The ultimate italian coachbuilder site
The ultimate italian coachbuilder site
Carrozzeria Vignale was commissioned by Raymond Flower, racing driver and Managing Director of the Cairo Motor Co Ltd, to design the bodywork for the production version of the Meadows Frisky a task they allocated to Giovanni Michelotti.
The disclosure of the Meadows company involvement and the correct nomenclature Meadows Frisky was announced by the press on 11 March 1957 just prior to the Geneva Motor Show. The press release included information about the Oulton Park test run and information about the involvement of Raymond Flower in the project and Michelotti in the design. The release also stated that the Frisky would be priced at “under £400”. Vignale delivered the body of the new car directly to the Geneva show. As this left no time to install the engine, it was displayed separately in front of the car. The design retained the gull-wing door concept from The Bug and the car attracted widespread interest and acclaim. Two of these bodies were produced by Vignale, however it quickly became clear that the design would be too expensive for mass production and so work began on completely redesigning the car in time for the Earls Court Motor Show in October.
The story of Carrozzeria Vignale represents one of the many somewhat forgotten success stories born against the backdrop of an Italy that was torn apart by the Second World War and which, starting from the end of the 1950s, was able to recover enough to know a real miracle. economical just a few years later.
