The ultimate italian coachbuilder site
The ultimate italian coachbuilder site
The Moretti Elettrovettura from 1944.
The Moretti Elettrovettura is a fascinating and rare example of early electric vehicle design, produced by the Italian company Moretti during a period when fuel shortages during World War II necessitated alternative transportation solutions. As a small minivan capable of seating up to seven passengers, the Elettrovettura was designed with practicality and efficiency in mind, offering a glimpse into the innovative approaches to mobility that emerged during difficult times. At the outset of the war, the scarcity of fuel posed significant challenges to the transportation sector. Moretti, a company already known for its inventive designs, seized the opportunity to develop an electrically-powered vehicle. The result was the Elettrocarro, an electric truck with a capacity of 30 quintals (approximately 3000 kilograms). This vehicle was designed for commercial use and aimed at alleviating the challenges posed by fuel rationing. Its electric motor allowed it to operate without the need for gasoline, offering an alternative solution for transporting goods during the war years. Building on the success of the Elettrocarro, Moretti then used the same electric motor technology to create the Elettrovettura, a public transport vehicle. This car was designed to carry passengers, making it an early example of electric vehicles being adapted for both commercial and public use. The Moretti Elettrovettura was compact and versatile, able to accommodate up to seven passengers, making it an ideal choice for small-scale public transport systems in urban areas where larger, fuel-consuming vehicles would have been less efficient. Despite its ingenuity, production of the Elettrovettura was limited, and no surviving examples are known today, making it an extremely rare and historically significant vehicle. The Moretti Elettrovettura represents an early attempt at electric propulsion in the automotive industry, predating many of the modern electric vehicles that we are familiar with today. It stands as a testament to the resourcefulness of engineers during wartime and the potential of electric transportation long before it became mainstream.
Moretti Motor Company was founded in 1925 by Giovanni Moretti in order to design and build motorcycles, both of his own design and with agreements with other companies. Using the same motorcycle engines, Giovanni Moretti also dabbled in microcars in the late 1920s and early 1930s…
