Imperia 8 CV Super Sport History
Catalog record
This is a brief catalog introduction with limited source documentation. A licensed, identity-checked lead photograph has not yet been added for this page. Detailed year, configuration and ownership coverage must be identified separately; this page is not a complete vehicle catalog.
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Model history available. Detailed year guides are not published for this model.
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In 1921 Imperia built three experimental 5.6-litre overhead-camshaft straight-eights — ambitious machinery that presaged the sporting direction the firm would take later in the decade. By 1927 the company had refined its thinking into the 8 CV, a 1624 cc six-cylinder with an overhead-camshaft engine good for around 40 hp.
The Super Sport development, fitted with three carburettors, pushed the car to a documented top speed of 90 mph (145 km/h) — remarkable for a 1.6-litre car of the era. Louis de Monge, hired as chief engineer around 1925, brought innovations including torsion-bar suspension and early automatic-transmission experiments to the range. One 1920s Imperia model also featured a sunroof among the first cars to do so. The 8 CV SS brought Imperia genuine prestige on the international sporting scene before the economic depression forced the company toward cheaper, licensed designs.
Body styles
- Open tourer
- Sports roadster
Notable special editions & performance variants
Super Sport (three-carburettor)
Triple-carburettor 1624 cc six-cylinder variant with 90 mph top speed — the peak of the Imperia sporting line.
Related models
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