Shortly after Vincenzo Lancia was born in 1881, his father chose his future, deciding that his son would become a lawyer. Sadly, Vincenzo proved inattentive at his studies, so papa Giuseppe reformulated his plan, sending his son to college at age 12 with the goal of becoming an accountant. It was about that time that Vincenzo started hanging out at the local bike shop, and soon demonstrated talent as a mechanic.