Lingotto is the name of a district of

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, 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 ...

, Italy, as well as the name of the Lingotto building in Via Nizza. It once housed a car factory built by Italian automotive company

Fiat Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary ...

and today houses the administrative headquarters of the manufacturer and a multipurpose centre projected by architect

Renzo Piano Renzo Piano (; born 14 September 1937) is an Italian architect. His notable buildings include the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (with Richard Rogers, 1977), The Shard in London (2012), the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City (20 ...

History

Construction of the building started in 1916 and it was inaugurated in 1923. The design by the young architect Giacomo Matté-Trucco, was unusual in that it had five floors, with raw materials going in at the ground floor, and cars built on a line that went up through the building. Finished cars emerged at rooftop level to go onto the

test track Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The ride is a simulated excursion through the rigorous testing procedures that General Mot ...

. The construction was carried out by the company of G A Porcheddu. It was the largest car factory in the world at that time. For its time, the Lingotto building was avant-garde, influential and impressive—

Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , , ), was a Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner, writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture. He was ...

called it "one of the most impressive sights in industry", and "a guideline for town planning". 80 different models of car were produced there in its lifetime, including the

Fiat Topolino Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary ...

of 1936. By the late 1970s, the factory had become obsolete — having been superseded by the larger and more advanced

Fiat Mirafiori The Stabilimento di Mirafiori (in English, the Mirafiori Factory) is the headquarters and industrial district of the Italian automobile manufacturer Fiat, a subsidiary of FCA Italy, which is part of Stellantis, and is the headquarters of CNH Ind ...

factory — and a decision was made to finally close it in 1982. The closure of the plant led to much public debate about its future, and how to recover from

industrial decline Deindustrialization is a process of social and economic change caused by the removal or reduction of industrial capacity or activity in a country or region, especially of heavy industry or manufacturing industry. There are different interpre ...

in general. An architectural competition was held, which was eventually awarded to

, who envisioned an exciting public space for the city. The old factory was restored into a modern complex, with

concert halls A concert hall is a cultural building with a stage that serves as a performance venue and an auditorium filled with seats. This list does not include other venues such as sports stadia, dramatic theatres or convention centres that may ...

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, a

convention centre A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...

shopping Shopping is an activity in which a customer browses the available goods or services presented by one or more retailers with the potential intent to purchase a suitable selection of them. A Retail#Shopper profiles, typology of shopper types ha ...

arcades and a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

. The eastern portion of the building is the headquarters of the Automotive Engineering faculty of the

Polytechnic University of Turin The Polytechnic University of Turin ( it, Politecnico di Torino) is the oldest Italian public technical university. The university offers several courses in the fields of Engineering, Architecture, Urban Planning and Industrial Design, and is co ...

. The work was completed in 1989. The track was retained, and can still be visited today on the top floor of the shopping mall and hotel. Similar rooftop tests tracks exist, including; at

Imperia Imperia (; lij, Inpêia or ) is a coastal city and ''comune'' in the Regions of Italy, region of Liguria, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Imperia, and historically it was capital of the ''Intemelia'' district of Liguria. Benito Muss ...

in Nessonvaux in Belgium, and Palacio Chrysler in Buenos Aires, Argentina. From 1928 to 1958, Imperia had a track over 1 km long which was built partially on top of the factory.

Lingotto public transport

Torino Lingotto railway station Torino Lingotto railway station is one of the main stations serving the city and ''comune'' of Turin, capital of the region of Piedmont, northwestern Italy. The Torino Lingotto metro station is located nearby, and opened on March 6, 2011. Open ...

is served by a number of regional train lines, as well as the

Turin Metro Turin ( , Piedmontese language, 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 ...

(

Lingotto M1 Lingotto is a station of the Turin Metro. The station was opened on 6 March 2011 as part of the Line 1 extension from Porta Nuova to Lingotto. Lingotto metro station is located in the busy, commercial district of southcentral Turin, along Via Ni ...

). It is a central hub, located close to Turin's hospitals (such as

CTO Hospital (Turin) CTO Hospital is a major medical center in Turin, Italy. CTO stands for ''Centro Traumatologico Ortopedico'' or the Center for Orthopedic Trauma. It is one of the leading orthopedic hospitals in Italy, and services a majority of orthopedic trauma ...

), parks ( Castello Valentino) and the Lingotto shopping district. The Lingotto M1 metro station was officially opened on March 6, 2011, connecting Lingotto with Porta Nuova M1 and other destinations.

In popular culture

The Lingotto building is featured extensively in the

Alberto Lattuada Alberto Lattuada (; 13 November 1914 – 3 July 2005) was an Italian film director. Career Lattuada was born in Vaprio d'Adda, the son of composer Felice Lattuada. He was initially interested in literature, becoming, while still a student, a mem ...

film '' Mafioso'' (1962). The original Lingotto rooftop test track features briefly in the getaway sequence in the film ''

The Italian Job ''The Italian Job'' is a 1969 British comedy caper film, written by Troy Kennedy Martin, produced by Michael Deeley, directed by Peter Collinson, and starring Michael Caine. The film's plot centres around Cockney criminal Charlie Croker, rece ...

'' (1969). Lingotto is the site of the

Oval Lingotto Torino Oval Lingotto is an indoor arena in Turin, Italy. It was built for use at the 2006 Winter Olympics, during which it hosted speed skating events. It has a capacity of 8,500 spectators and was designed by the global Sports Architects Populous ...

, the

speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors racing, race each other in travelling a certain distance on Ice skate, skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marath ...

venue for the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...

. The building is also featured in the fourth episode of the 20th season of ''

The Amazing Race ''The Amazing Race'' is an adventure reality game show franchise in which teams of two people race around the world in competition with other teams. The ''Race'' is split into legs, with teams tasked to deduce clues, navigate themselves in forei ...

'', originally aired in the United States on March 11, 2012. The building and test track was featured on the first episode of

James May James Daniel May (born 16 January 1963) is an English television presenter and journalist. He is best known as a co-presenter of the motoring programme ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond from ...

's ''Cars of the People''.

References

External links

Photos of Oval Lingotto

Google Earth view of Lingotto

About the project of Lingotto Exhibition Center
{{coord, 45, 1, 57, N, 7, 39, 52, E, type:landmark_region:IT, display=title Lingotto Building Districts of Turin Fiat Group factories Motor vehicle assembly plants in Italy