While browsing the online catalog of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance sale hosted by Gooding & Company in California in two weeks, I came across a car from an Italian car brand that was unknown to me with coachwork penned by another Italian company also unknown. I love these days when I find wonders like this 1953 Siata 208 CS with an estimated price between $US 1,400,000 and $US 1,800,000. Pure wonder ! 😀

I thought I was done with this sale but no... But with only nine Siata 208S bodied by the Italian coachworker Balbo, it's normal to see them rarely on sale or in car shows, especially on this side of the Atlantic. Did you know one of them Sciata or Balbo ? Both of them?

If you want to see some of the cars sold during Pebble Beach sale on August 13 & 14, here's a follow-up :

Model	Estimated Price	Post
Ferrari 400 SuperAmerica	$US 2,200,000	More
Silver Surfer : Chevrolet Corvette Split-Window Coupe	$US 150,000	More
Silver Surfer : Aston Martin DB5	$US 650,000	More
Silver Surfer : Jaguar E-Type Series I 3.8-Litre Coupe	$US 140,000	More
Silver Surfer : Shelby Cobra 289	$US 900,000	More
Silver Surfer : Maserati Mistral Spider	$US 575,000	More
Silver Surfer : Lamborghini Miura P400 S	$US 1,200,000	More
Silver Surfer : Maserati Ghibli 4.9 SS Coupe	$US 250,000	More
Porsche 934/5	$US 1,300,000	More
Lancia Aurelia B24S	$US 1,300,000	More
Maserati 200 SI	$US 4,000,000	More

History of Siata 208 CS

One of Only Nine Siata 208s Bodied by Balbo and Six Known Extant
Fiat Otto Vu Engine matches the Siata Data Plate
Frame-Off Restoration to Concours Standards
Extremely Accurate and Detailed Throughout, Presented in Its Original Color
A Unique and Highly Eligible Driving Event Entrant

We'll start by introducing the Italian car manufacturer Siata (Società Italiana Auto Trasformazioni Accessori) founded in 1926 in Turin by Giorgio Ambrosini. In the early days, the company sold parts (aftermarket components, speed tuning services and overhead-valve conversions) to upgrade cars produced by Fiat. But after World War II, Siata began producing his own sports cars with the Daina series until mid-70's and the first oil crash.

When Fiat launched the Otto Vu with V8 engine, Siata decided to create a car with the same engine in order to compete against Ferrari and Maserati during races. The engineers developped a lightweight and tubular chassis in order to host the famous engine. The Siata 208S was born. The first examples were penned by Stabilimenti Farina (only six) :

Siata 208 CS Stabilimenti Farina Berlinetta

The car was presented in 1952 during the Torino Motor Show. For the anecdote, the car gained some recognition when Steve McQueen bought one but put on Ferrari badges and called it "his Little Ferrari". 😀 The car was very successful in road races as Mille Miglia, Tour de France Automobile... But at the end of the year Stabilimenti Farina closed and Carrozzeria Successori Balbo produced the nine next coupés.

Carrozzeria Successori Balbo was founded in 1914 in Turin by Alfonso Balbo who produced car based on Fiat Chassis. But, he died suddenly in 1926 and his associate Carlo Follis took over the company. During the 30's, the activity was strong with cars based on the chassis of the Fiat 6C or Lancia Aprilia. But with the WWII, the factory was destroyed. After war, Follis wanted to developped a microcar the Balbo B400. Not very successful... bankruptcy 🙁 (source : coachbuild.com)

This example (072) is one of the nine 208 CS with a coachwork done by Balbo. After a first Italian owner, the car crossed the Altantic in 1964 finished in red. In 2012, the car was completely restored to perfection with its original painting. I hope you have learned about this car or otherwise rediscovered this Italian car manufacturer with this beautiful car...