RIP Pininfarina

Lamborghini (so, VAG) bought Italdesign a couple of years ago. No big deal. Pininfarina will doubtless be picked up by Fiat/Chrysler in some form. The market is consolidating. Italian auto design is simply too world-beating to die off.

 

I totally disagree, they get absorbed and the talent gets crushed.

The problem the design companies have is that they used to build production cars, and the cost to do this is just to high, the market is automated. Zagato maybe the only one who understands the new market. Use someone else's chassis build in lots less than 15 and charge a price where you can make a profit.

 

I suppose this means the end of Pininfarina as manufacturer but not as a design studio, so hopefully we will have "disegno Pininfarina" in the future. This world would be a bit darker without that.

 

I greatly admire what this little company accomplished. When Andrea Pininfarina died a few years ago, it felt like the end of another piece of la dolce vita.

 

Obviously the author of this article is clueless ...


* FF a dream car ?

* I guess she meant CISITALIA

 

It's been several years already that the badge pininfarina has been worn in cars with non- italian design

 

Pininfarina restructures its debts, gets infusion of new capital

Written by: Andrew Strieber on September 18 2008 3:04 PM


These are trying times at Pininfarina: the famed coachbuilder and designer of countless iconic Ferraris lost $164 million in 2007 and had to be rescued by Enzo Ferrari’s son Piero andIndian automaker Tata earlier this year. However, just months after shifting focus back to vehicles like a new electric car and the new Hyperion convertible, the company was struck again by the sudden death of CEO Andrea Pininfarina in a motorcycle accident.While Pininfarina is no doubt still reeling from this unexpected tragedy, thankfully it now no longer has to worry about going under.In a new deal with its creditors, the designer will reschedule approximately $859 million worth of debt.

The move is required as part of a restructuring plan, which includes raising $142 million in new capital and reducing the Pininfarina family’s stake in the company from 55% to around 30% so investors such as French financier Vincent Bollore can become shareholders. The cash provided by Bollore and otherswill used for the electric car project, which executives are hoping will revive the coachbuilder’s fortunes.

A source tells Reuters that “the banks have agreed in principle” on the debt rescheduling, and everything will most likely be signed by the end of the month. As part of the deal, Pininfarina will be given up to seven years to pay back its creditors, up from the previous three. The extratime should allow the company todevelop new projects and hopefully bring the storied nameplate back into the black.

 

Sad story - i remember my visit in 2001. Lorenza Pininfarina was our guide and we got a wonderful Pininfarina - book signed by her.
Very nice lady and a great family.

 

Thanks Jim ..........Ballore has said he is ready to buy a 30 percent stake in the whole group. There was some strong strong interest from Magna internationl and China's Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co, Germany's Edag . This all happening in 2011. Alot of media hype and cheerleading going on for that stock at that time. Pininfarina is a very low profile company and I was just curious to understand your statement." It could have ended differently" expressed more insight then the media and the general public might have at hand. Thanks!

 

http://chadglass.blogspot.com/2012/02/pininfarina-when-insolvency-and-death.html

excerpt:
"Although most commonly known as Ferrari's main body design agency, Pininfarina is a diverse company whose past and present clientele includes: Alfa Romeo, British Leyland, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Cisitalia, Citroen, Daewoo, Fiat, Fiat-Abarth, Ford, GM, Hafei, Honda, Jaguar, Lancia, Maserati, Mitsubishi, Nash Healy, Peugeot, and Volvo."

 

As noted here on 08/03/2011 suprised there were no takes with such high profiles in the automotive industry showing interest .

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2011/01/chinas-baic-in-bid-to-buy-pininfarina.html

 

Thanks for that. I didn't know our very own Magna was also interested.

 

Though it is a very different time for business in this climate. Business models of the past become extinct. You can't take things for granted as you did in the past. Imagine the Maker of the Auto Designs that have inspired every other Auto Maker... Gone, the pinnacle of their business...gone. Coming off many successes, recent successes, kind of scary.

 

I'm shocked that people don't know this. Italian car design can be spotted a mile away, even when it gets diluted by local engineers.

The rule of thumb is if it's a good looking car, it very likely has Italian styling origins. Works 9 times out of 10.

 

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Magna would have been a great fit but alot of work close to 50% was involved in China for Pininifarina.



Press notes from company web

Cambiano (TO), February 15, 2012 – An Ordinary Shareholders’ Meeting of Pininfarina was held today. The only item on the Agenda was “Resolutions concerning the situations governed by Article 2446 of the Italian Civil Code.”

The transformation that Pininfarina S.p.A. underwent during the past three years, evolving from a company engaged primarily in manufacturing into one focused almost exclusively on the delivery of styling and engineering services entailed a significant organizational and structural change for the Group, which necessarily produced unavoidable, large operating losses—mainly of an extraordinary nature, due to the shutdown of manufacturing activities, writedowns of equity investments and the use of the long-term unemployment benefit procedure—the effect of which was magnified by difficulties in growing the engineering activities, due to the virtual non-existence of a domestic market and an extremely competitive international market.

The changed scenario in the external market and for the Group’s transformation thus required a revision of the Industrial Plan, three years since it was first adopted, particularly with regard to the electric car manufacturing business, which was the cornerstone of the previous Industrial Plan, in view of the delay in the development of electric cars in the global market.

As explained in the report prepared by the Board of Directors on December 19, 2011 for today’s Shareholders’ Meeting, the salient points of the Industrial Plan include:

- strengthening the Company’s engineering and styling operations by implementing the technical and commercial linkage with the German subsidiaries, with the aim to help seize grow opportunities provided by their favorable position in an active and growing market;
- further developing the styling and engineering activities in the Asian market, relying in part on the operational growth of a subsidiary established in China at the end of 2010;
- expanding in the delivery of engineering services in the E-mobility market by leveraging the competencies and knowhow acquired in the design of electric cars (Blue Car and Nido) and hybrid buses (Hybus);
- maximizing the value of the Group’s traditional “art direction” activities by deploying dedicated resources and developing brand licensing arrangements in partnerships with external players, building on the strength of Pininfarina’s image and brand, which are known worldwide.

Faced with the need to amend the terms of the current agreements with the Lender Institutions, specifically with regard to the timing and costs for repayment of the financial debt, and proceed with a recapitalization over the short-term, the Company defined a new Industrial Plan (the guidelines of which were approved by the Board of Directors on November 14, 2011) and prepared a draft of a new Financial Plan.

Through a series of meetings with the Lender Institutions, the financial hypotheses were gradually fine-tuned until the current advanced definition of a single scenario supported by all Lender Institutions and the Company was achieved. A final draft expected in the coming weeks will set forth the new terms amending the current Rescheduling Agreement, under which, while in effect, the Company fully met its debt repayment obligations of more than 100 million euros, despite the highly challenging market conditions of the past three years.
The Company is confident that the new agreement can be signed later in March 2012.

The amendments to the Rescheduling Agreement negotiated with the Lender Institutions concern mainly three issues:

- prolonging the medium/long-term debt amortization plan from December 31, 2015 to December 31, 2018;
- applying, starting in 2012, an interest rate significantly lower than the market rates currently charged;
- reducing the short-term credit lines by an amount equal to the unused portion.

A meaningful change in the cost of the current medium/long-term debt and a significant extension of its maturities are important elements for the purpose of derecognizing the financial liability currently reflected on the financial statements and replacing it with a new financial liability. The amount of the new liability will be smaller than the old liability, which will generate a financial gain that can be recognized on the income statement and, consequently, contribute to the Company’s recapitalization.

Over the short-term, the Company’s shareholders’ equity will thus be reinstated to an amount significantly higher than the current one, thereby making the provisions of Article 2446 of the Italian Civil Code no longer applicable.

Based on these considerations and in the expectation that a new agreement with the Lender Institutions will be signed shortly, the Shareholders’ Meeting of Pininfarina S.p.A. resolved to bring forward the loss reported at October 31, 2011, postponing any initiative concerning the share capital.

As for the mandate to sell the interest held in the Company awarded by Pincar s.r.l. to Leonardo & Co., it expired on December 31, 2011.

 

Jim - Is there still an investment opportunity here for you? Banks typically like money, not owning companies. Is there any part of the business available that you would consider viable and interesting?

Gary

 

More than sad. It hurts my heart.

 

Pininfarina rolls out its new www.pininfarina.com site with the first official images of the Cambiano concept car
Pininfarina makes its debut in e-commerce with store.pininfarina.com
Turin, March 6 2012 – To mark the debut of the Cambiano, its new concept car, at the Geneva Motor Show, Pininfarina has rolled out its new web site, www.pininfarina.com with, as first present for internauts, the first official photos of the Cambiano that can also be downloaded in the Press Area.
Ideas through project, projects through people. Inspired by this concept, the DGTmedia web agency has conceived, designed and developed Pininfarina’s new web site, taking cues from storytelling and in accordance with the principles of Anglo-Saxon journalism. The result is a dynamic portal that combines the typical simplicity and conventions of the “analogue” functions of old media with the innovation and interactivity of the new digital interfaces of mobile devices.
The portal provides information about Pininfarina, what it does, how it does it and why: each project relates a story – a design story – that, through organization of contents and numerous attractive graphic and multimedia contributions, conducts the user along a fascinating path between past and future, in a continuous discovery of the Company’s unequalled heritage of knowledge and skills.
In line with brand enhancement objectives, roll-out of the new web site coincides Pininfarina’s debut in e-commerce. Store.pininfarina.com offers aficionados of the brand a packed catalogue with a wide choice of clothing, accessories, travelware, leather articles, books and model kits, all characterised by the unique style that has earned Pininfarina world-wide renown. Refined elegance is fully expressed in the line of men’s and women’s clothing, from sweat shirts to polo’s up to and including anoraks and T-shirts and, obviously, the futuristic Airflow helmet, a concentrate of technology and design developed in the Pininfarina Wind Tunnel.
For those seeking style and comfort, the store proposes a unique line of elegant, functional travelware and leather goods. The strong bond that has always linked the Pininfarina brand and the world of motoring is reflected in a line of 1:10 and 1:18 scale models of vehicles that have forged the history of the car, from the legendary 1947 Cisitalia 202 to the 1967 Dino 206 GT also including more contemporary models such as the Birdcage 75th, the 2uettottanta and the latest addition to the family, the Cambiano. Last but not least, a series of books available inside the Collection is dedicated to Pininfarina design, to discover all the details of a history that has become a legend.
The new site also includes a corporate area of general interest with details of the company, its history, mission, values, its Italian and foreign companies, the numerous prizes awarded during its 82 years of history. In the Services area, potential clients will find a complete overview of the range of Pininfarina Group services: design, engineering, niche manufacturing, the Wind Tunnel. The Financial area addresses more specifically the economic-financial press, investors and financial analysts. The News sector provides information and articles regarding Motor Shows, Concours D’Elegance and international events in which Pininfarina has always participated. Fans wishing to discover more about masterpieces of the past and present can satisfy their curiosity in the area dedicated to the Museum of Cambiano. Lastly, in the Press area, journalists will find all Company press releases and can download photos and press-kits.
Pininfarina can also be followed on Facebook and YouTube:
www.facebook.com/PininfarinaSpA
www.youtube.com/pininfarinaofficial
Contacts: Francesco Fiordelisi, Head of Corporate and Product Communication, tel. 011.9438105 e-mail [email protected]

 

Giugiaro and son saw the writing on the wall, there's no money to be made
manufacturing, so they went "in house" at VW, and still do some interesting things
but they don't really have to do anything and they'll still get paid and became multi millionaires with the deal. What independent carrozzeria is left to do bold new designs? Zagato--who owns them? Still the Zagato family?

 

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/03/26/pininfarina-designing-luxury-condos-in-miami/

press release...

 

http://www.roadandtrack.com/auto-shows/geneva/pininfarina-cambiano-concept

 

I gotta be honest I havent really cared for any of the Pininfarina cars for quite some time (past 10 - 15 years) and maybe this was a result of that.

but still nonetheless it is a sad thing to have it be owned by the banks and not the owners, which is never a good thing anywhere it seems.

still we got the classics atleast and an undying respect for their work for ferrari.