Abarth
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| Società per Azioni | |
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founded | Bologna, Italy (31 March 1949) |
| Founder | Carlo Abarth |
| Headquarters | Turin, Italy |
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Area served
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EMEA |
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Key people
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| Owner | Fiat Chrysler Automobiles |
| Parent | FCA Italy |
| Website | www |
Abarth & C. S.p.A. is a racing car and road car maker founded by Italo-Austrian Carlo Abarth in 1949. Its logo is a shield with a stylized scorpion on a red and yellow background. Abarth & C. S.p.A. is a fully owned subsidiary of FCA Italy S.p.A. (formerly Fiat Group Automobiles S.p.A.), the subsidiary of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (formerly of Fiat S.p.A.) controlling its European automotive production activities.
Carlo Abarth was sporting director of the Cisitalia factory racing team starting in 1947. 1948 saw the financial downfall of Cisitalia, spurred by the investments needed to put the 202 coupé into production. The following year the manufacturer folded, and founder Piero Dusio flew to Argentina. Carlo Abarth, funded by Armando Scagliarini, took over Cisitalia's assets and on 31 March 1949 Abarth & C. was founded in Bologna. Carlo's astrological sign, Scorpio, was chosen as the company logo. From the Cisitalia liquidation Abarth obtained five 204 sports cars (two complete Spiders and three unfinished), a D46 single seater and various spares. The 204s were immediately rechristened Abarth 204 A. Abarth built and raced sports cars developed from the last Cisitalia cars. In addition to Guido Scagliarini, the «Squadra Abarth» racing team lined up celebrated drivers such as Tazio Nuvolari, Franco Cortese and Piero Taruffi. Notably Tazio Nuvolari made his last appearance in racing at the wheel of an Abarth 204 A, winning its class in the Palermo–Monte Pellegrino hillclimb on 10 April 1950. Alongside racing, the company's main activity was producing and selling accessories and performance parts for Fiat, Lancia, Cisitalia and Simca cars, like inlet manifolds and silencers.
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Wikipedia