Davide puts the spot on Fiat 500 Custom Models - Part 18: 500 Frua Spider

Pietro Frua was the father of the 500 Spider, i.e. the roadster version of the Fiat 500. He was born on 1 May 1913 in Turin and belonged to a kind of car body makers that has died out in the meantime, i.e. those who designed and built unique vehicles, almost always for wealthy customers in search of an exclusive car, or for car manufacturers needing a prototype for a new model. Both kinds of customers held Frua in high esteem for the elegance and the particular craftsmanship that set his creations apart.

The beginnings of Frua’s career as an automobile designer reach back to pre-war times, after he had gained valuable experience at Stabilimenti Farina. He opened his own workshop to avoid unemployment and made it through World War II by preparing and fitting sheets for third-party companies. After the war, he could dedicate himself again to the work he actually loved: Designing and building prototypes, which were always very successful. Pietro Frua was a very talented man, boasting an incomparable ingenuity and a distinctive sense for proportions. Frua’s custom designs were never gaudy or obtrusive, but characterised by their stylistic sobriety, which was appreciated by connoisseurs who valued them adequately.

In 1946, Frua entered a partnership with Fiat, which eventually led to the production of the Fiat 1100C Spider, a sports car that ranked second in the Concorso d’eleganza di Villa d’Este in 1947. But it was only the cooperation with Maserati that finally took the Frua brand to a new level. With Maserati, Frua achieved great success and earned an excellent reputation, especially for the Maserati A6G/54 Coupé from 1955, an elegant sports car with a six-cylinder two-litre engine. Between 1950 and 1951, the designer created 26 models including spiders, coupés and saloons that further contributed to the success of the Frua brand worldwide.