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1956 Fiat ABARTH 750GT ZAGATO
In a career filled with highlights, Abarth's greatest hits were the various lightweight permutations he'd offer based on Fiat's 600 (and later 500) economy cars. Smaller than the 1100 and rear-engined to boot, the factory-bodied Abarth 750s were wildly successful in their day and remain a staple at vintage races all over the world. When new, these and the top-of-the-line 750GT Zagato coupe variant seen here so impressed American enthusiasts that one of FDR's sons, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Jr., jumped onboard as Abarth's U.S. importer (through his Roosevelt Automobile Company of Washington, D.C.) in the mid-1950s. (In an interesting sidelight, FDR Junior moved to peddling tuned Fiats right after his national political career went up in smoke for crossing New York's Tammany Hall.)