Fioravanti
Professional services
UnclaimedItalian automotive design studio founded by former Pininfarina designer Leonardo Fioravanti.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
Fioravanti is an Italian automotive design studio based in Moncalieri, near Turin. It was established in 1987 by Leonardo Fioravanti, one of Italy’s best-known automotive designers and a former long-serving designer and executive at Pininfarina. Although the business initially operated as an architectural practice involved in projects in Japan, it redirected its principal activity toward automotive design in 1991. The studio’s identity is closely associated with independent concept cars, one-off commissions, styling proposals, and collaborative projects for established vehicle manufacturers and specialist coachbuilders. Its work reflects the Turin design tradition, combining exterior styling, vehicle architecture, technical development, and experimental packaging. Rather than operating primarily as a volume vehicle manufacturer, Fioravanti has functioned as a design and engineering consultancy whose output is often presented through prototypes, show cars, special commissions, and production-oriented studies. Leonardo Fioravanti’s earlier career at Pininfarina provided the studio with a strong connection to Italian sports-car design. During his twenty-four years there, he worked on or contributed to important Ferrari projects including the Daytona, Dino road cars, the Ferrari 512 Berlinetta Boxer, the Ferrari 308 GTB, the Ferrari 288 GTO, and the Ferrari F40. Those associations shaped the independent studio’s profile and helped establish Fioravanti as a specialist in high-performance and sporting automobiles. From the 1990s onward, the company presented a series of original concepts and one-off vehicles. Notable studies listed in connection with the studio include the Sensiva, Nyce, Flair, F100, F100r, Tris, Alfa Romeo Vola, YAK, Kyte, Kandahar, Skill, Thalia, Hidra, LF1, and the BAIC Concept 900. These projects explored alternative body forms, aerodynamic ideas, urban mobility concepts, advanced interiors, and new interpretations of sports and luxury vehicles. The Fioravanti Kite, presented in 2004, and the Fioravanti Skill, shown in 2006 on the basis of the Fiat Grande Punto, illustrate the studio’s interest in developing its own complete design proposals as well as working from an existing vehicle platform. A particularly important commission came in 2008, when Fioravanti designed the Ferrari SP1 for Ferrari. The car was a one-off built for a private client and became the first vehicle associated with Ferrari’s Special Projects program, which creates unique automobiles in collaboration with prominent designers for individual customers. The SP1 demonstrated Fioravanti’s ability to translate its design language into a highly exclusive manufacturer-backed commission while remaining distinct from Ferrari’s regular production range. In more recent work, the studio has also developed restomod and modernization projects through its Evoluzioni Tecniche department. These projects retain the character of established sports cars while modifying their mechanical systems, control hardware, suspension, braking, steering, or usability. Examples described in reference material include an Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione fitted with a gated manual transmission and other revisions; a Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer with updated ignition and fuel systems; a Ferrari Testarossa with increased power and revised suspension; and a Ferrari F40 with upgraded suspension, brakes, and steering intended to improve safety and everyday usability. Fioravanti should therefore be understood as an automotive design and technical-development studio rather than a food brand or a mass-market automobile marque. Its public profile rests on the work of Leonardo Fioravanti, a portfolio of influential concept and one-off vehicles, collaborations with manufacturers such as Ferrari and BAIC, and specialist modernization projects for historically significant sports cars.
History
Fioravanti was founded in 1987 in Moncalieri, in the Turin area of Piedmont, by Leonardo Fioravanti. The enterprise began as an architectural practice and undertook projects in Japan. In 1991, it shifted its central focus to automotive design, establishing the activity for which it is best known. The founder brought substantial experience from Pininfarina, where he had spent twenty-four years. His work there included major Ferrari and Italian sports-car programs such as the Daytona, Dino road cars, 512 Berlinetta Boxer, 308 GTB, 288 GTO, and F40. This background gave the independent studio a strong connection to high-performance vehicle design and to the wider Turin carrozzeria tradition. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Fioravanti developed a succession of concept cars and one-off studies. The documented portfolio includes the 1994 Sensiva; the 1996 Nyce and Flair; the 1998 F100; the 2000 F100r and Tris; the 2001 Alfa Romeo Vola; the 2002 YAK; the 2004 Kite; the 2005 Kandahar; the 2006 Skill; the 2007 Thalia; the 2008 Hidra and Ferrari SP1; the 2009 LF1; and the 2013 BAIC Concept 900. The projects covered different vehicle types and design themes, reflecting the studio’s role as an independent source of styling and product ideas rather than a conventional series-production manufacturer. The 2008 Ferrari SP1 was a major milestone. Designed by Fioravanti for Ferrari, it was constructed as a single example for a private customer. It became the first car produced under Ferrari’s Special Projects initiative, a program intended to create unique vehicles with leading designers for individual clients. The project connected Fioravanti’s independent design practice with Ferrari’s bespoke-client strategy. Fioravanti’s later activities also included technical reinterpretations of existing sports cars. Under the Evoluzioni Tecniche department, the studio produced restomod-style projects that sought to preserve the identity of historic or desirable cars while improving their performance, control systems, handling, braking, and usability. Described examples include an Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione with a gated manual transmission and other modifications, a Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer with revised ignition and fueling, a more powerful Ferrari Testarossa with upgraded suspension, and a Ferrari F40 with revised suspension, brakes, and steering. Across its history, Fioravanti has remained centered on design-led automotive development. Its work spans architecture’s early influence, independent prototypes, manufacturer partnerships, bespoke one-offs, and specialist upgrades for significant sports cars. The studio’s documented identity is therefore that of an Italian professional automotive-design business, not a consumer-food brand or a mass-market automobile producer.
- 2013
BAIC Concept 900
[1]The studio’s documented concept portfolio includes the BAIC Concept 900.
- 2008
Ferrari SP1
[1]Fioravanti designs the one-off Ferrari SP1, the first vehicle associated with Ferrari’s Special Projects program.
- 2006
Fioravanti Skill concept
[1]The Skill is presented as a Fioravanti project based on the Fiat Grande Punto.
- 2004
Fioravanti Kite concept
[1]Fioravanti presents the Kite as part of its independent concept-car program.
- 1994
Fioravanti Sensiva concept
[1]The studio presents the Sensiva, one of a series of independently developed concept vehicles.
- 1991
The studio shifts toward automotive design
[1]Fioravanti redirects its principal activities from architecture toward automotive design.
- 1987
Fioravanti is established
[1]Leonardo Fioravanti establishes the business in Moncalieri near Turin, initially as an architectural practice.
Products and positioning
Independent Italian automotive design and engineering studio focused on high-performance vehicles, advanced concepts, bespoke commissions, manufacturer collaborations, and technically revised classic sports cars.
Concept car · 1994
Fioravanti Sensiva
A 1994 Fioravanti concept vehicle and part of the studio’s early independent automotive design portfolio. The project represents the company’s practice of using complete prototypes to explore new styling and vehicle-design directions.
Concept car · 2004
Fioravanti Kite
Presented in 2004, the Kite was an independent Fioravanti design study. It exemplifies the studio’s use of concept vehicles to investigate alternative proportions, body forms, and automotive user experiences outside a regular production program.
Concept car · 2006
Fioravanti Skill
Shown in 2006, the Skill was developed on the basis of the Fiat Grande Punto. It combined an existing production-car platform with Fioravanti’s own styling and product-development interpretation.
One-off sports car · 2008
Ferrari SP1
A unique Ferrari designed by Fioravanti for a private client and completed in 2008. The SP1 is significant because it was the first car created through Ferrari’s Special Projects program, which commissions bespoke automobiles from prominent designers.
Automotive engineering and restomod
Evoluzioni Tecniche restomod projects
A group of technical modernization projects for existing sports cars. Documented examples include revisions to Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer, Ferrari Testarossa, and Ferrari F40 vehicles, with work covering drivetrains, fueling, ignition, suspension, brakes, steering, power, and usability.
Brand decisions
2008
Design of the Ferrari SP1Product launchBackground
Ferrari sought to create unique automobiles for private clients through its Special Projects initiative.
Action taken
Fioravanti designed the SP1 as a one-off Ferrari commission.
Aftermath
The SP1 became the first vehicle associated with Ferrari’s Special Projects program and strengthened Fioravanti’s profile in bespoke high-performance design.
1991
Concentration on automotive designStrategyBackground
The business had begun in 1987 as an architectural practice with projects in Japan.
Action taken
Fioravanti shifted its main activity toward automotive design, establishing the studio’s long-term professional identity.
Aftermath
The studio subsequently became associated with automotive concepts, one-off vehicles, manufacturer collaborations, and technical projects.
- Expansion into technical restomod workStrategy
Background
The studio’s later activities extended beyond new concepts and styling commissions to the modernization of existing sports cars.
Action taken
Through Evoluzioni Tecniche, Fioravanti developed revised versions of selected Alfa Romeo and Ferrari sports cars.
Aftermath
The work positioned the studio as a specialist in combining historic vehicle character with updated performance, control systems, and road usability.
Sources1 sources
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