Lancia Fulvia
Born: 1963 Died: 1976
Designed as a replacement for Lancia's rear-drive Appia, the FWD Fulvia was introduced at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show and won immediate favour for what could arguably be one of the brand's most beautiful designs. With some style details which echoed in BMWs of the time, the Fulvia was nevertheless quintessentially Italian, designed by Antonia Fessia and with the engineering underpinning of sister model Flavia. The Fulvia's engine had become a typical Lancia configuration since the Lambda, a V4 petrol unit that over its development in the Fulvia grew from an initial 1091cc to 1584cc, improving its power output over that time from 59hp to 132hp. The very first version was a Berlina small 4-door saloon, and in the year of launch this was upgraded with a 71hp version of its engine, sold as the 2C.
In 1965 a Coupé was introduced, shorter and with a larger 1216cc engine than the Berlina. There was also a 1231cc unit in the mix. And with a view to the importance of rallying to the marketing department, a Coupé HF was added later in that year. A road-going Rallye 1.3 with a new 1298cc engine and 87hp appeared in 1967 and was joined quickly by 's' and HF versions with 93hp and 101hp outputs respectively.
Meanwhile, in 1967 Lancia added a GT version of the Berlina, with a 1216cc or 1231cc V4, depending on the stage of development. In 1968 that was enhanced with a 1298cc engine and named the GTE.
A year later the car was rebodied on a longer wheelbase and became the Berlina '69, on the running gear of the old GTE. And in 1970, with the introduction of a five-speed gearbox, the Berlina 5m was to be the last revision of the four-door.
The Rallye Coupé also moved on, gaining a 1584cc engine to become the 1.6 HF with a creditable - for the time - 115hp. This was the basis for a further evolution to what was to be the most powerful Fulvia, and the one with the longest name, the Rallye 1.6 HF Variant 1016. With 132hp pumping from its engine, it was literally a force to be reckoned with. A Series II Coupé in 1970 gained the five-speed gearbox. In 1972 the Fulvia won for its maker the World Rally Championship, and this resulted in a roadgoing Coupé 1.3s Montecarlo. The relatively mild 90hp available was compensated for in part by the works rally paint job.
Going back again, a 1965 rebody of the Coupé by Zagato built in aluminium was badged as the Sport, but only had the original Coupé's 1216cc 80hp engine. Like the coupés, they were quickly updated with the more powerful engines of their siblings, though none were given the 132hp unit, and the top of this particular line was the 114hp Sport 1600. Again like the Coupé, they were rebodied for the 1970 model year. The expensive aluminium content in the bodywork had already been halved by this time, and for the new version the Sport became all-steel.
Fiat had meantime bought Lancia, and undertook a replacement programme of the brand's models with designs of their own. The Coupé 3 was one, with just the 1298cc engine now available.
When the model was dropped in 1976, some 140,000 units of the Coupé variants had been built. Not a large number in absolute terms, but enough to provide a legacy of fond memories for those who subscribed to a contemporary description of the Fulvia as a "precision motor car, an engineering tour de force".