page_title: Fiat S.p.A.
section_title: United States
hierarchical_section_title: Fiat S.p.A. / Enterprises outside Italy / United States
caption_attribution_description: English: 1912 Fiat Type 55 Fleetwood Roadster entering the 2019 Greenwich Concours d'Elegance. A different car than the 1914 Type 56 Riviera listed in the programme, but I am not going to complain. This was largely identical to the Tipo 5 Fiat sold in Europe, but built in Fiat's Poughkeepsie plant. Chassis no F5426.
context_page_description: Fiat S.p.A., or Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino, was an Italian holding company whose original and core activities were in the automotive industry, and that was succeeded by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV. The Fiat Group contained many brands such as Ferrari, Maserati, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, the Chrysler Group, and many more. On 29 January 2014, it was announced that Fiat S.p.A. was to be merged into a new Netherlands-based holding company Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, taking place before the end of 2014. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles became the new owner of Fiat Group. On 1 August 2014, Fiat S.p.A. received necessary shareholder approval to proceed with the merger. The merger became effective 12 October 2014.
  Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors, including Giovanni Agnelli. During its more than century-long history, Fiat has also manufactured railway engines and carriages, military vehicles, farm tractors, and aircraft. In 2013, Fiat was the second largest European automaker by volumes produced, and the seventh in the world ahead of Honda, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Suzuki, Renault, and Daimler AG.
context_section_description: The American F.I.A.T. Automobile Company was founded by American licensees in 1909 as a response to 45 percent tariffs on imported automobiles. The plant was finished in the spring of 1910 and the first car rolled off the production line in September 1910; all Poughkeepsie Fiats were built with parts shipped from Italy although they usually received locally made bodywork by companies like Holbrook, Quinby, or Fleetwood. American F.I.A.T. focused on the larger and more luxurious end of the range, with the smaller Types 51 and 52 (Tipo 1 and 2) only available to order as fully built-up imports.
  The first model offered was the Type 54, corresponding to the European Tipo 4. This has a 5,699 cc (348 cu in) four-cylinder engine (itself called "Tipo 54A") and rode on a 124 in (3.15 m) wheelbase; it was manufactured until 1914 or 1915. This was joined by the large and expensive Type 56 in 1912, a seven-passenger touring car reserved for the American market. This model has a six-cylinder version of the Type 54 engine, displacing 8,549 cc (522 cu in) and mounted in a chassis with a 135 in (3.43 m) wheelbase. In 1913 the Type 55 arrived (although some Type 55s appear to have been sold in 1912), slightly shorter than the Type 56 with a 128 in (3.25 m) wheelbase but with a massive 9,017 cc (550 cu in) four-cylinder engine. This car was largely identical to the European Tipo 5 and was also manufactured for export. In 1914 the fourth and final American Fiat was introduced, the smaller Type 53 - the equivalent of the Italian Tipo 3 Ter. This has a 4,396 cc (268 cu in) four-cylinder engine and a 116 in (2.95 m) wheelbase. The Tipo 53 was built until 1916, while the 55 and 56 were manufactured until 1917, although late 55s seem to have been sold as "1918s" and they did appear in new-car catalogues that year. Fiat Italy took over the American operation in 1917 and reduced the lineup to the Type 55, now sitting on a 140 in (3.56 m) wheelbase. NACC tax horsepower figures were 30 hp for the Type 54, 45 for the Type 56, 42 for the Type 55, and 25 hp for the Type 53. Actual outputs were higher, ranging from 40 hp (30 kW) for the Type 53 to 75 hp (56 kW) for the big Types 55 and 56.
  Output was never very large, Fiats being very expensive cars at the time, with annual production averaging around 350 cars. Once the United States entered the war, no more car parts were arriving from Italy and production was halted. There were plans for restarting production after the war but they came to naught and the plant was sold to Duesenberg in February 1918. Duesenberg proceeded to transfer the machinery to their plant in Elizabeth, NJ, to build aircraft engines. At the beginning of 1928 the facilities changed hands again, now belonging to truck manufacturers Larrabee Motor Truck Co. who transferred their activities there from Binghamton. The building went on to serve various functions, being part of the Marist College campus for a while, and was tore down in 1997.
caption: American-made Fiat Type 55 Fleetwood Roadster
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