Fiat 2800 Belvedere Borsani

The Fiat 2800 Belvedere bodied by Carrozzeria Borsani was a one-off vehicle constructed in 1940 on the chassis of the Fiat 2800 Berlina. The 2800 series, introduced in 1938, was Fiat’s most advanced and prestigious passenger car of the interwar period, developed to serve both civilian and institutional needs. It featured a front-mounted, 2.852-litre inline six-cylinder engine producing approximately 85 horsepower at 4,000 rpm, mated to a four-speed manual gearbox and mounted on a 3,200 mm wheelbase chassis. The Belvedere variant executed by Borsani was based on the standard 2800 Berlina but carried a coachbuilt body distinct from the factory-offered versions. The Milanese coachbuilder Borsani, active in the pre-war period, was known for producing limited-production and bespoke bodies, generally to private commission. The Belvedere designation in this context refers to a fully enclosed, extended-roof touring saloon with enhanced outward visibility, a term also used by other Italian carrozzerie of the time for similar body styles. No official chassis number has been attributed to this specific example in published records, and no engine or body tag identification has been recovered. The car’s original registration details are likewise undocumented. Period photography shows a formal, high-roofed four-door body with minimal embellishment and integrated fenders, conforming to conservative design norms of the late 1930s and early 1940s. The body construction appears to be primarily in steel, consistent with limited-series production methods of the time. The Fiat 2800 was used extensively by the Italian state, including in Torpedo configuration for royal and governmental service. However, the Borsani-bodied Belvedere variant was not part of these official fleets and appears to have been privately commissioned. Approximately 624 units of the Fiat 2800 series were produced between 1938 and 1944. Of these, very few received non-standard coachwork. The Fiat 2800 Belvedere by Borsani does not appear in contemporary historic vehicle registries. No known examples are preserved in public collections, and its current status is unknown. It is considered lost unless further documentation or physical evidence emerges. The vehicle remains a documented example of pre-war Italian coachbuilding applied to Fiat’s executive-class chassis.