It's well-established, I believe, that Pininfarina not only designed the Coupe interior, but also screwed the cars together on Fiat's behalf. Does anyone know which Pinin factory was used to build them? Wonder whether there's a photo opportunity for any cars heading back to their birthplace!

I believe the coupes were built in the Pininfarina factory in Turin

Ditto.

I knew it would be Turin, except, there seem to be, or have been, more than one Pinin factory in Turin! Corso Trapani and Grugliasco seem to be the main ones, along with Cambiano today. I'm suspecting Grugliasco?

Grugliasco used to be the Bertone plant back in the 2000's

Its now Fiat Maserati Group and they're building 135 Quattraporte's a day, mostly for China

Doesn't seem to be an easily available answer to this one, although coupefiat.info says:

No proof of this, although I'll have a look in my Pininfarina book at some point and see if there is any extra info.
I'm sure there used to be a website which had pictures of the cars lined up outside the factory waiting to be delivered but I can't seem to find it.

It was Grugliasco.

A good source of info is in the Forza! (Fiat UK in-house magazine) Spring 1995 edition, the one that says "Secrets of the Fiat Coupe" with a close-up around the petrol cap on a broom yellow Coupe and other small shots, in the days when it was larger than A4.


Lots of other nice facts and pictures in the article, including confirmation of the testing at Stabilimento Di San Giorgio Canavase. Essential for any Coupe fan to have!

The Pinifarina factory in Grugliasco is/was just down the road from the Bertone plant. I've spent several happy days going around the Bertone factory in the mid 90's watching them assemble Punto and Astra Cabrio's....

Tsk. And people complain about *build* quality?

"... and no *fewer* than 80 Fiat Coupes."

I have pride in telling people the Coupe was built alongside Ferraris, but I wonder if 306 Cabrio owners know they can say the same thing?!

On the subject - hadn't seen this one before.... Sergio and Andrea PF...

Looks like the Grugliasco plant is the De Tomaso factory now, according to Streetview anyway.

It's a shame, I was planning on diverting via Turin next month and getting some shots of the Coupe outside Pininfarina and/or Lingotto, but Lingotto is residential/retail now except for the Fiat logo having ben retained at the top of the main building, which wouldn't be in shot with a car out front! Would be even better to take it up to the rooftop track but that's out of bounds too now, it seems. Even the design centre is just an anonymous gatehouse with the Pinin logo from the street. Shame!

Cappo - I visited Lingotto twice - in 1994 and 1996 with a pre-arranged visit with the X1/9 club. By then the place was preserved as an historical building and the ground floor being filled with office space and retail. The 'Orb' in the roof has a helicopter landing pad with a conference room in the centre. I think you can still contact them to book a tour. When we went in '96 - ironically enough our 'guide' turned up in a Porto Coupe and we were told fairly sternly that we were to follow the Coupe up the spiral roadway that led up the floors of the old factory to the test track roof - a la Italian Job. Once we got up there - the guy wound down he window - shouted 'Avanti!' and we preceeded to race around the roof for about half an hour! The banking is fairly brutal on the inner section and we came quite close to destroying a number of springs!
It was the conclusion to what was a fabulous trip. I'll try to dig out the photos..........

Well as a 306 cabby owner, I knew that. And based on the VIN and using Peugeot's "Service Box" service, yuo can get at a build code that allows you to check the exact date and location of production: on this basis I know that my cabby was one of the last off the line at Pininfarina on Tuesday 9 July 2002 (a bit like my almost last off the line 1985.5 SpiderEuropa which also came from Grugliasco, oh and the Coupe of course, except that it is one of the first 20vt's)

But only later 306 cabby's were assembled at Grugliasco, from summer 2000 onwards, before then they were assembled at the Peugeot factory in Poissy, France. For the Fiat 124 Spider, Pininfarina had always manufactured the bodies but shipped them to Fiat, until in the final years (1983 onwards) Fiat sent all the mechanicals to Pininfarina for them to do final assembly, and in the very last year, it was even badged as a Pininfarina car.

And for some reason I have a strong feeling some of us will have the chance to drive on the very same roof track next year
Better mark May 31 and June 1st and 2nd in your diaries as a once in your lifetime event as the 20th anniversary is celebrated in Torino.
Here's what it might look like if it rains:

I fear for some of you who might mistake this for Eau Rouge at Spa and floor it . . .

Lingotto has a restaurant at the top. It is my understanding that you can just drive up there if you say 'I have a reservation' at the gate.

Found a coupe of photos from the later event......



Exxys' 'do' the Stelvio years before Top gear had ever heard of the place....

Wow! fantastic pictures just makes me want to return to my motherland!!
I trust the X19's had good handbrakes!

I was very intrigued by this photo, here are the rest of the series http://www.clubdelcoupefiat.piemonte.it/...mp;limitstart=0

Reviving this to share this one as also not seen before - apologies if already posted or someone else owns.........
Should've given those light cups another coat!

I had that in house magazine, but have no idea where it went.

Nope that's not exactly correct.

The roof top is now offered as the running track for the Lingotto Hotel. You can get an access key for the lift & door from reception. There is no restaurant up there but there is a Helipad & large glass dome. There is also an events suite.

And yes I guess there will be an oppotunity for Fiat Coupés to be up there next year

What you've lost it

I think I scanned it before I sent it to you so I'll have a look if I've still got the file...

I didn't get it from you Bob, I remember buying it from someone on Ebay about 8 years ago.

It was an entire issue a bit bigger than A4 size devoted to the first coupes coming off the line.

I got my copy of Forza signed by the now Pininfarina CEO when at Hurtwood Polo event and the unfailing of the "SERGIO" 458 based concept. Nice touch I thought