INNOCENTI

Ferdinando Innocenti established the works in Lambrate in 1933. After the war it was famous for Lambretta scooters, and from 1961 to 1976 it built the BMC (later British Leyland) Mini under licence. The Innocenti Spyder (1961–70) was a re-bodied Austin-Healey Sprite styled by Ghia, built by OSI near Milan, and from 1973 the range included the Regent, a version of the Allegro.

British Leyland took over the company in 1972 and ran out of money three years later. In February 1976 it passed to Alejandro de Tomaso and became Nuova Innocenti. The new Bertone-bodied Mini brought production back to a steady 40,000 a year by the end of the 1970s. Fiat acquired the company in 1990, and the brand was retired in 1996.