850 Spider

Born from an idea of Nuccio Bertone and designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro, the FIAT 850 Spider was graceful and full of verve.

Because of its structure, this sporty version appealed to the youthful clientele, who wanted brilliant performance from the car combined with a certain economy in operation.

The first version featured a distinctive front end line, with slanting headlights, inspired by the Chevrolet Corvair Testudo prototype signed by Giorgetto two years earlier: proof that styling exercises on concept cars were never sterile or an end in themselves, but sought aesthetic solutions applicable to mass production.

It was presented at the same time as the coupe version in March 1965 at the Geneva motor show, going to complete FIAT's range of "850" cars.

The car was put on the market in the same year (and remained on the market until 1973), with a wide range of colors: red, dark green, light blue, beige, black and light gray, immediately registering excellent sales figures in Italy, Europe and, above all, in the United States where it was christened "Little Ferrari."

The day of the 850 Spider's launch at the Geneva Motor Show was doubly unforgettable for Giorgetto Giugiaro: March 7, 1965, was in fact also the day of his son Fabrizio's birth.