Renault Dauphine Cabriolet Allemano

The Renault Dauphine Cabriolet by Carrozzeria Allemano was a limited-production, coachbuilt variant of the standard Dauphine saloon designed by Michelotti. Commissioned in the late 1950s, the model reflected a broader mid-century European practice in which automobile manufacturers partnered with specialist coachbuilders to develop open-bodied derivatives of mass-produced vehicles. Allemano, based in Turin, executed the conversion on bare chassis supplied by Renault. The Dauphine was introduced in 1956 as a rear-engine, four-door economy car intended to succeed the Renault 4CV. The Allemano cabriolet retained the standard mechanical layout of the base model, including the rear-mounted, water-cooled four-cylinder engine of 845 cubic centimetres, known as the Ventoux engine. Power output remained in the range of 30 to 32 horsepower, transmitted through a three-speed manual gearbox. Certain examples may have been equipped with the electromagnetic Ferlec semi-automatic system, as offered on the standard Dauphine during this period. The conversion involved structural modifications to compensate for the loss of the fixed roof. The A-pillars were reinforced, the rear quarter panels were revised to accommodate the folding fabric top, and the door frames were reconfigured. The frontal and rear design elements were retained from the production sedan, with only minor alterations to accommodate the new body format. Interior specifications varied and were typically adapted to the requirements of individual clients or regional markets. The exact number of Allemano-bodied Dauphine cabriolets is not known with certainty. Contemporary sources and surviving documentation suggest a total not exceeding ten units. The limited production and the absence of a factory catalogue listing indicate that the model was intended as a boutique offering rather than a series production vehicle. Known examples have been recorded in private collections, with at least one unit believed to have been assembled or modified in Argentina under the auspices of Industrias Kaiser Argentina (IKA), Renault’s South American partner. No chassis numbers have been consistently published. The model remains one of the least-documented variants of the Dauphine platform and is primarily of interest due to its rarity, its independent coachbuilt origins, and its representation of Franco-Italian collaboration in post-war automobile design.