1953 Siata-Ford 208S Cabriolet Speciale by Stabilimenti Farina

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$225,000 - $300,000 USD 

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  • A one-off Siata-built, Ford-powered special
  • Executed by Siata at the height of their power; beautifully tailored aluminum coachwork by Stabilimenti Farina
  • Delivered new by the famous Alfred Momo
  • Comprehensively restored and finished in elegant colors

This unique Siata-Ford 208S was commissioned as a promotional tool by Jimmy Mulgrew of Euclid Ford in Euclid, Ohio. With the help of racer Dick Irish, a 1951 Ford sedan was purchased from Euclid Ford and sent to Siata via Tony Pompeo’s New York dealership in mid-1952.

The flathead V-8 drivetrain, suspension, and instrumentation used in the car are those from that Ford sedan, but the frame was specially designed by Siata. The use of a Siata chassis strongly indicates that the major components of the Ford sedan were removed in New York and then shipped abroad.

Founded in 1926, Siata specialized in performance modifications for Fiats, and by 1949 they were producing small automobiles which wore custom coachwork. Under Rudolf Hruska, the company developed the chassis for Fiat’s 8V sports car of 1952. Featuring a fully independent suspension with coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers at all four corners, the 8V project clearly indicates the kind of sophisticated development which Siata was making at the time that they executed this one-off Ford Speciale.

In any event, the completed, aluminum-bodied cabriolet was returned to New York in late 1952, very close to when Stabilimenti Farina ceased operations. This project is believed to be among the final commissions completed by the coachbuilder.

After displaying the car at Euclid Ford, Mulgrew sold the special cabriolet through Alfred Momo’s New York dealership in 1955. This second owner is unknown, but the car was subsequently purchased in the mid-1960s by Frank Russo Sr. of Jacksonville, Maryland. It was with Russo for several years until it was sold onward.

By October 1974 it had reached Michael Caltrider, though the car then changed hands several more times to owners including: Michael Supley in August 1975, Roland Wommack, Bill Lightfoot in 1982, Phil Goutell in 1985, Joseph Alphabet in 1987, and Oliver Kuttner in 1988.

The 208S had fallen into disrepair by the summer of 1988, when it was refurbished for the first time by Kuttner. In 2005, it was purchased by Jerry Bensinger and Daniel Rapley, who then sold the car to the previous owner. Its aluminum coachwork was entirely restored by German shop Bernhardt Karosseriebau; the body was then shipped to Absolute Engineering of Goleta, California, where the rest of the car was being completed. The car’s richly trimmed parchment leather upholstery and matching parchment cabriolet top wonderfully complement the Ford-sourced instrumentation.

Now presented in elegant colors and perched upon a handsome set of chrome Borrani wire wheels shod in period-style Excelsior Competition tires, this fascinating coachbuilt automobile beckons to be enjoyed on the world’s most prestigious international rallies, tours, and concours.

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