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Monday, January 27, 2020

1969 Fiat 125S Samantha by Vignale

The Fiat 125S Vignale was a limited-production car built by Carrozzeria Vignale from 1967-1971.  Just an estimated 100 units were ever made, and of those, only a handful still survive, making it one of the rarest twin-cam Fiats of that era.
          It was based on a basic 125S donor car, using the same four-cylinder and 5-speed transmission, and therefore having the same performance (0-60 in 13 seconds, a top speed of 106mph), which wasn't exactly high-performance in it's day, just mildly sporty.  Some of the most recognizable design features are the three portholes on each C-pillar, and the front end that kinda looks like a cheap Miura clone, but only if you have seen (as I have) numerous exotic car clones based on Honda Accords.
          Carrozzeria Vignale was a well-known and respected automobile designer, responsible for many beautiful cars, such as the Ferrari 212 Coupe, Cunningham C-3, Fiat 750 Vignale, Cisitalia 808XF, Abarth 205, the 1993 Aston Martin Lagonda Vignale concept, Fiat 1100 Vignale, Fiat 2100 En Plein Vignale, Maserati 3500 Vignale Spyder, Tatra 613, and many, many others.  More recently, they have collaborated with Ford to produce the S-Max, Focus, Mondeo, and Edge Vignale versions, all well-designed cars, but by no means as nice to look at as Vignale's previous products.  Vignale's past was glorious, and while it's future still looks bright, meaning it won't go out of business anytime soon, it's glory days are long gone.




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