Cisitalia 202-S MM "Spyder Nuvolari" (1947)

By ENRIQUE SÁNCHEZ ORTEGA

The author is the owner of the Cisitalia of this note. It denies the "simplists" who claim that its engine is Fiat-1100 and delves into the recesses of the history of the brand since its inception. But his heart beats to hell, remembering the epic of the great Tazio Nuvolari in the first Mille Miglia post-war.

The power of convocation that Perón had during his first term of office is undeniable.

In Europe they saw in this remote point of the world map a new and true possibility of doing everything that was still to be done in these places; or at least as a survival alternative. Our state with its full coffers offered the gold and the Moor.

In a project to develop industrially the country was going to finance the settlement of industries and perhaps, unwittingly, some other adventurous. "Bitito" Mieres told us one day about how close the Lancia house was to set up in Argentina to manufacture trucks. Nothing more than a game of passions could not be.

Once again in Córdoba, people related to the aircraft factory recalled in those days the entry of a truckload of Maserati engines for purposes not yet clarified.

It was the forties and the car has that thing (caracho!) That attracts so many characters linked to the subject even in spite of any circumstance. There in Europe they continued to wage a battle against the grain of time. The bombs destroyed things indiscriminately. The engineer Giacosa was one of them, a man from the aeronautical part of Fiat. Who can we see in a large "villa" on the outskirts of Turin layered with Piero Dusio on a poorly lit table holding plans for a distant and post-war motoring. He had invited him to Piero Dusio to concentrate on the untamed madness of a race car for a day ... The bombing of Turin was practically daily. Giacosa is installed in Dusio. To work in a low cost race monoposto. That it could be put into production very quickly the day a peace was signed.

"An almost toy toy made based on pre-war Fiat elements". Dusio says yes. The patents were approved in early 1945. The first hypothesis provided for the installation of a Fiat-1100 engine squeezed to the maximum on a chassis derived from the rooted Topolino. From that naive proposal was born the first monoposto Cisitalia, design of Giacosa, which also included a box of Fiat 1100.

De bicicletas a monopostos

However, the drawing would not take shape if not under another totally different development and much more refined mechanics. The lamp went on when Dusio took Giacosa to visit his old bicycle factory. The pleasure of the engineer must have been impossible to describe when he discovered, right there, an infinite pile of chrome molybdenum steel tubes of different diameters. The fortunate coincidences were added: Giacosa had great experience in the design of tubular aviation structures. At that time he was encouraged by the advantages that a tubular structure would offer; Amen of the rigidity of weight saving. Thus, from the funds of a bicycle factory was born the first monoposto of "corsa" of all the history that would take a "spatial" chassis of tubes.

But Giacosa does not have time. He talks to Fiat's senior management and they resolve to suggest to Dusio that he put engineer Savonuzzi (at that time, head of the Fiat aeronautical department) as technical director of Cisitalia. An acquisition that would mark the definitive destiny of successful aesthetic, mechanical and sporting successes of the brand. As a first step it gives the go-ahead and is absolutely responsible for the design of Giacosa "... an aerodynamic coupe whose body has been profiled so as to have the front part very close to the ground, with the mudguards forming two lateral planes that are very high compared to the line of the hood ... the lower part of the body is completely closed "An aerodynamic device that could have been taken from any encyclopedia. So much that it is suggestively similar to the berlinetta that Savio had made for Fiat on a chassis with number 508-CS Mille Miglia in its 1939 version.

Savonuzzi already intervened in the second coupe. With renewed solutions, much more drastic. Another tube even more profiled, lower and with the air intake for the elliptical radiator that will constitute the physiognomy of the successive models. The tail clearly stood out from the rest of the drawing because its side flanks were finished off with two very high fins almost like a pair of vertical aircraft rudders. Detail that forced (between us) to baptize it immediately as the Cisitalia "de las colitas". Two were made.

One (that of the author) came here. The other was lost in a strange nebula full of poisoned versions. Until it was resurrected a couple of years ago in the barn of a farm, back in Europe.

The queues are going to be a hallmark of the brand. Reduced, they will shape the back of the "berlinettas". More than anything as a stylistic detail of those first career spyders. Of those who until now are known two more important versions: the first is spyder "razzo" designed by Savonuzzi and built in the craft workshop of a certain Garella. The second is the "Nuvolari spyder" that in its successive versions was entrusted to the Stabilimenti Farina.

Chronologically, the production looks like this: the first two biposto chassis were quickly built and sent to one "Carrozzeria Colli", and a coupe was rushed and sent to the factory so that it had a ticket to carry out its tests. The following chassis was delivered to Alfredo Vignale, former man Stabilimenti Farina. Vignale's work was almost a perfection of Savonuzzi's drawing. So I launched it to Vignale as Vignale's body-builder to become one of the largest bodybuilders of the 50's. Garelli received a third chassis and delivered the first "Nuvolari spyder" finished. The tail fins were too fat and two more spyders were entrusted to Stabilimenti Farina who gave the biposto its final shape. At the beginning of 1947, the sixth biposto chassis entered Farina, but the final result could not be seen until September.

All this work aimed to ensure that most of the cars were ready for the first Mille Miglia of the postwar period to be held on June 21, 1947. With a focus on sports success results in commercial success. That same year the legendary cupe Pininfarina was born and in the 48th the first of the convertibles that would be shared between Stabilimenti Farina and Vignale appeared.

Of these Cisitalia 202 in the versions berlinetta spyder corsa and cabriolet and all others, only 170 were built. Of the S-MM spyder-Nuvolari only 15.

How many came to Argentina?

The conversations about a possible financing by the government of Perón if Dusio decided to move to Argentina, reached such a point, that the Italian was forced to send on his behalf the engineer Rodolfo Hruska in March 1948. He brought the order of evaluate the real possibilities of manufacturing cars in this country. By then "Coche a la Vista" published the novelty that emerged from a report to Piero Dusio: "It would be installed in Santa Fe, it would be called Autoarg (Automotores Argentinos) although it could eventually remain Cisitalia".

Engineer Hruska had been part of the technical offices of Porsche. After the war he stayed in Italy united in friendship with Nuvolari whom he had met when they both belonged to the Autounion team in 1938. Hruska would be many years later the creator of Alfasud.

When he settled in Italy he conceived the idea of building a super monoposto Grand Prix. The best of all time, rear engine, true advanced and all possible HP. Create a contact with Porsche and in his other hand has the yes that Piero Dusio had given him with enthusiasm.

The life of this monoposto would begin in Italy and end in our country. A project that began with very complicated entanglements: with the idea of the Grand Prix, Dusio is the one who will ultimately give a handle to the Porsche design team, using the influence of Raymond Sommer and the journalist Charles Faroux. They give him a million francs and Dr. Ferdinand leaves as a rocket for his study in Gmund. The most important design work is carried out by the engineer Rabe and nothing less than Dr. Eban von Eberhorst (the one of the successful rear engine Autounion, rivals of the Mercedes in the 30s) who then settles down in Turin to prepare the " liaison "in a new separate office of the small factory Cisitalia and putting in the dance to this engineer Hruska and Carlo Abarth to represent Porsche in Turin.

It was not until the late fall of 1949 that something concrete began to take shape after Dusio's visit to the Casa Rosada where Perón and his wife received him. Savonuzzi accompanied him. The Italians had the Grand Prix project up their sleeve.

Thanks to Decree 18996 of the National Executive Power of August 10, 1949, the Industrial, Commercial, Financial and Real-estate Corporation "Autoar" was authorized to import definitively material, cars and machinery from Italy. Included in the list, among other things, the Grand Prix. Eight monopostos D-46, four sport and 50 202 models, some still unfinished. With this batch I enter the country by an order signed in the handwriting of the President of the Republic the Spyder "Nuvolari" reason for this note.

Then came the project P.W.O. (Willys Overland Project). An unclear business that consisted in making a car around the engines of the Jeeps sold as remnants of the war. For Nino Palestra president of the Club Cisitalia everything is hidden behind those three letters: P.W.O. linked to them many illusions, years complicated by political and financial problems. You go up and down.

An affair in an affair? This could be the best definition. It all began in February 1948 with the hypothesis of creating automobiles for Industria Argentina.

Nuvolari and the Mille Miglia

Cisitalia was ready. Nuvolari had told Savonuzzi that he had hired Garda "the car is a loser, but it does not matter, I will be the winner" (with incomparable modesty).

The practices for the Mille Miglia had already begun for the Piero Dusio team. Slowly and methodically all the pilots responded to strict orders: "Only hit him when there is no other car in sight" (in Italian). Thus, while testing one of the cars, Savonuzzi slowed down to let another competitor pass and discover, surprised, that it was neither more nor less than Salamano (the head of the test pilots of Fiat) piloting one of the new cupe-1100 S aerodynamic.

Now if: Everything is ready! Dusio would drive one of the "Nuvolari spyder" with a special engine that bore at 62 HP at 5500 rpm. Bernabei was already aboard the coupe "muleto", Taruffi in the second of the aerodynamic coupes, the one of the colitas built by Vignale. Minetti another spyder and the very Nuvolari, in the last of the cars, which in the papers was, or should be, the slowest of the spyders of that tuned band.

Cisitalia finished the second race in the general. But also third and fourth behind the mephistopheleic Alfa 2900 two Biondetti compressors (the same winning car of the postwar Mille Miglia who knew how to live here, among us until fate (or widespread malaria) unfairly took her.

But in front of the forty-eight survivors who crawled to Brescia.

It would be very serious to say that "the moral victory" was for the father of all: the already ardent Tazio Nuvolari. "God" for some contemporaries. Because he finished second, but playing with all his warm passion and mastery of fast situations. With his modest 1100 he broke all the canons by force of inhuman determination. The performance of the little mantovano got to tarnish the excellent triumph of Biondetti, the one that after all broke the piolin of the arrival.

Also ended an old legend of the race that said that who came first to Rome earned the Thousand Miles. Tazio delivered his form in Rome eight minutes before Biondetti. The popular prediction, even in spite of the distance that was needed to reach Brescia, was going to be fulfilled. Nobody had doubts. However, that time another even more stupid saying coped the bank: "To err is human". Nuvolari accompanied by his mechanic (as established by the rules) came killing under a hellish rain. The classic rain of the Italian race. Suddenly, to the anguish of everyone (even the one who is writing this) the Cisi stopped. Carena, the companion, came down, lifted the hood, looked a bit and diagnosed: Valves! The same thing that my companion Sopeña said in the Storica Mille Miglia 1987 when we stayed in Siena, already averaging the last stage. And for those things of fate, both of them cheated him, Carena and Sopeña. Nothing more than in the first case the matter was much more important, obiously.

Carena dear! It was the magnet that could not stand that much humidity and said enough, or it got out of point, bah, I do not know. The issue is that while he removed the valve cover, he checked and sent the signal that there was not the thing and faced for the magnet, twenty precious minutes were lost. You will imagine that by then Biondetti had already moved to the top. Tazio entered Brescia seventeen minutes behind him.

Nuvolari was already very sick of a curious evil: they say that so much to inhale toxic gases from race cars was something like an ulcer but much worse. Giovanni Savonuzzi took him out of the car. They called a doctor on duty after taking him to the hotel. He recieved rest: the monster had driven almost eighteen hours without respite to reward Cisitalia for the possibility of returning to that nefarious smell of castor.

No! Doña Rosa, the engine is not a Fiat 1100!

Since I had in my hands, rather in my garage, the Cisitalia "de las colitas" I began to regain my composure in 99 percent of the cases, a sinister affirmation every time the hood was lifted: it is a Fiat 1100. That said the more or less read, the drivers of the whole, without looking at the engine, they assured that the Cisitalias had all Fiat-1100 engines.

And no, no, no! (Note that I'm giving hysteric kicks on the floor). The Cisitalia engine cost Dante Giacosa blood, sweat and tears. He had to dig deep (true) with the bases of "1100" that only delivered 32 HP and squeeze it as far as possible. Without neglecting reliability. Again and again, thanks to this, the engine that was going to equip the fast Cisitalia was described as a simple Fiat-1100. And anything farter from the reality. In fact, the only part of this engine used was the block, and totally modified. The main desire was to reach an engine that could confidently be above 60 HP (DIN) at 5500 rpm. The only way to achieve such a desire was simply to redesign all, each of the parts and accessories. The Cisitalia factory was equipped with tools and machines to allow them to build all that pile of pieces.

Giacosa specified a compression ratio of 9.8: 1 using a special cylinder cap that allowed the use of larger valves, two springs for each valve and aluminum caps pierced in the style of the racing engines. The crankshaft was fully balanced and machined on solid. The benches were modified (to the block of origin) making them wider and larger diameter. The special rods were also machined from a solid block to finish with a mirror polish. They all bore the designation of the type of engine, the order number of the connecting rod for each cylinder written with an electric pencil. The pistons were high compression. The work on the benches was made with the sights set on the "endurance" to the revolutions I hoped to achieve. To lower the total height of the engine, Giacosa designed a stylized, short and finned dry aluminum carter. With twice the capacity of normal engine oil housed in an exquisite tank, fully aeronautical also built in aluminum with "a million rivets" and arranged under the left front fender.

The front of the engine was also different to remove the belt and fan (obvious) and thus make the water pump could be driven by gears. To assist the circuit in the refrigeration part, an oil radiator was placed in front of the water radiator and connected by pressure hoses to the dry crankcase using the normal oil pump and another one to return the oil to the supplementary tank. Both the oil and water radiator were built of an ultralight material mounted in front of the transverse support bracket crosswise to the "Fiat 500". The steering wheel of the engine also redesigned in a set with the clutch of the Fiat 1100 reinforced.

Thus they reached the top of 65 HP. And also, moved by that "motorsucho of barely 1089cm3", the aerodynamic Savonuzzi with its "profilée" body and its tailpipes passed the 200 Km / hour.

A detail.

Windshield No. 115 December 1987

ARTICLES OF VOLUME III

Aries CB-4
Cisitalia 202