1952 Siata Daina Gran Sport
Fewer than 50 examples of the Siata Daina Gran Sport were produced (some estimates put the figure as low as 30), making any surviving example a significant find among Italian postwar sports cars.
SIATA (Società Italiana Auto Trasformazioni Accessori) was founded in Turin in 1926 and developed a close working relationship with Fiat not long after.
Following the war, the company moved from producing performance accessories into building complete automobiles with custom coachwork, and by 1950 had introduced the Daina (its largest model) as a two-passenger coupe and cabriolet on a steel box-section frame.
The Daina drew its suspension, steering, and drivetrain from the Fiat 1400, including that car’s overhead-valve 1,395 cc four-cylinder engine, here fitted with dual Weber 32 DRP.5 carburetors and producing approximately 65 bhp.
The Gran Sport variant debuted at the 1952 Geneva Motor Show wearing aluminum coachwork by Stabilimenti Farina (not steel), typically with an aluminum hood, doors, and trunk lid.
When Stabilimenti Farina ceased automobile production shortly thereafter, production of the Gran Sport (along with the coupe and cabriolet) was transferred primarily to Bertone, which continued with its own-bodied versions including the Gran Sport and Sport variants.
Light weight (approximately 1,900 pounds / 860 kg) and agile handling made the Daina a competitive proposition in both European and American events, and the model attracted a dedicated following on both continents during its brief production run.
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