Iso Fidia: the four-door Iso that cost more than a Rolls-Royce

The Iso Fidia was the only four-door car the Italian maker Iso Automoveicoli ever produced. Launched as the Iso Rivolta S4 in 1967 and renamed Fidia in 1969, it combined Giugiaro styling, hand-stitched leather and American V8 power in a saloon priced above a Rolls-Royce.

Iso Fidia at a glance

History of the Iso Fidia

The Fidia was first presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1967 under the name Iso Rivolta S4, and it remained the only four-door model from Iso. Production started some time after that first showing, and the European press launch took place in Athens in February 1969, more than a year later. By then fifteen cars had already been built, and it was only at that launch that the car swapped the “S4” name for the more euphonious “Fidia”. The name belonged to the artist who, some twenty-four centuries earlier, had supervised the friezes of the Parthenon, which explains the choice of Athens — although the locally available fuel was of too low an octane for the car given to journalists, and the test drive was marked by horrible pinking.

The body design was the work of Giorgetto Giugiaro, then at Ghia, and the interior featured polished wood and hand-stitched leather. High development costs pushed the purchase price above that of a Rolls-Royce, and the car was marketed as a unique combination of comfort and sporting performance with the slogan “Le quattro poltrone più veloci del mondo” — the four fastest seats in the world. Its main competitor was the Maserati Quattroporte. The second Fidia built, and the first with right-hand drive, was bought by the English rock star John Lennon, which gave the model a certain celebrity appeal.

Like the other Iso cars, the Fidia was originally powered by a Chevrolet V8, offered with 300 or 350 bhp; the more powerful version gave a top speed of 144 mph, making it the fastest four-door car at the time of its debut, and 0–60 mph took around eight seconds. In 1971 the car received a new interior that brought it into line with the Iso Lele: the wooden dashboard was replaced by a leather one, which commentators found more elegant but less practical, and the instruments were partly obscured by the Nardi steering wheel. By 1973, after General Motors demanded payment in advance of shipment, the engine was switched to a Ford 5.8-litre V8, matched to a ZF five-speed manual or Ford’s own Cruise-O-Matic automatic.

In its rarefied market the Fidia was overshadowed by the Maserati Quattroporte. Iso built just 15 Fidias in 1971, 21 in 1972 and 20 in 1973, and the total came to 192 cars between 1967 and 1975. Production ended with the collapse of Iso in the mid-1970s, and the Fidia remains the only four-door the marque ever made.

Design and features

• Only four-door Iso: a full saloon in a range of two-seat and 2+2 grand tourers.
• Giugiaro styling: a clean, upright three-box body from the designer then working at Ghia.
• Luxury cabin: polished wood and hand-stitched leather, with a leather dashboard from 1971.
• Performance: 144 mph from the 350 bhp Chevrolet version made it the fastest four-door of its day.

Iso Fidia versions

• Iso Rivolta S4 (1967–1969): the original name, worn until the Athens press launch.
• Fidia 300 bhp: the standard Chevrolet-engined car.
• Fidia 350 bhp: the more powerful Chevrolet version, capable of 144 mph.
• 1971 interior: leather dashboard and a revised layout shared with the Lele.
• Ford-engined cars (from 1973): 5.8-litre V8 with ZF manual or Cruise-O-Matic automatic.

The Fidia was the saloon companion to the Grifo and the Lele, all built on the same Bizzarrini-designed chassis family. More cars are in the Iso collection.

Video: ISO RIVOLTA FIDIA 1969 – One of only 190 | Top gear test drive – V8 Chevrolet engine sound | SCC TV

Video on YouTube.

Sources

• Iso Fidia, English Wikipedia: history, design, engines, production