Born in Turin in 1904, thanks to the initiative of one of the Ceirano’s brothers, Matteo, Itala immediately proved to be a solid company, able to produce beautiful, sturdy, reliable and fast cars. Its fame reached a peak with the victory obtained in the Beijing to Paris race in 1907. Its designers, Balloco, Orasi, and most of all Cappa, devised brilliant and anticipatory solutions. Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia, later the founder of MAUTO, was in charge of its advertising and technical communication with highly impactful advertising images. Yet the excessively high manufacturing costs and a management which already in 1913 had lost its balance, led to a long period of distress, which in 1931 ended with the final closure of what could have been the “second Fiat”.
