1964 ASA 1000

ASA 1000 GT, 1962 to 1967

The ASA (Autocostruzioni Società per Azioni) 1000 GT is known as the 'baby Ferrari', for good reason. In the late 1950s, Enzo Ferrari was aware of the wealth gap in Italy between north and south, and toyed with the idea of building a car that was more affordable to the middle classes. One answer, known as the 'Mille', was unveiled at the 1961 Turing motor show. A Bertone coupe, the body design was based on the tubular chassis of the Ferrari racers of the time such as the 250 GTO, and the engine, a straight four-cylinder twin-cam 1032cc engine was derived from the Colombo Ferrari V-12, putting out a very respectable 91hp and a top speed of 118mph.

Ferrari decided not to progress with the model, so the design was bought by Oronzio de Nora who established ASA in Milan to build the car. Run by his son Nicolo, and with the direction of Giotto Bizzarrini, the first production model was shown at the Turin show in 1962, with deliveries commencing of both coupes and cabriolets in 1964.

The build quality was, as would be expected, exceptional but very costly. Despite Il Commendatore's patronage, the car didn't sell as well as expected. By the end of 1965, ASA tried to revive the brand by redesigning the (now alloy-bodied) car and increasing engine size to 1092cc, creating the ultra-rare 411 Berlinetta.

By 1967, only around 70 cars had been built: 50 or so coupes (the majority of which were exported to the US), 14 cabriolets and a handful of Berlinetta 411s. It was not enough to sustain the company.

Today, the ASA 1000GT presents as an exceptionally rare small coupe. It is delicate in its appearance, but has unmistakeably thoroughbred heritage: the interior, dials and switches are pure Ferrari of the era. Despite having a much smaller engine, the motor delivers a wonderful sound and plenty of performance for the lightweight body. Any restoration must be partaken with the understanding that almost everything, (from the Borrani wheels to the Dunlop brakes and Jaeger gauges) was custom-made for the company.

Period alternatives to this rare car are minimal. The heritage of the ASA is obvious in the Ferrari 250 Pininfarina, and the Abarth 2200 shares the elegant styling and small numbers. For slightly more well-known cars, the Alfa Romeo 2000 (102 series) Sprint and Spider offer grand touring thrills if not the exclusivity.