Description
The Autobianchi Bianchina is a minicar produced by the Italian car manufacturer Autobianchi, based on the Fiat 500. It was available in several configurations: Berlina (saloon), Cabriolet (roadster), Trasformabile (fixed profile convertible), Panoramica (station wagon) and Furgoncino (van). The car was presented to the public on September 16, 1957 at the Museum of Science and Technology in Milan. Initially the car was equipped with the smallest Fiat engine, air-cooled 479 cc, producing 15 hp (11 kW). In 1959 the engine power was increased to 17 hp (13 kW) and in 1960 the convertible version was launched.
In the same year, the Trasformabile, whose engine displacement was increased to 499 cc (18 hp), was made available in a special version with two-tone paint and an engine improved to 21 hp (15 kW). This body style had a fixed B-pillar and a partial roof, as the rest of the opening was covered with a folding fabric top, while the Cabriolet version had no B-pillar. The Trasformabile was the only version with suicide doors and in 1962 it was replaced by a four-seat sedan. The engine and chassis were the same in both. A minor facelift took place in 1965. In France the models were sold under different names: the Berlina became the Lutèce, the Familiare de Texane and the Trasformabile was marketed as the Eden Roc.
In the 1966 film How to Steal a Million starring Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole, Hepburn's character is seen driving a red Autobianchi Bianchina convertible.
The Italian comic character Ugo Fantozzi, created by Paolo Villaggio and protagonist of television monologues, short stories and films, famously drives a white Bianchina, usually slightly damaged and with a four-leaf clover emblem on the left side. The car is known for its tendency to be heavily damaged during these stories.
