Edoardo Weber (29 November 1889 – 17 May 1945) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

engineer and businessman, famous for creating the

Weber carburetor Weber Carburetors is an automotive manufacturing company founded in 1923, known for their carburetors. History Eduardo Weber began his automotive career working for Fiat, first at their Turin plant (in 1914) and later at a dealership in Bologna ...

. He was born in

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

to a Swiss father and a Jewish mother from

Piemonte it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

. After graduating in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, an ...

from the

Università degli Studi di Torino The University of Turin (Italian language, Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public university, public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the List ...

(1913), he moved to

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

to work for Fiat. He was a tutor to

Amédée Gordini Amedeo "Amédée" Gordini (23 June 1899 – 25 May 1979) was an Italian-born race car driver and sports car manufacturer in France. Biography Gordini was born in Bazzano, currently part of the Metropolitan City of Bologna in the Emilia-Romagn ...

. He drove a

Fiat 501 The Fiat 501 is a car produced by Fiat between 1919 and 1926. The 501 was Fiat's first model after World War I. Fiat introduced the S and SS sports versions of the 501 in 1921. Fiat Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica ...

to third place in the race on 13 June 1920 at

Mugello The Mugello is a historic region and valley in northern Tuscany, in Italy, corresponding to the course of the River Sieve. It is located to the north of the city of Florence and includes the northernmost portion of the Metropolitan City of Fl ...

. His work to provide some remedy for high gasoline prices resulted in the first ''Weber carburetor'', a "sidedraft, twin-choke ... bolted to a Weber designed overhead-valve/supercharger conversion for the 501 Fiat". In 1923, he established the '' Fabbrica Italiana Carburatori Weber'' company, which, under his leadership, became a supplier to Fiat for mass-produced cars, as well as smaller-volume

Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." "A ...

and Maserati racing cars. Weber was a member of the Italian Fascist Party. In 1937, he received the Order of the Crown of Italy and, in 1943, the

Order of Merit for Labour The Order of Merit for Labour ( it, Ordine al Merito del Lavoro) is an Italian order of chivalry that was founded in 1923 by King Vittorio Emanuele III. It is awarded to those "who have been singularly meritorious" in agriculture, industry and ...

. Bologna was liberated on April 21 of 1945 by the Italian Co-belligerent Army. Three weeks later, early in the morning on May 17, 1945, Weber was picked up by civilians from his factory office at Via del Timavo 18. He was never seen again, presumably executed by the Italian resistance movement. Following his disappearance, Fiat eventually assumed control of the company in 1952. In the Certosa di Bologna there is an empty tomb with his name written "Edoardo Weber". His widow Anna (1897–1985) wrote a biography in 1972.Anna Bolelli Weber,
Edoardo Weber
', Accorsi, Bologna, 101 pages, 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weber, Edoardo Automotive engineers from Turin Engineers from Bologna University of Turin alumni Italian automotive pioneers Italian fascists 1889 births 1945 deaths