Gilco 1100 Zagato

1949 Fiat-Gilco 1100 Zagato

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 12, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Gilberto Colombo began building lightweight automotive chassis right after WWII. It was an extension of his father’s tube-manufacturing company and eventually Gilco became a company in its own right. They were famous for building chassis for racing cars for the likes of Alfa Romeo and Ferrari.

In 1949, Gilco wanted to build a car to race in the famous Mille Miglia. They produced a chassis called the 205MM and before they ever went racing they changed their focus and decided to build a limited-edition roadster. Using a Fiat 1100 1.1-liter straight-four, Gilco reached out to Zagato to get a racing body designed.

And then it all stopped. Only this one prototype was ever built. It was restored in Germany within the last three years and is now a driveable footnote in Italian automotive history. Why the car is called a Fiat-Gilco 1100 Zagato and not a Gilco 205MM Zagato makes it kind of seem like Gilco is getting a little shortchanged. At any rate, it carries a pre-sale estimate of $245,000-$310,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

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