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Junkyard Gem: 1974 Fiat X1/9

There was a time when the Fiat X1/9 was a fairly common sight on California roads, alongside Triumph Spitfires, MGBs, and other cheap European sports cars. The little two-seater got good fuel economy, could find parking spots on crowded city streets, and had Italian good looks. The X1/9 wasn't so robust, though, and most of them were gone by the dawn of the 1990s. This rusty, battered survivor managed to avoid the fate of most of its brethren until age 42, but now its time has come. Judging from the sun-bleached paint and rust inside the air cleaner, though, this car hadn't been a runner for quite a while, perhaps decades. My guess is that it sat in a Northern California back yard for many years, awaiting a restoration that never came. I have put in some time daily-driving an X1/9, back in the middle 1980s, and I recall it being very enjoyable to drive in the city and on twisty mountain roads. It was much less enjoyable on freeway onramps, thanks to the Fiat 128-sourced 1.2-liter four-cylinder engine behind the seats (the X1/9 got a 1.5-liter engine later on). In 1974, this car was rated at 66.5 horsepower. Yes, Fiat claimed the half-horse, just as British Leyland did with the 62.5 hp MGB later in the 1970s. This one is nowhere near worth restoring, though some of its pieces will find new life in nicer X1/9s (or 128s). This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Pretty much the same thing as a Lamborghini Countach!

Gio Ponti's '50s-era Linea Diamante is a brand new old car

Art Basel has grown to expansive levels in the past decade. The historic global modern and contemporary art tour has integrated itself in automotive culture through various initiatives such as its partnership with BMW. But for those who are interested strictly in the relationship between automobiles and art and design, there is a different Basel: Grand Basel, a new show launched this year in Switzerland. There, alongside automobiles of timeless importance, a never-realized car design from the '50s debuted for the first time. That car is the Linea Diamante, which roughly translates to Diamond Line. The design was originally conceptualized in 1952 by Gio Ponti and Alberto Rosselli for Carrozzeria Touring. It was intended for an Alfa Romeo 1900 chassis, yet looked nothing like any Alfa, or any other vehicle, of the time. Grand Basel describes itself as a place where "the finest automobiles of the past, present, and future are discussed in the cultural context of art, design, architecture, and lifestyle." In that vein, the Linea Diamante is now viewed as a design far ahead of its time. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. With a shape similar to that of a Saab 900, which didn't debut until the late '70s, the Linea looked nothing like the over-stylized bubbly curvaceous designs of the '50s. Hoping to oppose the less practical car bodies that created large cavernous interiors, Ponti set out to craft a suit that isolated passengers from the outside less. The result is a boxy vehicle with a wide-open cabin. The panels are flat, the nose is low, the greenhouse is upright and tall, and the rear angles straight down like a hatchback. Though it was an eyesore to many at the time, the design created better visibility, an airy-feeling cabin, and maintained practical space. The rear seats are even adjustable, an unheard-of feature for the period. It is also on this car that Ponti formed a relationship with Pirelli (he later designed the Pirelli Tower in Milan). Furthering the futuristic premise of the vehicle, the Linea had a wrap-around rubber bumper with spring-mounted pieces at the front and rear for extra safety in the event of an accident. As a nod to this collaboration, Pirelli provided the tires for the modern replica. When Carrozzeria Touring turned the wild concept down, Ponti turned to Fiat, but the design was thought to be too outrageous.

Fiat sells part of its historic Lingotto factory in Turin

Stellantis-owned Fiat is selling part of its historic Lingotto factory in Turin, Italy, in a bid to downsize its real estate assets. Inaugurated in 1923, the facility built numerous Fiat models until it closed in 1982, and a test track built on its roof made it famous all around the world. Italian website Motori Online reported that digital services specialist Reply purchased a roughly 215,000-square-foot chunk of the complex with plans to turn it into an office building. There's no word yet on how much Fiat sold the space for, but most sources agree that the firm will retain ownership of the test track. And, the building itself isn't going anywhere: Reply will move in, but it won't knock it down and rebuild it. The test track that made Lingotto famous wasn't merely a gimmick: it was an important part of the production process for several decades. Raw materials entered the building on the ground floor and cars made their way through several stations scattered across the five floors before ending up (in one piece) on the roof. They were then driven for about half a mile before being sent out of the complex. This sped up the production process because road testers could put new cars through their paces without having to leave Turin, and it allowed Fiat to test prototypes without worrying about getting spotted by spy photographers. The track was also featured in the 1969 movie The Italian Job.  This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Fiat isn't the first Stellantis brand to leave its historic home. Peugeot left its headquarters in downtown Paris for the same reasons in 2017. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Auto News Plants/Manufacturing Fiat