Giovanni Agnelli was born in a small town Villar Perosa, Italy in 1866. As an engineer
he was fascinated by the horseless carriage and in 1899 became a founding member,
and later Managing Director of Fabbrica Italiana di Automobili Torino, which was later
abbreviated to FIAT. Agnelli continually increased his shareholding in FIAT.
Manufacturing started in 1900 with 135 cars in the first year. FIAT expanded rapidly
and appointed their first US FIAT dealership in Manhattan as early as 1906, well
before the first Ford plant was operational.
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