Dual-Ghia

Dual-Ghia was a short-lived American automobile marque created around a collaboration between Eugene Casaroll's Dual-Motors Corporation and the Italian coachbuilder Carrozzeria Ghia. The make produced a highly exclusive, Dodge-based luxury sports car in the United States between 1956 and 1958. Only 117 examples were built, making the marque one of the rarest postwar American automotive ventures. The concept originated with Casaroll, who controlled Dual-Motors, a Detroit-based specialist vehicle builder. He obtained rights connected with a family of Chrysler and Dodge-based show cars designed by Ghia in the mid-1950s. These included the Firearrow I, II, III and IV and the nearly production-ready Firebomb. The designs were associated with Ghia stylist Luigi Segre and Chrysler design chief Virgil Exner. Chrysler had used the cars primarily as design studies and promotional vehicles rather than launching them as a direct response to the Ford Thunderbird and Chevrolet Corvette. Casaroll saw an opportunity to turn the Firebomb theme into a limited-production automobile. Paul Farago, Ghia's representative in the United States and later a vice president of Dual-Motors, helped adapt the design for production. Compared with the more flamboyant Firearrow show cars, the series-produced Dual-Ghia used more standard Chrysler and Dodge components. It had a more restrained, slab-sided body with modest tail fins and the road-legal Firebomb's two-headlamp arrangement. The official production body style was a four-place convertible, although one coupe prototype was also constructed. Production required an unusual transatlantic process. Dual-Motors supplied Dodge frames and drivetrains, which were shipped to Italy. Ghia fabricated the bodywork and interior before the partially completed cars were returned to the United States for final assembly and finishing by Dual-Motors. This arrangement gave the automobile an Italian coachbuilt appearance while retaining American mechanical components and serviceable Chrysler Corporation hardware. The car was powered primarily by Dodge V8 engines, including the 315-cubic-inch hemispherical-head short-stroke V8. Some 1957 examples reportedly received the Dodge D-500's 361-cubic-inch V8 with dual four-barrel carburetors. The combination of a relatively light body and substantial American V8 power provided strong performance for a luxury convertible of the period. The Dual-Ghia occupied a difficult commercial position. Its approximately $7,500 retail price placed it above most American production luxury convertibles and slightly above Cadillac's Eldorado Biarritz, while remaining below the much more expensive Continental Mark II and Cadillac Eldorado Brougham. The high price, limited production method and narrow market restricted demand. The marque ended after its brief 1956–1958 run. Although the business was commercially short-lived, the cars acquired lasting cultural visibility because many were purchased by celebrities and prominent public figures, including Frank Sinatra, Sterling Hayden and Richard Nixon. Desi Arnaz also owned one, though his car was later damaged in an accident. The Dual-Ghia subsequently became a significant collector automobile. A reported 32 of the 117 cars were still known to exist in July 2006, and a Dual-Ghia formerly owned by musician Rick Danko sold at a Sotheby's auction for approximately $350,000 in 2015. The marque is now remembered less as a mass-market manufacturer than as an influential, highly exclusive example of 1950s American-Italian automotive collaboration.

Dual-Ghia emerged from the intersection of Detroit automotive engineering and Italian coachbuilding during the styling-focused 1950s. Eugene Casaroll, head of Dual-Motors Corporation, pursued a limited-production sports car based on Ghia's Dodge-derived Firearrow and Firebomb design studies. Those earlier vehicles had been styled by Luigi Segre with conceptual input from Virgil Exner, and were connected to Chrysler's effort to explore possible responses to emerging American personal-luxury and sports-car products. Chrysler did not place the concepts into regular production, but their design language offered a foundation for Casaroll's project. After securing rights related to the Firearrow and Firebomb designs, Casaroll worked with Paul Farago, Ghia's American representative and a future Dual-Motors vice president, to make the concept more practical for limited series manufacture. The production car retained the essential low, elegant profile of the show cars but incorporated a greater number of standard Dodge and other MoPar components. It was less ornate than the Firearrow series, with a more squared-off body, restrained tail fins and a two-headlamp configuration suitable for road use. The production program centered on a four-seat convertible; a single coupe prototype was also made. Dual-Ghia's manufacturing system was unusual for an American marque. Dual-Motors sent Dodge frames and running gear to Italy, where Ghia produced the bodywork and interior. The partially completed cars then returned to the United States, where Dual-Motors completed assembly and finishing. This process effectively created a long international assembly chain and allowed the cars to combine American V8 power and component availability with Italian custom-body craftsmanship. Most cars used Dodge's 315-cubic-inch hemispherical-head short-stroke V8. Some 1957 cars were equipped with the larger 361-cubic-inch D-500 engine and dual four-barrel carburetors. The resulting performance was strong, but the hand-intensive production process and imported coachwork made the automobile expensive. Its retail price was about $7,500, higher than most American luxury cars and slightly above Cadillac's Eldorado Biarritz, although below the era's most expensive ultra-luxury models. The make was produced from 1956 through 1958, with total output limited to 117 examples. The price and specialized construction limited the potential customer base, and Dual-Ghia did not develop into a continuing manufacturer. Its customers included entertainers and public figures such as Frank Sinatra, Sterling Hayden and Richard Nixon. Desi Arnaz also owned an example, while Dean Martin was associated with the car through both ownership reports and its appearance in the film "Kiss Me, Stupid." After production ended, Dual-Ghias became prized collectible automobiles. A 2006 account estimated that 32 examples remained. Their rarity, celebrity associations, Italian styling and Dodge V8 technology have preserved the marque's importance in automotive history. The reported 2015 sale of musician Rick Danko's car for approximately $350,000 further demonstrated the market's recognition of the Dual-Ghia as a significant postwar coachbuilt automobile.

• 2015

  Collector-car auction reaches approximately $350,000

  [1]Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org

  A Dual-Ghia associated with musician Rick Danko was reported sold by Sotheby's for approximately $350,000.

• 2006

  Remaining-car estimate is published

  [1]Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org

  A contemporary account estimated that 32 of the 117 known production cars still existed.

• 1958

  Production ends

  [1]Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org

  The short-lived Dual-Ghia program concludes after approximately 117 cars have been built.

• 1957

  Higher-performance D-500 variants appear

  [1]Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org

  Some 1957 cars receive the Dodge D-500 361-cubic-inch V8 with dual four-barrel carburetors.

• 1956

  Dual-Ghia production begins

  [1]Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org

  The first Dual-Ghia automobiles enter limited production through the Dual-Motors and Ghia collaboration.

• 1954

  Ghia develops the Firearrow design series

  [1]Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org

  Ghia presents Dodge-based Firearrow concept cars that establish the styling foundation later adapted for the Dual-Ghia project.

Ultra-exclusive, coachbuilt American luxury sports car combining Dodge mechanical components with Italian Ghia bodywork and interiors.

• Limited-production luxury sports car · 1956

  Dual-Ghia four-place convertible

  The principal production model was a four-place convertible combining a Dodge chassis and V8 drivetrain with bodywork and interior construction by Carrozzeria Ghia. Its styling evolved from the Firearrow and Firebomb concepts but used more production-oriented proportions, modest tail fins and standard MoPar fittings. Most examples used the 315-cubic-inch Dodge hemispherical-head V8, while selected 1957 cars received the more powerful 361-cubic-inch D-500 engine with dual four-barrel carburetors. Only 117 examples were built between 1956 and 1958.

• Performance luxury convertible variant · 1957

  Dual-Ghia D-500

  The D-500 designation identifies examples fitted with Dodge's higher-performance 361-cubic-inch V8 and dual four-barrel carburetors. These cars retained the Dual-Ghia's Italian coachbuilt body and four-seat convertible format while offering stronger engine performance than the standard specification. The D-500-related cars are especially notable because they linked the marque's luxury positioning with Dodge's performance-oriented component program.

• 1956

  Launch of the Dual-Ghia limited-production automobileProduct launch

  Background

  Eugene Casaroll sought to turn Ghia's Dodge-based Firebomb design direction into a commercially buildable, highly exclusive automobile after Chrysler left the concept-car program out of regular production.

  Action taken

  Dual-Motors and Ghia introduced a four-place convertible using Dodge frames and drivetrains, Italian-built bodies and interiors, and final assembly in the United States.

  Aftermath

  The resulting car attracted celebrity and elite buyers but remained too expensive and specialized for sustained production. Total output reached only 117 cars before the marque ended in 1958.

  Source

1. 1Dual-Ghiaen.wikipedia.org
2. 2The 1956–1958 Dual-Ghia: Hollywood Status Symbolhagley.org