1949 Cisitalia 202 Gran Sport Berlinetta

Coachwork by Pinin Farina/ built by Vignale

Private Portfolio No. 101

 Mechanically restored with recent invoices for $138,497  Landmark coachwork design by Pinin
Chassis no.
142SC Farina  Sweet handling and lively performance thanks to light weight  Eligible for most important

historic events including the Mille Miglia 

Price $275,000

A talented sportsman, entrepreneur and gentlemen

driver, Piero Dusio recognized that post-war Italy
would have a thirst for motor racing and conceived,
with typical style and flair, a one-make single seater
series to quench the pent-up demand of both drivers
and spectators.

He soon concluded that sports car racing presented

an even greater opportunity and put his chief
designer Giovanni Savonuzzi to work creating a 2-
seater from the basic monoposto design of his initial
D46 model. Likewise a space frame chassis, the
resulting Cisitalia 202 was ready for the 1947 Mille
Miglia. A variety of bodies were hurriedly created by
several local coachbuilders including Colli, Vignale,
Garelli, Pinin Farina and Stabilimenti Farina. Tazio
1 Nuvolari showed his grit and skill, taking one of the

1
Private Portfolio No. 101 1949 Cisitalia 202 Gran Sport Berlinetta

five Cisitalias entered into the lead by eight minutes at Rome. A 20 minute delay to dry out the ignition system
after a torrential storm put Nuvolari behind Biondetti’s Alfa Two-Nine but he recovered to finish second,
followed across the line by Bernabei and Minetti, also in Cisitalias.

Fuelled by such success Cisitalia went into production. Of the c.170 cars built (although production records are
at best vague), most clients’ favourite coachwork was the Gran Sport berlinetta styled by Pinin Farina, a
milestone aerodynamic design which was chosen by New York’s Museum of Modern Art as part of its permanent
collection. This is a late production example featuring details such as a curved windscreen and tube grille, and
was apparently discovered by the late Stan
Nowak, car hunter extraordinaire, on a farm in
Venezuela “sunk to the axles in farm muck”
according to subsequent owner Steve Tillack. In
common with other contemporary high
performance sports cars past their best in
European competition, many Cisitalias had
found their way to South America, particularly as
Piero Dusio relocated his business empire there
in the 1950s. Nowak brought the berlinetta to
the US and sold it to Tillack, the renowned
Californian restorer, who found a buyer in
Australian collector Ian Cummins and then
undertook a rebuild on his behalf. The car
subsequently took part in the 1991 Colorado
Grand and, Tillack recalls, was also shown at
2 Pebble Beach the same year.
Private Portfolio No. 101 1949 Cisitalia 202 Gran Sport Berlinetta

The Cisitalia saw very little subsequent use until sold to Australian dealer Terry Healy, from whom the current US
owner acquired the car in 2006. Since then it has been mechanically ‘gone though’ by Automotive Restorations
Inc in Stratford, Connecticut, and engine wizard Ivan Zaremba’s team at the renowned Phil Reilly firm in
Berkeley, California (dyno test sheet available), $90,583 and $47,914 being spent with each respectively (bills
available). This work was only finished in August 2009. The coachwork and interior have been left untouched
and are still remarkably fresh almost twenty years after restoration, the paintwork resplendent in Rosso Corsa
with tan hide upholstery piped in contrasting red to compliment the exterior.

Hubris brought Piero Dusio’s empire down when he committed to building the fabled Cisitalia Grand Prix car
but the resounding success of the
Cisitalia 202 in the Mille Miglia and
other early post-war races, as well as
its seminal contribution to the success
of post-war Italian coachbuilders and
design, have firmly established the
reputation of both marque and model.
One of a select group of Cisitalia 202s
built, with refined bodywork and
Kidston SA sparkling performance from its light
7 Avenue Pictet-de-Richemont weight, skillfully designed and
1207 Genève, Switzerland developed chassis and twin-
Tel +41 22 740 1939
carburettor Cisitalia engine, this
Fax +41 22 740 1945
beautifully presented berlinetta is both
info@kidston.com
www.kidston.com an historically important automobile
and the ideal entry for most enjoyable
3 and important events.