Top Italian car designer killed

Fellow car manufacturers have paid tribute to Mr Pininfarina

Andrea Pininfarina, head of a world-famous Italian car design group, has been killed in a road accident.

Mr Pininfarina was riding a scooter which was hit by a car on the outskirts of Turin early on Thursday. He was 51.

He was chief executive officer of the family firm Pininfarina, which has designed sports cars for Ferrari, Maserati, Volvo and Fiat.

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and Ferrari's Luca Cordero di Montezemolo were among those paying tribute.

Mr Berlusconi labelled him "the representative of a dynasty that helped bring the story of 'made in Italy' to the world".

Mr di Montezemolo, who is also boss of Fiat, said: "Italy, Turin and the Fiat group have lost a business figure who knew how to follow and develop the work of his grandfather Pinin and his father Sergio."

The driver of the car involved in the collision was admitted to hospital suffering from shock, Ansa news agency reported.

Family firm

Maserati was among the car brands to call on Pininfarina's expertise

Mr Pininfarina, survived by three children, trained as a mechanical engineer. He joined the family business in 1983 after working in the US.

He was the grandson of Battista Pininfarina, who founded the firm in Turin in 1930.

Andrea's father Sergio Pininfarina, 81, is the company's honorary chairman.

The family currently controls 55% of Pininfarina's shares, but under a restructuring plan it aims to cut its stake to about 30%.

The firm recorded a net loss of 114.9m euros (£91m; $178m) last year.