Ghia

Introduce

Est. 1916

Carrozzeria Ghia started making lightweight aluminum bodies for Italian brands, such as the Alfa Romeo 6C 1500 and the Fiat 508 Balilla in various versions in limited numbers, including some that excelled in competitions such as the Mille Miglia. In 1943, during World War II, the factory was destroyed, and Giacinto Ghia directed the rebuilding of a new factory on Via Tommaso Grossi until his death on February 21, 1944. The company was sold to Felice Mario Boano and Giorgio Alberti, who made agreements with other Italian and foreign brands to supply chassis on which to make exclusive Special cars or in small series. Ghia was also responsible for the bodywork of various Ferrari chassis from 1950 to 1956, but the most prolific collaboration was with the American giants Ford and Chrysler from the 1950s onward, which led to the presentation of many prototypes and special versions of production models. Particularly close was the collaboration between Ghia and Chrysler and his chef designer Virgil Exner, with more than 18 special models over 15 years made in Turin under license, such as the Crown Imperial. Among the most famous achievements of that period are the Lincoln Futura and the prototype extra-luxury coupe "Norseman," which was lost in the sinking of the Andrea Doria before it could be viewed by the public and by the same technicians and executives of the client Chrysler. During this period the company formed joint ventures, creating the Ghia-Aigle in 1948 in Switzerland and the Dual-Ghia in 1956 in the United States. In 1953 Boano left Ghia to move to FIAT, and the company passed into the hands of Luigi Segre and moved to Via Agostino da Montefeltro, first with Giovanni Savonuzzi and then with Pietro Frua at the head of design. In the same year the Turin coachbuilder signed off on the styling of the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia coupe and cabriolet, derived from the Beetle and assembled in Germany by Karmann. Other famous models designed by Ghia during that period were the Renault Caravelle, Renault Floride, Volvo P1800, and Fiat 1500 GT. Upon Segre's death in 1963, the company underwent a number of ownership changes, and was sold to Ramfis Trujillo, who resold it in 1967 to Alejandro de Tomaso, owner of the eponymous car manufacturer. During this period the design of the De Tomaso Pantera was developed, but economic management difficulties led to the sale of the company to Ford in 1973, along with Vignale. The body shop department was closed at the end of 1973, and the 60 remaining workers were absorbed by Vignale. In the following years, Ghia became one of the American giant's style centers, continuing to offer versions and prototypes and maintaining a very active role in defining the design current known as New Edge Design, which characterized Ford production between 1998 and 2005. The last car designed by Ghia before the style center closed in 2001 was the Ghia Saetta, later transmuted into the Ford StreetKa and produced by Pininfarina since 2003. For a few years, from 1965 to 1968, Ghia could also count among its ranks another designer destined to make his way in the world of four wheels, Giorgetto Giugiaro. From 1973 to 2010 Ford used the Ghia brand to identify the most luxurious versions of its car models, initially in Europe and later also in North and South America. The Ghia trim for the Fiesta was sold continuously in the British market from 1977 to 2008, a record 31 years and 7 months. In 2010 Ford replaced the Ghia trim with Titanium, removing the coachbuilder's name from its cars.