Carrozzeria Ghia is a car and bodywork design company founded by Giacinto Ghia and Gariglio as Carrozzeria Ghia in 1916 in Turin, Italy.
They were responsible for the bodywork on many gorgeous sports cars before being purchased by Ford, and they suffered the same fate as Vignale, which is becoming an exotic name for the highest trim level on selected Ford vehicles.
While their work is less common than that of Pininfarina or Italdesign, they were among the first to master the art of dealing with aluminum and other lightweight metals, streamlining bodywork to build quicker, and hence better, automobiles.
They were favorites of race car brands like Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Lancia building aerodynamic car bodies for the race.
Almost all Ghia vehicles have distinct forms and lines that stand out from others making them the coolest in their respective niche.
After Ghia’s inventor, Giacinto Ghia, died, the smooth and rounded lines were popularly known as the “Supersonic.”
As previously said, Ghia does not have a very outstanding portfolio, yet vehicles such as the Volkswagen Karmann-Ghia have had a significant effect on the globe.
They now handle certain concept car ideas for Ford and patiently await their chance to come back to the spotlight but the world seemed to forget why the Ghia name was significant.
They deserve to be recognized for their achievements. So, let’s discuss five of the most popular cars ever produced by Carrozzeria Ghia.
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1. Maserati Ghibli
The Ghibli was one of Maserati’s most successful vintage V8s.
Despite its high price, it was a popular model, becoming one of the best-sellers.
There were basic yet powerful underpinnings behind the lovely exterior, ready to take on the broad road.
It was also one of the most bafflingly misunderstood automobiles of all time.
Although it is frequently compared to the Miura, it was never designed to be a supercar.
It was just an excellent high-speed grand tourer, thanks to its 4.7-liter V8 engine producing 306 hp and allowing it to reach 155 miles per hour.
Maserati Ghibli was created for Ghia by a young Giorgetto Giugiaro. And when you look at it, you can see his effect.
Even after all these years, the car looks totally terrific with its sharp and smooth contours.
Prices for Ghiblis have been rising in recent years, and you’ll need to pay a hefty fortune to possess one of Ghia and Giugiaro’s most stunning works.
2. Lancia Aurelia B20 GT
When the Ghia company was assigned to design the coupe version of Lancia Aurelia it came out to be as more basic and beautiful, establishing an altogether new class of vehicles, the Grand Tourer.
Because of its superior engineering, great handling, and impeccable performance, the Aurelia GT became the first choice of Grand Prix drivers.
Ghia’s design gave the mechanicals credit, with a sleek fastback form emphasized sparingly with basic brightwork and tiny proportions and establishing its way to becoming one of the most famous cars of Carrozzeria-Ghia.
3. Fiat 8V Supersonic
Across the Atlantic, the jet era meant massive fins, massive wraparound windscreens, and massive chromed bumpers, while Italian designers welcomed the zeitgeist more subtly.
The Fiat 8V began as an experiment to develop a huge V6-powered saloon for the American market.
Its engine received a couple more cylinders and a slew of race-derived components.
Fiat was so successful in racing that it decided to put the V8 engine that it had ever manufactured into a grand tourer.
Otto Vu, mistakenly assuming that Ford held the rights to V8, simply altered the order.
Just 114 V8 were produced, and only 15 of them featured bodywork designed for Ghia by Giovanni Savonuzzi.
The Supersonic body, inspired by Alfa Romeo 1900 was later attached to Aston Martin and Jaguar, but it was the balance of the sophisticated Otto Vu’s chassis that best displayed Savonuzzi’s work and proudly became one of the greatest cars of Carrozzeria-Ghia.
4. DeTomaso Pantera
It was an automobile that characterized its period.
Ghia was in charge of creating the DeTomaso Pantera with unknown but talented artist Tom Tjaarda.
He was born in the United States and subsequently moved to Turin, Italy, to pursue his career.
He was involved in the designing of some of the most famous Ghia and DeTomaso vehicles.
Returning to the Pantera, it was a true coach-built Italian vehicle with American muscle.
Pantera was debuted by DeTomaso in 1971 and was produced until 1992 with modest updates.
The Pantera was available with three different Ford V8 engines and was marketed in the United States at Ford-Lincoln dealerships.
5. Volkswagen Karmann Ghia
As the standard of living rose post World War II, Beetle was still being manufactured by Volkswagen but they needed a bit more advanced car to move forward and capitalize on the shifting automotive industry.
As a result, they reached out to skilled manufacturers, artists, designers, and coachbuilders Ghia to manufacture a new super-sporty coupe.
The Karmann-Ghia is a well-balanced automobile with a flowing, seamless form.
It was more than a Beetle in a costume which allowed them to sell over 480,000 Karmann-Ghia because it was inexpensive to buy and maintain.
While it was a fast coupe, it couldn’t win races since its air-cooled engines never delivered impressive power.
Even after that, it remains one of the world’s most attractive cars produced by Carrozzeria-Ghia.
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Based in Orem (Utah) John Paterson graduated from Utah Valley University and has begun writing in 2009. He has a large wealth of experience in writing articles related to cars, automotive repair, wheels, cleaning/maintenance, and much more. He has also written instructional articles in a similar niche for a few online publications as well. Currently, he works as a mechanic in his personal garage shop where he loves serving his countrymen from his heart.
