Tag Archives: Innocenti

Original Photography from Innocenti Lambretta Factory in Milan #1

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Following my post from the Spanish Lambretta / Serveta factory in Eibar, (here) I’ve been sent a ton of fantastic imagery from my online pal Darrin Slack – so much that they will be providing the majority of the posts for the forseeable future – my only issue is finding enough hours in the day to post them! Darrin is a self-admitted ‘bloody bloohound’ when it comes to anything Lambretta – and has scoured the internet to find these images – which kinda what I’ve been doing for to find content for this blog – but Darrin is far better at it than I am! So, all this stuff is out there on the internet already, but it’s nice for us Lambretta fans to have everything in one place eh? Hopefully this blog becomes a bit of a resource for anybody interested in Lambretta history.

Image Source: I will endeavour to post links to the sites where these images originally featured – and credit any original photographers etc. These images appear to originally come from the Fondazione ISEC Flickr account. The Fondazione ISEC was formed in 1973 for the purpose of collecting, conserving and enhancing sources of the history of the Italian Resistance movement and the labour movement. Over time, Fondazione ISEC has become a national reference point for whoever is interested in events concerning the political, economic and social history of contemporary Italy. They have appeared on various sites, and Pinterest accounts around the internet… hopefully posting them here is another way of preserving and publicising these great images. The Fondazione ISEC site is here: https://www.fondazioneisec.it/

Plenty more to come!
These shots are just the first of many, not only of the Lambretta factory, but also Lambretta trade shows, and various rarely seen publicity shots, as well as images of various Lambretta prototypes etc. Stay tuned for more of this good stuff! Thanks again to Darrin for sourcing and supplying me the images.

eBay Time… Innocenti Mini & Dealers Sign

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Spotted this rather nice Innocenti Mini on eBay – it’s in the South of France, which has kept it rust free. Looks in good nick! on eBay for £9,900 here.

If you like that, you’ll like this, A genuine period Innocenti lightbox sign.rom a “longstanding southern Italian Innocenti/Lambretta dealership”. It’s pretty rare, as these would have only been available to big Innocenti dealers at the time. Afraid it doesn’t come with the model D! On eBay for £1,500, here.

The Model A – where it all began

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s-l1600-7Lambretta A’s don’t come up for sale that often, so when I see one for sale, I’ll flag it up. This little beauty, a 125 Model A, Mk2,  has just arrived from Italy. Finished in metallic blue and is fitted with optional extras such as a pillion seat and footrests etc. She was refurbished in Italy several years ago and was ridden by her owner at weekends and taken to special events.

On eBay for a £7,999 from Parrspeed Scooters.

Minis, Spiders and now a Jag and a DeTomaso Turbo…

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JagXJS-InnocentiSo we all know Innocenti made Minis, right… Some of you will know that they made a rather pretty little sports car too… but this is new too me, an Innocenti Jag? It’s probably nothing more that a piece of Innocenti branded marketing material for Jaguar during the Innocenti / Leyland years, but an oddity none the less.

You can pick it up for £7 on eBay, here.

Also on eBay is this “extremley rare” Innocenti Mini Turbo de Tomaso from 1989… The quote marks are mine as it’s another car I know very little about, and I can’t vouch for it’s rarity …but I’ve not come across one for sale before! It’s something I wouldn’t have looked twice at back in the day, but now has got a certain 80’s charm about it!

The car currently resides in Carini, near Palermo, in Sicily… which if you google it looks like a wonderful place to visit!

InnocentiDTTurboInnocentiDTTurbo2It appears to be in great original condition. A rather more serious investment, it’s currently got a bid of £5000 on in, and it hasn’t met it’s reserve yet. on eBay, HERE.

Classy classic combo

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Gulf Racing themed Lambretta Sidecar COmbinationThe Gulf Racing colours of pale blue and bright orange are a classic and recognisable combination that work so well together.  I’ve seen them on many vehicles, from Porches to Beetles, Mini’s, bikes and a fair few scoots over the years. But I think this is the first time I’ve seen them on a Lambretta sidecar combination.  In my ever so humble opinion, it works. And it’s for sale on eBay. The scooter (a GP 150) has been upgraded to with a GT 186 kit, so should pull that Watsonian along nicely. It’s on eBay here. But be quick, the auction ends today.Gulf-Bambini-2-6-9-2014Gulf Bambini GP Gulf-Bambini-3-6-9-2014 Gulf-Bambini-4-6-9-2014 Gulf-Bambini-5-6-9-2014
Here’s that link again

F is for FORKS, F is for FURTHER INFORMATION

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LambrettaModellFWhen I originally posted about Rod’s Western Australian Barn Find of a rare Model “F”, one of my eagle-eyed readers queried whether I’d made a mistake in classifying it as a F, as the forks didn’t have the distinctive ‘swept back’ look of the E’s and F’s. Check out the image above to see what I mean.

Well, you can write what I know about these early models on the back of a postage stamp… so I went back and queried it with Rod, who patiently sent me back pics of the frame and engine numbers both confirming it’s F status. Very weird. Was this some Aussie import F with D type forks? The explanation is a little simpler.

The Model F was based on the Model E… the E being a rethinking of the open frame Lambretta, with economy at it’s heart. It was stripped down, and the cheapest Lambretta you could buy, featuring an innovative, and frankly pretty poor “pull-cord” like a chainsaw or outboard engine instead of a kickstart. It was not well received by the Italian market, in fact it was a total flop. Innocenti then made some technical improvements, including reinstating a kickstart and this new model became the F. The improvements weren’t enough to radically improve sales however… and even an ‘elegant new colour’ (dark green) wasn’t enough to distinguish the F from it’s ill fated predecessor.

In 1955 a Second Series of the F was produced with many technical improvements from the first, more comfort, better electrics, and the more efficient fork and front fender from the Model D. It is one of these “Seconda Serie” with D forks that Rod discovered in a shed. The second series came in two colours… The putty like “Beige Sabbia” and “Grigio Chiaro”, a pale grey. Rod’s pics show traces of this original grey under the blue paint that was applied sometime back in the dim and distant.F1-F2

Unfortunately, although these changes had made the Seconda Serie F a much better scooter, it never shook off it’s Model E lineage. Sales figures could not justify it’s continued production, and the last F was made in early 1956. Which means one more thing… F stands for, erm, FLIPPING Rare.

Thanks Rod, for furnishing me with various articles that explain the complicated saga of the F with D forks!

A couple of Innocenti Mini’s…

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Innocenti Mini Cooper 1300After yesterdays post featuring a couple of J125 Starstreams, I thought I’d post another couple of Innocenti vehicles again, this time of the four wheeled variety! As Mini afficionados will know, The Innocenti Mini Cooper is the Italian version of the Cooper S, arguably built to a higher standard! I found these two very nice examples for sale, if they tickle your fancy, you know what to do!Innocenti Mini Cooper 1300 InnocentiMini-3The first one is Immaculate Innocenti Cooper Export 1300. Subject to a full, nut and bolt restoration and bare metal respray completed in 2011. Very original car, rebuilt to virtually original specification (twin tank added). Rare original colour scheme, Sabbia Beige / Nero. A regular at the Mini car shows across the country, and featured in Classic and Sports Car Magazine in October 2011… more info over on eBay.

On eBay here

The second car is a 1974 1300 Export – Professionally restored About 8 years ago. As Described as being in “Stunning condition and very original specification”, again, there’s more info over on eBay

check it out on eBay, HERE.

Innocenti Mini Cooper 1300 InnocentiMini-5 MInnocentiMini-6

Spiders even an arachnophobiac would love…

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Spider 3 280510 resizedMost Lambrettisti know about the Innocenti Minis, which I have posted about before. Well, while Innocenti were making deals to manufacture British cars, they also had their eye on the blossoming Italian sportscar market. They wanted to make a small sport car, along the lines of the Frogeye Sprite… but thought that it’s rather distinctive look would not go down too well with Italian buyers. They commissioned Carrozzeria Ghia to design new bodywork based on the Sprite platform, but more to Italian tastes.

I think the results speak for themselves, a very elegant vehicle with shades of Triumph, Healy, MG, Alfa Romeo and even Ferrari about it, depending on the angle you look at it from. The Innocenti 950 Spider is a very handsome sports car.950 Spider (b) Spider just before doing Buttertubs resized

Innocenti Coupé
As well as the Spider there was also a Coupé version. Known as the Innocenti Coupé, or simply the Innocenti C, these had the larger 1098 engine. These little beauties are now extremely rare… with only 795 examples built… and all in one of the three colours of the italian flag. They were also pretty expensive at the time, due to their low production number, and the high quality, ‘hand-built’ finish.  At first glance, the Coupé seems like a Spider with a roof, but virtually all the body panels, including the bonnet, are completely different from the Spider. It is in fact a bigger car all round than the Spider, 4″ wider and 6″ longer. The width produces a roomier cabin, whilst the extra length is all between the rear edge of the door and the start of the rear wheel arch which proportions the car nicely, and helps give the Coupé it’s elegant ‘rear end’.
3 Coupes l to rAuto Italia Brooklands Flying Lady Copyright Ian Hunt Digital Photography resized White Coupe b

All four of the cars shown above, the Spider and three Coupés, make up the Collezione Innocenti. Further details of these four wonderful vehicles, including the various books and magazine articles they have appeared in, and the many concours d’élélegance competitions they have won are on the Collezione Innocenti website, here. And now, after many years in the same ownership this group of four unique cars, is for sale. Well, since I started typing this article, the red coupé has been sold, so if you’re interested, you’d better be quick. Email info@innocentispider.co.uk or call 01943 608900 for more information.

© All information and photography  is copyright of Collezione Innocenti 2014

Lambretta World Land Speed Record Scooter

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Lambretta Record Breaker LambrettaRecord02dailyicon LambrettaRecord03dailyiconFrom day one Innocenti were eager to to prove to the world that their engine was, for it’s capacity, the fastest and most economical in the world.

IW_Lambretta-record_06 IW_Lambretta-record_08 IW_Lambretta-record_09They participated, and won, many speed and endurance competitions, entering one off specials and works racers… with many of the lessons learned from the track making their way into later production scooters.

One of their great rival, in the scooter world, was of course was Piaggio… who were also keen to prove the prowess of their Vespas on the track. Both manufacturers saw the promotional opportunities in promoting their victories. Not only did it help establish the respective marques as viable purchase options, but it countered the entrenched wisdom of the time that these small wheeled, open framed machines could compete with motorcycles. It wouldn’t be too much of stretch to say these competitions helped establish the whole scooter category, that went on to dominate two wheeled vehicles in the 50’s and early 60’s.

After many close fought encounters Lambretta went on to dominate the category… breaking records over long and medium distances. But there was one goal yet to achieve… breaking the 200km/h barrier over the ‘flying kilometre’. This was achieved on the 8th August 1951, in the amazing, full enclosed vehicle shown below, with Romolo Ferri as the ‘pilot’.

LambrettaRecord04dailyicon 42-18541976With Lambretta now holding all the 125cc class records Piaggio decided there was no point in opposing them anymore, and the battle was over, with Lambretta the acknowledged champions.

Via Italian Ways

And Racing History on the LCGB site.