1948 Fiat 1500D – Ex Mille Miglia 1949 & 1950

You are young and you have a dream…

Giulio Cabianca, born in Verona in 1923, was one of these young people with a dream of becoming a racing driver. He made his racing debut in 1947 behind the wheel of a Fiat 1100S sportscar in the Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti.
Like many Italian drivers, the iconic 1000 Miglia was on his bucket list as well, and so he made his dream come true.

In November 1948 Giulio Cabianca bought this new Fiat 1500D Berlina and registered it in Italy.
The 24th of April 1949, team n°359 consisting of Giulio Cabianca & Alberto Pontirolli drove this Fiat and managed to finish the 1000 Miglia in 67th overall place out of 302 participants. (in a time of 16h39min22sec). Quite a remarkable result for the young Cabianca and his young career.

His racing record is impressive to say the least. He achieved several top-20 and top-10 finishes in subsequent 1000 Miglia editions. A 20th place in the 1952 Carrera Panamericana. An 11th place finish in the 1955 Le Mans. Impressive fastest lap and top-5 finishes in the Sicilian Targa Florio. Perhaps the pinnacle of his career would be his participations in the 1958, 1959 and 1960 Formula One seasons.

Let go back to 1949, when Giulio Cabianca sold the Fiat 1500D to Ernesto Menato. The car would be at the start of the 1950 1000 Miglia. The XVII° Mille Miglia took place on 23th of April and Menato and his friend Zanese participated with team number n° 413. They finished the race in 98th place out of 378 participants in a time of 18h19m11sec.

In its later life, the car stood idle for many years until the late 1980s. It became part of a collection of ex-1000 Miglia cars. In 2019 the car was still in an untouched condition, and finally after all these years it received its long-awaited full mechanical service.

While in the Netherlands and Belgium the car received a full engine overhaul. Also the gearbox, suspension and brake system were rebuild. Even a new wiring loom was installed. A grand total of almost € 100.000,- was invested in this unique Fiat 1500D to bring it back to life. A car with this heritage is definitely worth the investment.

After more than 74 years, it is now time to show the car again in Brescia. Follow into the footsteps of Giulio Cabianca and Ernesto Manato and participate in the legendary 1000 Miglia race in the exact same car as they did in 1949 & 1950. The Mille Miglia is calling…

more pictures soon on: www.marreyt.com