Aldo Farinelli

Aldo Farinelli was a lawyer and technical journalist born in Turin on May 23, 1898. Farinelli’s passion for engines started when he was very young, thanks to his uncle, Italo. During his many visits to his uncle’s home in Bellinzona, Switzerland, Farinelli leaned all he needed to know about automobiles and motorcycles by the time he was 15. 

Farinelli fought as an officer in the First World War and then graduated with a degree in law in December of 1920. Quickly, responsibilities as a technical journalist accompanied Farinelli's work as a lawyer and Farinelli worked with various engine related magazines like Edisport from Milan. Farinelli was also one of the founding partners of the magazine Motor Italia.

As a civil and penal lawyer specialized in street and traffic policies, in 1933, Farinelli became part of the Commission on traffic circulation within the Ministry of Infrastructure. In 1935 he published a pamphlet entitled “Street Circulation and the Law” for S.A., a Milanese book publisher.

Between 1943 and 1946, Farinelli had a managerial position in Turin at SIATA (a company specialized in sports car production) and it was while at SIATA he was able to show off his inventive and technical skills when he developed and patented the 4-speed engine “Cucciolo ” (Italian for puppy). 

The cucciolo was the first engine to motorize the common bicycle and its use began to spread after World War II. The license for producing the Cucciolo was first given to SIATA, who later passed it on to Ducati. Production of the Cucciolo engine was Ducati’s first step in the world of motorcycling; the first step towards an incredibly history producing sports motorcycles. 

On April 28, 1945 Farinelli’s first wife, Augusta Magnetto, died and he was left to take care of their two sons, Sergio and Ugo. 

Between 1948 and 1949, Giorgio Ambrosiani, SIATA’s owner, asked Farinelli to design a mini sports car. Together with Leoni, Farinelli created the MITZI, a tiny two-seater convertible sports car. They were unable to bring the project to completion because they couldn’t decide whether to put the engine in the front or the back of the car. Finally in 1953 Leoni brought back and completed the MITZI project on his own. 

In 1959 Farinelli wrote “The New Street Digest” published by Edizioni Motor Italia that contained a guide to the new Street Code, Italian legislation that also came out in 1959. As of 1960, Farinelli was the president of the judicial commission within the Automobile Club, member of its board of directors, and a speaker in the annual traffic and circulation conference that took place in Stresa. 

The combination of his years working the problems related to street circulation, and his passion for the world of engines, brought Farinelli to collaborate with the Turin based newspaper, La Stampa.

In 1968 Farinelli received a gold medal award to celebrate 50 years of success working in the field of law.
Farinelli died on the 13th of October, 1978 and is buried in his family tomb in the town of Belgirate on Lago Maggiore.