Buzzi Brezzi

Behind the double name are two fellow students: Fabio Buzzi, then a young engineer, designed the off-roader for his degree thesis and built it together with Domenico Brezzi. The two set themselves one rule: to use only mechanical parts already available on the market – that way a small series could be built without making any parts of their own. Engine, gearboxes and suspension therefore come from the Fiat 500 Giardiniera, the brakes from the Fiat 500 F.

The driveline is the remarkable part. The Giardiniera engine – 499.5 cm³ and 17.5 hp – lies flat beneath the front seats. Behind it two Giardiniera gearboxes work in series, their ratios combining with one another: the result is ten forward gears and four reverse gears. The lowest running speed is 3.5 km/h, and the vehicle will climb gradients of up to 100 per cent. Only the rear wheels are driven.

The frame is a double cradle of electrically welded steel sections of various profiles. On it sits a markedly angular body of 1 mm steel sheet, cold-folded, welded and spot-welded. The side panel folds down, and the four rear seats face one another: together with the two front seats, six people can be carried. Beyond that there is 300 kg of payload, at 620 kg unladen and 2.73 metres in length.

The prototype was available to anyone who wanted to take up small-series production – which never happened. It remained a one-off.