fitted with Pirelli tyres: the Pinto-Macaluso team won the European Rally Championship in 1972; other teams took over from 1973 to 1975 and were often victorious, such as in the Portugal rally, winning twice. All the cars raced on Pirelli CN36: a legend. In the second half of the decade came the Fiat 131 Abarth Rally and a new Pirelli tyre, the P7. Once again, there was a slew of teams and victories: in 1977 with the cars driven by Markku Alén, Jean-Claude Andruet, Fulvio Bacchelli, Michèle Mouton, and Timo Salonen; in 1978 with the Fiat team, which saw the addition of Sandro Munari and Walter Röhrl. The decade ended with the third Constructors’ Championship title for Röhrl-Geistdörfer’s Fiat 131 in 1980.
In other words, plenty of racing. And victories. And, of course, industrial developments, which were transferred from the circuits to everyday cars, in the most authentic tradition of Pirelli, which has always combined research for racing with applications for the rest of its production. This was also true of the Cinturato CN54, which was directly derived from the experience acquired in rallying and which transferred the features of high-performance tyres to those mounted on medium-small cars such as the Mini, the A112, the Fiat 127 and the Fiat 500. And the Topolino before that: all unforgettable milestones in Italian mobility. From the day it was born, in 1936, the Topolino was equipped with Pirelli Superflex Stella Bianca tyres measuring 4.25-15. When Fiat decided in the mid-1950s to ask Dante Giacosa to design a new runabout, the results – the Fiat 600 and the Nuova 500 – were fitted with Pirelli Rolle 5.20-12. And so it was for the Fiat models that came later, all fitted with Pirelli tyres, all named after the most famous Alpine passes: Cisa, Rolle, Sempione, Stelvio, and many others.
The two companies have been working together for over a hundred years. And their industrial and entrepreneurial accomplishments have had their effects also on national and international history. In the 1960s, Pirelli and Fiat joined up with Agip and Italcementi to create SISI (Società Iniziative Strade Italiane), a consortium company that promoted their shared interest in the road network after the construction of the Autostrada del Sole. Also in the 1960s, Pirelli invested in Eastern European countries after Fiat signed an agreement for the construction of a factory in Russia. And about ten years previously the two companies, together with Edoardo Bianchi, had created Autobianchi: a decision that was part of their broader strategy of participating in the creation of companies that could then become good customers. And it was this that gave life to the Bianchina from which Agnelli’s confident, smiling face can be seen emerging. Today, twenty years since his passing, we remember the Avvocato.
