Coachbuilding is a subject of deep interest to many aficionados and students of the motor car and its history, even though the golden age of individually coachbuilt bodies is now long in the past. In the 1920s and ’30s a substantial proportion of car manufacturers around Europe, large and small, relied on coachbuilders to design and produce the bodies on their chassis. When it came to the grand marques such as Hispano-Suiza or Isotta Fraschini, it was the customer, not the factory, who decided which coachbuilder he would select for the task, and he would spend time with the chosen firm’s designers in order to arrive jointly at a design and specification to suit his tastes and requirements. After the Second World War, this type of business was in steep decline, replaced by collaborations between car manufacturers and bodywork design and build companies to produce bodies in numbers, or in volume.
From ACB of Paris (1934-91) to Zschau of Leipzig (1878-1939), by way of great names like Ghia, Erdmann & Rossi, Kellner, Pininfarina, Saoutchik and Zagato, this is an alphabetical reference guide to the major coachbuilders of western continental Europe – Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland.
The A-Z entries provide details of the history, activities and specialities of each coachbuilder, including the marques they bodied, while the book’s broad time span encompasses both the great era of hand-crafted bodies and the more recent field of conversions and special bodywork. More than 450 illustrations are included, tracing the evolution of car body design though most of the twentieth century
Informacja dotycząca wprowadzenia produktu do obrotu:
Ten produkt został wprowadzony na rynek przed 13 grudnia 2024 r. zgodnie z obowiązującymi wówczas przepisami (Dyrektywą o ogólnym bezpieczeństwie produktów). W związku z tym może on być nadal sprzedawany bez konieczności dostosowania do nowych wymogów wynikających z Rozporządzenia o Ogólnym Bezpieczeństwie Produktów (GPSR). Produkt zachowuje pełną legalność w obrocie, a jego jakość i bezpieczeństwo pozostają zgodne z obowiązującymi wcześniej standardami.
Information regarding product placement on the market:
This product was placed on the market before December 13, 2024, in accordance with the applicable regulations at the time (the General Product Safety Directive). As a result, it can continue to be sold without needing to meet the new requirements introduced by the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR). The product remains fully compliant with all previously valid legal standards, ensuring its continued quality and safety.