In 1975 Bertone presented a brand new minibus based on Fiat 850 T mechanics at the Industrial Vehicle Show in Turin. This was a vehicle expressly created for transporting visitors around the Fiat factories, with a limited production run planned. The specific use of the vehicle entailed precise design criteria: small dimensions, the comfort of use, and large window surfaces. A metal strip running all around the vehicle protects it from minor bumps and helps to lower the visual beltline. The interiors, designed to provide maximum comfort for six passengers, are understated and light, with a see-through roof and ample windows, while driving comfort is enhanced by the Fiat 850 T Idroconvert engine. Once again, the flexible approach of the Bertone team had come up with a vehicle that was visually interesting and new, even in the context that of the industrial vehicle, where aesthetics were normally relegated to second place behind functionality.
Fiat had been the first to market with a people carrier, with its 600-based Multipla, superseded by the slightly bigger 850T in 1965. By 1975, MPV was starting to look dated, so it tasked Bertone with penning a replacement. Gandini came up with the Visitors Bus, still based on the 850 platform and complete with six doors for easier access to the three rows of seats. It remained a fully driveable one-off, though, and was used by Fiat for conducting tours of its factories.
Source: www.bertone.it; www.autocar.co.uk
Images: Bertone; Concept Car Central
