What's The Best Place For Your Teen To Learn How...

Car that chauffeured Hitler, Franco and Mussolini going up for auction

 
2 2,115 views May 8, 2009

The famous Fiat Torpedo ferried all of the Axis super-villains as part of the King of Italy's fleet

The famous Fiat Torpedo ferried all of the Axis super-villains as part of the King of Italy's fleet

Enlarge Photo
It's not everyday that automotive history and geopolitical history converge, and even so it's rare that it's of such magnitude as the vehicle going up for auction by International Auction House (COYS). The 1939 Fiat Torpedo that was part of the fleet of the King of Italy during the early part of World War II was used to shuttle Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Francisco Franco during their time in Rome.

The car then spent some time being handed around within the Italian royal family until the end of WWII, when it went into service for the Italian prime ministers Einaudi and De Nicola until it was finally retired from the Quirinale Palace fleet in 1963.

In addition to the historical connection of this particular Fiat Torpedo, the car is a collector's piece in its own right. Based on a Fiat 2800, but bodied in a special Drophead Dual Cowl Phaeton style for the Italian military, only 12 such cars were built. Only half of those still exist today.

“The example that we are offering at our sale ‘The Legende et Passion’ which takes place at the Espace Fontviewille, in Monaco on Monday May 18th is the most famous of them all. We have already had huge interest from clients around the world as well as from a number of collectors in Italy.”

There has as yet been no speculation as to the price it might bring, but between the sheer rarity of the car and its historical significance, it could easily reach well into the millions of dollars.



Tags:
Posted in:
 
Contribute
Send us a tip Comment Contact the editor
Follow Us

 

Have an opinion?Join the conversation!

  • Posting indicates you have read this site's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • Notify me when there are more comments
Comments (2)

  1. ma_Mike avatar Mike Posted: 5/10/2009 1:41am PDT

    Dictators get the best rides! It's going to be very interesting to see what this brings.
     
    Post Reply
    Vote
    Bad stuff?

  2. ma_AutoFreak avatar AutoFreak Posted: 5/11/2009 7:49am PDT

    Dictators get the best rides! It's going to be very interesting to see what this brings.

    I'd say the Hitler-Franco-Mussolini Mobile will end up in a WWII museum somewhere.
     
    Post Reply
    Vote
    Bad stuff?

 

Have an opinion?Join the conversation!

Connect with Facebook

Motor Authority. Now with your friends.

Discover stories your friends read.
Share stories more easily.
You control what you share.
Learn more

Research New Cars

Go!


More from High Gear Media

 
 
MotorAuthority
  • Follow Us
  • Twiiter
  • Facebook
 
 
© 2011 MotorAuthority. All Rights Reserved. MotorAuthority is published by High Gear Media. Stock photography by Homestar, LLC. Send us feedback.