Autobianchi Car Operator's & Maintenance Manuals PDF

 The automobile manufacturing company Bianchi was founded at the end of the 19th century. On the basis of its plant, built in the small town of Desiro, not far from Milan, the Autobianchi company was opened on January 11, 1955, co-owned in equal shares by the owners of the Bianchi company, the FIAT concern and the tire manufacturer Pirelli.

The first Autobianchi cars were the Bianchina subcompact cars, first released in 1957, but going into mass production the following year.

At the same time, Bianchi sold its share to two other co-owners of the company and left the concern. The Bianchina subcompact car, repeating all the technical characteristics of the FIAT-500 car, appeared on the market successfully: in the first year of production alone, 11 thousand copies of the car were produced.

The 2-cylinder engine with a displacement of 0.479 liters and air cooling was located at the rear. The power of a car with this engine was 15 horsepower, which over time increased to 17.5. The car was also equipped with a 4-speed manual transmission, front suspension with wishbones and leaf springs, rear suspension with trailing arms and springs, and drum brakes. The maximum speed of a two-seater coupe car reached 85 km/h. Convertibles, small trucks and several other cars, such as the Special and Panoramica, were also produced based on this model.

For the first six years, the company's production was based solely on the production of the Bianchina car, but in the mid-60s, cars of this type ceased to be popular. So at the end of 1964, a radically new model for the company was released - Primula with front-wheel drive and a transverse engine.

Compared to the Bianchina, the Primula was positioned as a higher class car. Over time, a modification of this model with a coupe body appeared. In general, Primula was produced until 1970.

This model is the only in-house development of Autobianchi, although the FIAT-Hood engine was used in production and subsequently upgraded. The front-wheel drive design designed for the Primula was later used for the production of FIAT cars. Original for that time were such details as the engine location, the 3-door 5-seater hatchback body, as well as disc brakes on all wheels.

Other technical characteristics include a 1.2-liter inline 4-cylinder engine with a capacity of 57 horsepower, a 4-speed manual transmission, a front independent suspension with transverse leaf springs and a rear suspension with a rigid axle with semi-elliptical springs. The maximum speed that the Primula car was capable of reaching was 135 km/h.

Stellina, a model that was planned to be released with a plastic body and which was intended to become an analogue of the FIAT-6000 and FIAT-850 with a rear engine, never appeared in mass production. The reasons for the failure of the new project were the low power of the proposed engine combined with the unattractive design of the entire car.

In 1967, the Autobianchi company became the property of the FIAT concern, as a result of which cars began to be produced that technically copied FIAT models.

So, in 1969, the A-111 sedan was released - a front-wheel drive small car with a FIAT-1245 engine. A little later, the A-112 model appeared, which gained great popularity - a complete analogue of the FIAT-127 car, although most likely it was the Autobianchi A-112 model that became the predecessor to the development of the FIAT-127. This model was equipped with engines of 0.9 and 1 liter. First presented at the Turin Motor Show, the A-112 was equipped with a 0.9-liter engine with a capacity of 44 horsepower, located at the front. The car also had a manual 4-speed gearbox, independent suspension on all wheels, front disc brakes and rear drum brakes. The maximum speed of the 3-door 4-seater hatchback was 135 km/h.

For two whole years the model was produced only in its original version. Only then did the Elegant modification appear. The only change was a modernized engine with the same volume, but with a power of 58 horsepower. Almost immediately, production of Autobianchi A-112 Abarth cars began, which were equipped with an engine with a displacement of 1.05 liters and a power of 70 horsepower. High popularity among young people forced the car to change its design. This is how the special Junior model appeared.

In 1979, a modified Autobianchi A-112 Elegant was released with a more comfortable interior, improved finishing and electronic ignition. Also produced were sports versions of the Autobianchi A-112 - Championat, the engine power of which was 70 horsepower. These cars took part in a variety of races, where they showed themselves to be among the best.