In 1990 to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the birth of F.S.A. the “60 YR” car was produced in a limited series, recalling in the external forms the sports category cars produced by the company in the 30s.
The 60 YR was a two-seat coupé with luxury interiors, aluminum bodywork, viscous LSD and ABS that fitted a refined version of the 1900cc injection engine, previously mounted on the Hybla, which delivered 127 Hp and 171 Nm of torque.
The car was produced in only 60 units all booked by the most important and loyal customers of the F.S.A.
So far I have narrated the cars built with the F.S.A brand or in any case in factories owned by the same, such as that of Xèrem in Brazil, but now I will talk about the cars and vehicles produced under other brands of which F.S.A. it held the majority of the equity package or the SVEL (Società veicoli da lavoro) of Messina, which produced vans and commercial vehicles, and the Autosud of Caserta that produced small cars with basic interiors from 1960 to 1980 when it was integrated into the F.S.A. to produce the “Nica 900”.
In 1959 the F.S.A acquired 60% of Auto Sud with a factory in Caserta and in 1960 the “Golfo 600” model was presented, a utility car with a 767cc (28hp) rear engine born as an alternative to the rival FAT 600D.
In the first months of sales, deliveries were even higher than those of the cheaper, but also more spartan FAT “600D”, the bodywork, which recalled the most prestigious Lanassa, and the best finishes and, above all, the possibility of buy it in with mortgage payment offered by Auto Sud.
The Golfo 600 was sold from 1960 to 1969.
In the second half of the sixties the F.S.A. he was faced with the worrying penetration of the “Minima” market in Italy, which, having bypassed the obstacle of customs duties with the construction of the car at the Innocenti factories, was very successful in sales among young people and, above all, among female users.
In that market sector the F.S.A. did not have a model capable of competing in terms of image and technical conception with the revolutionary Anglo-Italian utility vehicle; therefore it was decided to propose, through the subsidiary Auto SUd, a small car, with an elegant appearance and equipped with modern front-wheel drive.
In 1969 the Posillipo 900 model was presented, a car with basic interiors, a 903cc front engine that gave 42 hp, FWD traction and a 4-speed manual gearbox.
In 1974 the second series of the Posillipo called 960 was presented, which in addition to the introduction of plastic in the bumpers and in the moldings of a new front grille and new rear lights mounted the new 965cc engine that brought the power to 46 hp.
The Possipo was produced, in the two series, from 1969 to 1979.
(in the photos Posillipo 900, in red, and Posillipo 960, in green)
Also in 1974, the sports division of Auto Sud produced the Posillipo 960 TRP which fitted the 1050cc engine that supplied 70 hp and became the car at the base of a single-brand rally trophy that was held from 1974 to 1980.
In 1954 the F.S.A. took over from the subsidiary SVEL a van factory based in Messina.
The project called SVEL F1, furgone1, was started, and in 1955 it materialized with the release of the new van called “Messene”.
The “Messene” "was equipped with a 1181cc front 4-cylinder valve engine that produced 45 hp and which combined with a four-speed manual gearbox and a large load compartment made it an excellent sales success until 1961 when it was replaced from a new model.
In 1960 SVEL presented the new light delivery van called “Zancle” which compared to the old model had these improvements:
adoption of the monocoque, front brake discs and progressive springs in addition to the engine increased to 1281cc with 49hp and 92 nm of torque.
The first series of the “Zancle” was produced from 1960 to 1965 and was a very good vehicle and achieved excellent sales success and was produced under license also in Archana.
In 1966 the second series of the “Zancle” was released … to be continued …
In 1966 the SVEL presented the “Zancle B” restyling model of the previous one (new position lights, new front grille, new rear lights and bolts in the front bumper) but enhanced thanks to the adoption of the FWD transmission and the double carburetor which led to a greater driveability and an increase in power to 50 hp and 95 Nm.
(in the photos an ambulanza, medical van in italian language, version of Zancle B)
In 1975 the “Peloro” van was introduced, the F3 internal name, from the SVEL which fitted the 1351cc boxer engine, the same as that of the Jonia, which produced 70 hp and for the first time came equipped with power steering, AM radio and gearbox five gears.
In 1985 the second series of the “Peloro” was presented which was a restyling of the previous one, new front and rear lights, but fitted the new 1500cc Boxer engine that produced 82 hp and for the first time had the side door with sliding opening instead of the 'compass opening.
The “peloro” was sold until 1991 and was the last van produced by SVEL before the closure of the factory and the sale of machinery in China.
In 1990 the management of the industrial group owner of the F.S.A. was arrested for giving bribes in exchange for military supplies and for falsifying budgets.
The F.S.A. is commissioned and to avoid bankruptcy it was forced to sell to the FAT the Caserta plant, where Nica was produced, and to sell the machinery of the SVEL plant in Messina to the Indian government.
These sacrifices made it possible to save the factories in Palermo and Catania, which in 1992 were sold to the multinational Hyundia that it intended to do with the F.S.A. the brand for its premium and luxury cars from its automotive division.
The first model of the new course was the luxury GT Coupé with four seats called “Katane” was produced from 1992 to 1997 and was also developed in the GT2 version for the 1995 and 1996 seasons.
In 1992 the FSA “Katane” was presented at the Turin auto show, a GT coupé with four luxurious seats driven by a transversally mounted six-cylinder 3.6L boxer engine aspirated with multi-point EFI capable of producing 244 hp and generating a speed of 247 km / h.
To control this power the “Katane” was given an advanced automatic gearbox with Geared LSD, disc brakes and ABS but comfort and drivability were not neglected thanks to power steering, FWD and suspension with Air spring and adaptive dumpers.
In 1995 the F.S.A. created the “Katane GT2” version that fitted the same 3.6-liter boxer engine aspirated but processed to produce 439 hp and differed from the basic model for manual transmission, the absence of ABS (not allowed by the GT2 rules) and the presence of two sport seats. Outwardly, lips, diffuser and ailerons were added, in addition to oversize exhausts.
in the photo the Katane 3600 GT2 just left the factory and painted with the livery of ITALICA CORSE.
In 1992 the F.S.A. presented the “Trinacria” model a premium sedan in line with the tradition of the brand.
The main features of the model are the front-mounted transverse engine with FWD transmission and automatic gears.
Disc brakes on all four wheels with ABS.
4 premium seats with radio and cassettes and Power steering.
The "Trinacria was available in two LN versions, which fitted the 2000cc four-cylinder naturally aspirated and with EFI Multi point which produced 124 Hp, and LX, which fitted the 2492cc V6 naturally aspirated with multi piont EFI which produced 162 Hp.
(LN, in red, LX, in yellow)
The trinacria was produced until 1998 and was a good sales success.
In 1993 the F.S.A. the “Trinacria TS D2” model made its debut at the CIS, the Italian super touring championship.
The car on the outside differed from the standard model due to the presence of lips along the entire perimeter of the car and to the addition of the rear wing.
The most important mechanical changes were the 5-speed manual gearbox and the geared differential LSD and the ABS removal.
The 2000cc four-cylinder engine was developed by the racing section of the F.S.A. and came to deliver 238 hp that allowed the car to reach 236 km / h and accelerate from 0-100 in 6.43 seconds.
The “Trinacria TS D2” was also used in the British BTCC but the greatest successes were the two CET championships won in Spain in 1995 and 1997.
(In the photos the car of Tony Vidali, in the livery of the sponsor “pagine gialle”, which debuted in 1993 at the CIS championship)
in 1993 the F.S.A. produced the version of the “Trinacria” to run in the DTM.
The car as allowed by the generous regulation employed very high quality components and technologies: such as the fiber glass in the bodywork, the multilink suspension at the rear, the ventilated disc brakes, the traction control and the active wings combined with the V6 2492cc DOHC 32 valve engine aspirated that supplied 400 hp.
(in the photos the “trinacria DTM” winner with the pilot P. Sarti in 1993)
The “trinacria DTM” won the drivers’ championship in 1993 and came second in 1994 and 1995
The third generation of the Jonia was unveiled to the public in 1994 by the then CEO of the Group F.S.A.
Jonia had an unusual line, thanks to the design by C. Bagli, and was based on the Type C platform developed by the Hunday Group for all C-segment vehicles.
The mechanical scheme was simple and refined at the same time: transverse engine with block gearbox and independent MacPherson-type 4-wheel suspension at the front and torsion beam at the rear connected by a stabilizer bar.
The brakes were disc-shaped at the front and drum at the rear but they were equipped with ABS and there was also a hydraulic power steering.
The interiors consisted of 4 standard seats with cassette players and radios.
The body was available in a single color or with black plastic bumpers.
La Jonia was produced from 1994 to 2001 with a restyling, addition of lips, rear lights with dual indicators and front grill link, in 1998.
The engines available were the 1,400cc 4-cylinder engine both in the 90 hp naturally aspirated version and the 100 hp turbocharged version which allowed it to arrive from 0-100 in 10.7 seconds and 9.78 seconds.
The Jonia had a great success among young people who were looking for a car with low consumption but excellent performance.
the Jonia 1300 with naturally aspirated engine
the Jonia 1300 with turbo engine and body restyling.
Considering that it only makes 10 more horsepower than the 90-hp base model, it seems redundant. However, a junior hot hatch version with a 120-horsepower normally aspirated engine would be nice to have; its lack of weight would be a big benefit for such an application.
276/5000
The 90 hp naturally aspirated engine is a compromise between weight, power and fuel consumption
and the turbo is deliberately kept at 100 hp both to limit fuel consumption and because a more thrusting version will be the entry-level engine of its big sister that I will be posting in the coming days
The Agrigentum model (Project 907) was a sedan with four premium seats produced by the Italian automaker F.S.A. from 1997 to 2005 and was also marketed in the Sportwagon version (2001-2005).
The Agrigentum was a car characterized by a particularly harmonious and at the same time aggressive line, bearing the signature of E. Bagli. The car had a soft line made up of taut lines and wide radius connections.
The interiors also brought the same stylistic conception of the exterior: very soft lines characterize the entire dashboard and two large circular elements constituted the dashboard in front of the pilot. Three small circular instruments on the central plank follow the tradition of the house. The steering wheel, unpublished, incorporates the airbag and, optionally, could have a wooden crown.
The Agrigentum had independent suspensions on all four wheels, McPherson at the front and Double Wishbone at the rear, the 5-speed automatic transmission with differential geared LSD, the disc brakes and the Hydraulic Power steering with TC + ABS.
The engines available were the 4-cylinder naturally aspirated 1998cc with Multi point EFI that produced 165 hp and allowed to reach 220 Km and accelerate from 0-100 to 9.19s.
There was also a motorized version with a 2.5 liter V6 but which was built in only 3000 units only at the request of some US retailers.
In 2001 the facelift of Agrigentum was presented which, keeping the mechanics unchanged, had new headlights both at the front and rear, new infotainment services and a new two-zone automatic climate control system.
The 1998cc engine, thanks to the new direct injection system, delivered 172 hp which allowed it to reach 222 km h and accelerate from 0-100 to 9.06s.
But the real novelty of 2001 was the new Sport Wagon version, a crossover halfway between Station Wagon and SUV that, thanks to the 187 hp of the 2492cc V6 direct injection engine, reached a speed of 225 km and accelerated from 0-100 to 8.70 s
coming soon the versions of Agrigentum to the Tourism races championship.
A refined mechanical elaboration characterizes the Agrigentum D2 Superturismo, in harmony with the regulation, which allows interventions on the engine, transmission and aerodynamics.
The engine is a two-liter Twin Spark 16 valve. Base and headboard are derived from the 2.0 series. Instead, pistons and connecting rods that have been specifically designed for competitions, as well as the dry sump lubrication circuit, change. The electronic ignition and injection system is managed by a specific control unit.
In collaboration with the Hunday Research Center, the intake and exhaust manifolds have been modified to have maximum performance between 7000 and 8500 rpm, the maximum rotation limit allowed by the technical regulation, which requires a specific limiter.
The position of the engine also changes, positioned lower down and back towards the rear of the car, to ensure better weight distribution and reduce inertia without losing traction.
The transmission, designed in collaboration with X-TRAC, is a six-speed transmission with front clutches. The differential is self-locking, with slats with viscous joint in parallel.
Despite the processing, the Agrigentum D2 Superturismo maintains a remarkable resemblance to the standard model. In addition to the original arrangement of the mechanical parts, the regulation requires, in fact, to maintain the same suspension pattern, allowing only the use of shock absorbers and springs designed for competitions.
The braking system has been enhanced with the adoption of self-ventilating discs.
Finally, the Agrigentum D2 Superturismo has a rubber fuel tank and a tubular cage roll-bar, with the dual function of safety and stiffening of the body.
The interventions on the bodywork are those allowed by the regulation: a front lips and a rear wing, with measurements set by the FIA.
