Moretti 1

Moretti's own cars
(not based on third party mechanicals)


Cita

Moretti CitaAppearing first in 1946, the 'Cita' (or dialect for 'small') was a two-seat micro-car with a front-engine and rear-wheel drive. The chassis used square section steel tube, the front suspension was independent and leaf springs were used at the rear. Brakes were fitted to all four wheels, and a 6V electrical system was employed. The engine itself was a 250cc air-cooled boxer unit. In 1948 it changed to a 350cc (58x62mm) water-cooled unit with 14HP @ 4,500rpm and cabriolet, estate and canvas rooved versions were added to the range. It had a wheelbase of 1780mm, front and rear tracks of 1000mm (length 3000mm, width 1100mm, height 1240mm) and a weight of 460kg.
 
 

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600

In 1949 Moretti launched the new 600. This was a relatively conventional car with a front mounted 592cc water-cooled four-cylinder engine driving the rear wheels. The chassis remained from square-section steel tube whilst the wheelbase was up to 2000mm and the weight now 510kg. It was available as a 4-seat saloon, a 2-seat coupe and a spider.

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750

Moretti 750 (first series)First seen in 1953, the 750 was a larger version of the 600. The chassis was lengthened to give a wheelbase of 2160mm whilst the engine became a 748cc unit (still four-cylinder water-cooled) with 27bhp. Drive went to the rear wheels via a four-speed gearbox with a column mounted shift. The suspension used a transverse leaf spring with lower wishbones at the front and a live axle with leaf springs at the rear. Drum brakes were fitted all round. Saloon, coupe and estate versions were made by Moretti, and later they added a small truck to the range.

There followed a wide variety of cars based on the 750 using either both the chassis and mechanicals or just the engine, including a coupe by Zagato, various coupe designs by Moretti, numerous barchetta's and a sport spider. Single seaters were also made, including a rear-engined version, generally most such cars were known as the '750 Sport'. For some of these cars a twin-cam Moretti 750 Tour du Monde Superpanoramicaversion of the 750 engine was developed and 'bialbero' was added to the name of the car (ie '750 Bialbero Sport'). See also below for the version built for the 1956 Mille Miglia.

After a few years the design was heavily revised. There emerged four-door saloons and estates, two different two-door, two-seat coupes, a pick-up, a van, a six-seat taxi and two spiders. These models are generally recogniseable by the presence of a wide swathe of contrasting colour along the flanks. Whitewall tyres were fitted on most models. Some versions were known as 'Tour du Monde' and/or 'Superpanoramica'. The engine was still the 748cc unit, now with 35bhp, whilst the chassis remained essentially unchanged (shortened slightly to a wheelbase of 2150mm). Engines with 43bhp and 50bhp were available in some models (such as the 'Spider Super Turismo' and 'Spider Gran Turismo' respectively).

There are a variety of pictures available from the owners manual as follows :
Front and rear suspension, engine, chassis, dimensions, cockpit, lubrification points.

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750 S Mille Miglia Barchetta

Moretti 750S Mille Miglia Barchetta Two or three examples of this pretty little two seater were built during 1955. Two were entered in the 1956 Mille Miglia,driven by Branca and Garibaldi. The chassis was a tubular construction by Gilco with a wheelbase of 1880mm, whilst the body was in aluminium. It was fitted with a 748cc (60x66mm) dohc engine with twin Weber carburettors generating 75bhp @ 8000rpm, giving it a maximum speed of around 175km/h. Suspension was independent at the front and used a rigid axle at the rear. Braking used drums all round. The weight was around 800kg.
 
 

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750 Sport Coupé

Moretti 750 Sport Coupé, photo thanks to Bucciarelli A small number, probably somewhere between 20 and 50, of this coupé based on the 750 were built during 1954. They were raced in various countries, including the USA where the example pictured was originally used and is currently competing. In 1954 the competition version of the 748cc dohc engine with its two twin Weber carburettors produced around 75bhp @ 8000rpm.
The cars featured minor design differences between one another, and a version with a bodywork by Zagato was also made.

 

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1200 & 1500

Shortly after the release of the 750, in 1954 Moretti introduced the 1200. Using a 1204cc twin-cam engine with 62bhp, it was built with various coupe bodies (at least four different versions) and (in 1955) as a 'Spider Sport', again with various different bodystyles.
Later in the 1950's Moretti also built some 2+2 Coupes with a 1470cc dohc engine, producing 120bhp. Versions included the 1500 Coupe Tipo America, the 1500 E G.T. and the 1500 E G.T. Veloce - Golden Arrow, the latter with two twin carburettors.

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