Renzo Rivolta
Renzo Rivolta was an Italian engineer and entrepreneur who founded the Iso vehicle company that produced appliances, scooters and later sports cars.
Career
In 1939 Rivolta founded ‘Isothermos’ a successful manufacturer of refrigeration units. After World War II his company began producing motor scooters and then motorcycles. By 1950, Isothermos was renamed Iso Autoveicoli and was Italy's third largest two-wheel producer, behind Vespa and Lambretta. Rivolta produced home appliances, and Iso scooters, before moving to car production. In 1952 he developed the Isetta microcar and sold the car in Italy. The car became famous through the licensed production at BMW.The company later produced sports touring cars starting with the Iso Rivolta IR 300, using Chevrolet 327ci engines and gearboxes. Rivolta used to say "At the wheel of a car I enjoy myself only above 120 mph."
Iso entered racing, and won its class at Le Mans in 1965. In the 1960s Rivolta's company produced the Iso Grifo, Bizzarrini, and other sports cars, all using the GM drivetrain. The Bizzarrini is now a much sought after model, having been developed by Giotto Bizzarrini, an ex-Ferrari engineer who designed their GTO models.