In the middle of WWII a designer named Aldo Farinelli developed the prototype of an auxiliary motor to be mounted on a bicycle. Farinelli’s design had a number of major advantages over the competition, above all its four-stroke cycle and two-speed gearing, which used the engine’s power to its fullest potential.
Ducati, which up until that time had produced radios and electrical components, partnered with another Italian firm, SIATA, to produce the Cucciolo, or “Puppy”. By 1946, the rights to Cucciolo production had become exclusively Ducati’s. In 1948 Ducati came up with its first original design, the T2. It was heavily influenced by the T1 design, but made improvements in the engine’s efficiency, robustness, and, above all, logic of construction. The cylinder, for example, was redesigned and made removable and the drive mechanism made more accessible, the cylinder head was modified, and the rating was raised. The company also sold a sports version of the T2, capable of delivering 2 hp and reaching a top speed of 60 km/h.
Over the two year period, from 1947 to 1948, production was on the order of 240 pieces a day. In 1948, under the guidance of Giovanni Florio, the first engine designed entirely at Ducati, the T3, went into production. A natural derivation of the first Cucciolo, the T3 had a three-speed gear system, and a grease lubricated valve gear enclosed in a case. In 1949, a special tubular frame with rear suspension was developed for the T3 by Caproni of Rovereto, a famous wartime producer of airplanes. A year later the sports version of the 60 was brought out, marking the company’s move into the world of competition. It had a capacity of 65 cc, a swing-arm fork, and two pairs of telescopic shock absorbers. Especially noteworthy was the Cucciolo’s remarkably low fuel consumption: 225 miles per gallon!
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