Fiat introduced the 1100 TV Trasformabile in 1956. This car was penned by Pininfarina and was hugely accepted worldwide. It even made the cover of theSeptember 1957 Road & Track magazine. In fact, Fiat has one in their own museum.
The car did not meet USA bumper & lighting regulations, so Fiat introduced a design of their own and started selling them in the North Americanmarket.For 1957 the car was upgraded to the Fiat 1200 running gear, and sold as the Fiat 1200 TV Trasfomabile.
In 1958, Fiat addressed a few production issues with the car, most based on expense of parts used only on this car, and sold it under the same name. The twin round gauges were replaced by a ribbon speedometer assembly as used in the 1100 Sedan. The wings on the hood ornament were trimmed, the NARDI steering wheel was replaced by a plastic one, and numerous other cost cutting measures were taken. Including the deletion of the spoke hubcaps with spinners. None of that on this car.
The car wehave prepared At the national Fiat Club annual meeting in 2008. I was approached by the (then) president of the Detroit chapter of the club and asked if I would have any interest in a Fiat 1100 TV Trasformabile. After some negotiations the owner of the car wascontacted and negotiations began. The car was quickly identified instead as a 1957 1200 TV Trasformabile, and it was revealed that the car had been purchasedand parked in the garage of the home they had moved into in about 1962. The widow remembered that her late husband had spent some time trying to get the little car running, but after some frustration just parked it saying he would get back to it. As things go, months became years became decades. I personally had to dig thru years of stacked garbage to get full access to the car, and to get it out of the garage. The tires were inflated and the car was transported to it's new home in the Carolina's, where it again sat in a garage, until in 2009 the car was transported to Santa Cruz, California, and put into deep storage ina warehouse.
Uponthe initialinspection of the car it was discovered that the car was parked into it's Detroit garage with about 21,300 miles. It had been repainted in its original Aqua-verde paint, which is considered to be the rarest of the colors offered. It sits on it's originalMichelin wide white wall tires and mounted on it's original red rims. The interior upholstery is all original. The originality of this car is amazing.
The mechanical bits told their story. The car seems to have had a piston issue, and all of the pistons were obviously replaced and found as new. Unfortunately the crankshaft journals were worn (as all of these motors are), and the timing chain was severely worn. The previous owner obviously got frustrated with it, he probably heard noises coming out of the engine, and that told him to shut it off... Whathas beendone The car recently had it's MATCHING NUMBER engine removed (the first time out of the car!) and rebuilt by North America's leading Fiat expert Chris Obert. The radiator has been rebuilt, the fuel tank completely cleaned and then sealed. All fluids changed. The brakes completely rebuilt. Everything that is supposed to work does. Interior, rubber, felt, chrome, and all of it's originality and patinahas been painstakinglymaintained. The years of storage has required the paint to be only refreshed, and it cleaned up very well. And yes, the over-spray inside the wheel wells is factory original. It appears the bodies were undercoated before being painted. The goal The car will be shown at Concourso Italiano on Saturday August 20th. At the same time it will be on auction on E-bay. The car is an amazing car to behold in it's Aqua-verde paint, original white wall tires, all 5 original red rims (though only 4 were photographed, spinnerretained spoke hubcaps,original upholstery on it's swivel seats, and of course the fabulous tortoise shell interior accents, burlap tool bag with tools, wood rim steering wheel, and striking Pininfarina baseddesign. Even the wiper blades on this car are the ones installed in Torino in 1957!
I will include a copy of the shop manual, mechanical parts book, and body parts book I got from C. Obert & Co. I will NOT include my Roma license plates. Sorry!
I have always felt like these cars look like late 50's young Italian ladies all dressed up and ready to go out on the town. Oozing sexiness and appeal. Fast? No, that's not part of the presentation... It's the Italian styling that the car so excellently represents that's what is important, not speed!
The winning bidder needs to make a $10,000.00 initial payment within 48 hours of auction close, with the balance paid at pick-up within 2 weeks.

For more information contact Brookie Cobb, 831-226-4451