Vignales and Ferraris at Pebble Beach

Story by Brandes Elitch
Photos by Bob Goldberg

Here we will focus on Vignale, which was a feature in the 2026 Pebble Beach Concours d ‘Elegance, but include photos of Ferraris from other classes at the event.

I consider the pinnacle of Italian custom coachbuilding to be from the period of roughly 1950-1965 and there was a lot to see here. Vignale has an interesting history, starting his career at age 12 as an apprentice panel beater. At age 17 he was hired by Farina, and at age 32 he started Carrozzeria Vignale, which lasted for 22 years. He was not a designer, but he could look at a design drawing and build it in metal, delegating the actual designing to Michelotti. The styling of each car is remarkably different, and you must study it for a while to see the details. Each one is more beautiful than the one before.

Vignale really got its start in 1946, when Dusio contracted Stabilimenti Farina, Pinin Farina and Vignale to construct bodies for the Cisitalia 202, one of the most famous automobile designs ever.

A Touch of Dante’s Genius: The Cisitalia

A big event occurred in 1950 when Vignale constructed the first Ferrari body, and for the next 4 years Vignale built a series of stunning bodies on Ferrari chassis. Interestingly, Vignale Ferraris won the Mille Miglia in 1951, 1952, and 1953!

Vignale was not a designer or stylist, he was, in the words of some people who study this subject, a “panel beater.” Vignale could envision how to construct and build a body, which was designed by Michelotti. The combined genius of these two men meant that they could design, construct, and manufacture a one-off custom body from start to finish in less than a month. The collaboration continued until 1962, when Michelotti started his own Carrozzeria.

Vignale also bodied around 20 Lancia Aurelias, perhaps in my opinion even more sophisticated than a Ferrari, and Americans are often surprised to learn that Vignale built about 25 Cunningham cars for Briggs Cunningham, the only true authentic GT American car of the early fifties.

However, changes in the Italian automobile industry meant that work slowed down for Vignale, and the firm went into administration in 1969. Shortly thereafter, Alejandro de Tomaso acquired the majority of Vignale. In 1970 Ford took over De Tomaso which gave them the Vignale factory to manufacture the Pantera. But Vignale was finished by 1973. Vignale had already perished in a car crash on November 16 1969.

Ferrari Vignale

Other Vignale bodied cars

Additional Ferraris at Pebble Beach