FROM ITALY TO THE HARROW
ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC VEHICLES EVER PRODUCED IN ITALY IS NOW IN ENNISCORTHY
THE HARROW in Enniscorthy might be a long way from the lush vineyards of Italy but it’s the location chosen by Italian, Simone Caira, to set up a business importing and restoring one of the most iconic brand of vehicles in automotive history.
The three-wheeled Ape was the brainchild of Enrico Piaggio and Corradino D’Ascanio and it revolutionised the way city businesses ferried goods and advertised.
Synonymous with Italy ‘ The Ape’ is essentially a motorcyle-van that offers businesses a quirky way of getting attention while also being very efficient in terms of fuel economy.
Speaking to this newspaper at his business Simone said some of the Apes he and his colleague, Zoltan Balogh, restore will be used by businesses as mobile advertising hoardings.
When we visited the workshop there was a vehicle partially restored that when completed will be used as a mobile coffee dock.
The workmanship that Simone and Zoltan put into the vehicles is incredible and truly have to be seen up close to be believed.
The first Ape appeared in 1948 and it kept a lot of the basic characteristics of a Vespa and the 125 cc engine synonymous with the marque.
That 125 cc engine, coincidentally, replaced the original 98cc unit as the main power plant in Piaggio’s scooters that same year.
At the time when commenting on the reasoning behind the Ape, D’Ascanio, said the main goal was to ‘fill the gap in the ulitarian transport vehicle market in the immediate postwar era by offering a small-engined three-wheel van that was inexpensive to purchase and service’.
Another aspect of the Ape is the fact they are very easy to drive and are very agile.
That was something Simone also pointed out when we visited him at his workshop.
‘ They are very easy to operate and are simple to maintain,’ he said.
‘ They are also a lot of fun,’ he added.
Simone is very passionate about his work and is proud of how the vehicles leave the workshop.
He has orders from all around the country as businesses in Ireland look to bring a little bit of Italy into their marketing plan.