Fiat 642RN

The Fiat 642RN was a coach built by the bus division of Fiat V.I., launched in 1952 to replace the Fiat 666RN. Like every bus of its day it used a chassis derived from a truck, with the engine at the front. It was ten metres long, a length standardized in Italy, and used the truck's Fiat 364 engine, a six cylinder of 6,650 cubic centimetres giving 92 DIN horsepower with its maximum torque at only 900 revolutions a minute, robust, reliable and economical with diesel. The driving position was on the right. It came in two series, the 642RN and from 1955 the 642RN2, and as usual in Italy the basic Fiat Cansa model was joined by suburban and grand touring versions from the specialist coachbuilders Barbi, Bianchi, Dalla Via, Menarini, Orlandi and Viberti. Production ended in 1959 and the coach was replaced by the modern Fiat 309, launched in 1958 under the new highway code with left-hand drive. Many found a second life in Africa and Eastern Europe.