20 landmark Lancias as it hits 115

That’s a lot of candles

Lancia is celebrating its 115th anniversary in 2021.

Being able to mark this milestone is a pleasant surprise; on-record comments made by executives during the 2010s all-but confirmed the brand would enter the 2020s in the pantheon of automotive history.

However, the marque has survived. It got a new head of design in June 2021 and it’s reportedly working on a number of new products. In the meantime, we’re looking back at some of the greatest cars Lancia has ever built.

Lancia’s beginnings (1906)

But first, let’s start at the very beginning…

Racing is in Lancia’s blood. The marque was founded in Turin in 1906 by Vincenzo Lancia (pictured), an Italian racing driver who became successful at a young age, and Claudio Fogolin, one of his good friends.

The firm suffered a series of early setbacks, including a fire in the warehouse it rented to use as a production facility, but it managed to make its first prototype in 1907. Production began the following year.

So now let’s look at some of Lancia’s landmark cars.

1. Lambda (1922)

Lancia’s first car was somewhat confusingly renamed Alfa. But this wasn’t a tribute or an affront to Alfa Romeo, which was founded in 1910 in Milan.

It was the birth of a naming structure that borrowed letters from the Greek alphabet. Lancia also made the Beta and the Delta decades before the relatively modern cars enthusiasts typically associate these names with. And it launched the Lambda in 1922.

Offered in several variants, the Lambda was a hugely significant car with unibody construction and an independent front suspension system, features that didn’t merge into the mainstream until much later. Not building it on a separate frame allowed the driver to sit low, while fitting Lancia’s clever sliding-pillar front suspension gave the car a smooth ride and sharp handling.

It was powered by a V4 engine, another solution that defined the members of the Lancia range for many years to come.

2. Ardea (1939)

Released in 1939, the Ardea represented a significant leap forward for Lancia because it wore a streamlined design characterised by wider front wings and a more rounded silhouette. It kept its predecessor’s suicide doors, and it honoured Lancia’s tradition of using V4 engines.

The Ardea was relatively small and correspondingly light so Lancia gave it a 903cc engine instead of the bigger 1352cc V4 found in the Aprilia. It was born at the wrong time, however.

The Second World War was brewing in Europe, and Italy was enforcing petrol rations and driving bans. It was put back into production when peace returned after receiving a series of changes, and it remained part of the Lancia line-up until 1949. 

3. Aurelia (1950)

Named after a Roman road, the Aurelia made its debut at the 1950 edition of the Turin motor show with an elegant design and one of the most innovative engines of its era under the bonnet.

It was the first series-produced car equipped with a V6, a 1.8-litre unit rated at 55hp.

Lancia built several evolutions of the Aurelia until 1958, including a gorgeous convertible named Spider, and coachbuilders from Italy and abroad used its chassis to underpin a wide variety of cars, including a wood-sided estate.

4. Flaminia (1958)

Lancia’s star rose during the 1950s. In 1958, it replaced the Aurelia with the Flaminia, a flagship model that was as luxurious as it was innovative.

Pininfarina started with a blank slate to give the car a stately, elegant design that shared no styling cues with its predecessor, though peeking behind the grille revealed an evolution of the Aurelia’s 60-degree V6 engine.

With the Flaminia, Lancia could credibly claim a spot at the luxury car maker table. It even provided a modified saloon to the Italian president. 

5. Flavia (1961)

Lancia released the Flavia to fill the space separating the Appia and the Flaminia.

Instead of shrinking or stretching an existing car, it created a new model built on a front-wheel-drive architecture (a layout the firm briefly experimented with and abandoned in the 1940s) and powered by a water-cooled flat-four engine. This solution gave the Flavia rather unusual proportions but it worked surprisingly well.

Lancia renamed the Flavia 2000 and promoted it to flagship status when the Flaminia retired in 1970.

6. Fulvia (1963)

Boxy and front-wheel-drive, the Fulvia was the opposite of the Appia it replaced.

The only bridge between the two models was the narrow-angle V4 engine, which was rated at 58hp.

In hindsight, it was a surprisingly modern car in an era when Lancia’s main rivals were hesitant to give front-wheel-drive a try. About 192,000 units of the saloon were built until the model retired in 1976.

7. Fulvia Coupé (1965)

While the saloon represented a significant chunk of Fulvia production, the sporty coupé, released in 1965, is the version best remembered by enthusiasts in 2021.

Lancia explained it created the two-door by designing a body inspired by luxurious boats (its words, not ours) and wrapping it around a shortened version of the four-door’s underpinnings.

Later, the firm’s racing department wedged a more powerful engine under the Fulvia Coupé’s bonnet and drove it to victory in the 1972 World Rally Championship (WRC). It’s on these foundations that Lancia’s decades-long rallying success story was built.

8. Beta (1972)

Released in 1972, three years after Fiat purchased Lancia, the Beta is one of the most controversial cars in the company’s history.

It ditched its predecessor’s V4 and adopted a brand-specific version of the twin-cam four-cylinder designed by Fiat. It was released as a two-box saloon but the range grew to include a coupé, a targa, a shooting brake and a mid-engined coupé, as well as a three-box saloon called Trevi.

While satisfying to drive, the Beta suffered from extensive rust problems that decimated Lancia’s reputation in key markets like the UK and in America. It nonetheless remained in production until 1984.

9. Stratos (1973)

Few could have predicted that the wildly futuristic Stratos Zero concept introduced by Bertone at the 1970 Turin motor show would spawn one of the most famous rally cars in WRC history.

While the coupé should have remained a head-turning design study, Lancia’s racing department requested a less futuristic version of it to replace the Fulvia in international rally events. Production started in 1973.

Stratos (cont.)

Powered by a version of the Ferrari Dino’s 2.4-litre V6, the Stratos won the World Rally Championship in 1974, 1975 and 1976, leaving its rivals in the dust – literally and metaphorically.

It was replaced by the Fiat 131 Abarth after a bitter internal power struggle, yet it continued to win in the hands of private teams until 1981.

Most historians agree fewer than 500 units were manufactured, including a handful of street-legal Stradale models (pictured) built for homologation purposes.

10. Beta Monte-Carlo/Scorpion (1974)

Fiat and Abarth jointly designed the Beta Monte-Carlo as a street-legal sports car with a mid-mounted engine that could be raced without major modifications if needed.

Executives planned to name the model X1/20 and position it as a bigger, more powerful alternative to the X1/9 but they gave it to Lancia at the last minute. They allegedly feared it would cast a shadow over the 131 Abarth in WRC events.

Lancia rolled the X1/20 into the Beta range and named it Monte-Carlo, presumably after the rally held there. Chevrolet owned the rights to the nameplate in America so there it was called Scorpion. Regardless of what you call it, the Beta’s low-slung half-sibling brought a big dose of performance to the Lancia range.

11. Gamma (1976)

Designed by Pininfarina, the Gamma caught a ball set rolling by the Flaminia when it made its debut in 1976.

It was positioned at the top of the Lancia range, like its predecessor, but it was shaped by a novel approach to developing a flagship.

It wore an unusual, fastback-like two-box silhouette rather than a more classic three-box design. And, instead of a V6 turning the rear wheels, it was powered by a flat-four that spun the front wheels. Lancia expanded the Gamma range with an upmarket coupé in 1977.

12. Delta (1979)

Before it became a rally superstar, the Giorgetto Giugiaro-designed Delta was a modern, front-wheel-drive hatchback launched to boost Lancia’s sales by taking it into one of the most popular segments of the market.

Moving into this space might sound odd, but Alfa Romeo had already blazed the path with the Alfasud in 1972.

Well received at launch, the Delta was praised for its elegant styling, its high level of equipment, and its fit and finish, a sign that Lancia’s efforts had paid off. It finished comfortably ahead of the Opel Kadett D and the Peugeot 505 to earn the coveted Car of the Year award in 1980.

An unexpected and short-lived tie-up spawned the Saab-Lancia 600, a badge-engineered Delta sold in small numbers in Sweden and Norway. It was Saab’s answer to Volvo’s entry-level 300 Series.

13. 037 (1982)

Lancia and Abarth collaborated with Dallara to design the 037 rally car in the early 1980s. Built to compete in the Group B category, its silhouette was vaguely reminiscent of the Beta Monte-Carlo’s but its underpinnings were new from the ground up.

It was notably powered by a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine fitted with a supercharger to develop 205hp in its most basic state of tune. Fearsomely capable, the 037 won the World Rally Championship in 1983, and it’s remembered as the last rear-wheel-drive car to take first place in the series.

It finished second the following year, 12 points behind winner Audi. Lancia knew it needed to adopt four-wheel-drive to remain competitive in the sport.

14. Trevi VX Bimotore (1984)

Lancia took an unusually direct path to the world of four-wheel-drive when it built an experimental Trevi with two engines.

Adding a second supercharged 2.0-litre to power the rear wheels created a monster of a saloon with approximately 300hp on tap. It remained a one-off, albeit a fascinating one.

15. Delta S4 (1985)

Lancia put its Group B rivals on notice when it released the Delta S4 in 1985. Like the 037 it took the torch from, it was shaped like a production car but nearly everything under the body was redesigned to withstand the trials of competition.

The S4 took first place in several WRC events (including the 1986 editions of the Monte-Carlo and San Remo rallies) but it failed to place Lancia on the top spot of the podium.

16. Y10 (1985)

Unveiled in 1985, the Y10 became one of Lancia’s most significant models by accident.

It was developed by Autobianchi to replace the A112 and it was related to the first-generation Fiat Panda under the sheet metal. Lancia entered the equation when Fiat decided not to market the hatchback as an Autobianchi in many markets outside of Italy due to a lack of image. The Y10 fitted surprisingly well into the Lancia range.

It was one of the first models that proved city cars didn’t have to be bland or cheap. More significantly, it played a major role in re-establishing Lancia’s reputation as a manufacturer of upscale cars. Without it, there would be no Ypsilon in 2021, which (as we’ll later see) would mean no Lancia.

17. Delta HF 4WD (1986)

Lancia was forced to mothball the Delta S4 when the FIA cancelled the Group B category. Instead of putting its motorsport gloves away, the marque built a tamer, four-wheel-drive evolution of the Delta to participate in the Group A category starting in 1987. It was much closer to the series-produced car.

Lancia won the World Rally Championship in 1987. It later replaced the Delta HF 4WD with the emblematic Delta Integrale and took first place in the series in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1992, a feat which remains the longest winning streak in WRC history.

Meanwhile, several street-legal variants of the Delta Integrale positioned Lancia as a force to be reckoned with in the world of hot hatches.

18. Thema 8.32 (1986)

Historically, the Lancia range has regularly oscillated back and forth between performance and luxury.

The company simultaneously displayed both facets when it wedged a 2.9-litre V8 borrowed from the Ferrari 308 Quattrovalvole into the Thema saloon and let it loose on European roads.

It wasn’t necessarily the BMW M-rivalling beast it sounded like, and it offered 215hp and took approximately 7.2 secs to reach 60mph from a stop, but it featured a level of prestige unmatched in Germany. Inside, the passengers were treated to supple leather upholstery and real walnut trim.

19. Hyena (1992)

Italian coachbuilder Zagato alchemised the Delta Integrale into a coupé named Hyena in the early 1990s. Backed by Paul Koot, the company’s Dutch importer, the project initially received Lancia’s blessing and a chassis supply deal was tentatively struck.

Building the Hyena became vastly more complicated when Lancia backed out of the project, forcing Koot to buy a Delta Integrale, strip it, send the chassis to Zagato where the body was fitted, and wait for it to come back. 500 units were planned; only 24 were built.

20. Thesis (2001)

Lancia took its last shot at developing a flagship saloon in-house in 2001. Inspired by the Dialagos concept presented in 1999, the Thesis wore a design that, for better or worse, allowed it to stand out from everything else on the road.

It wasn’t a copy of a Mercedes-Benz or an Audi. Originality didn’t boost sales, and the Thesis lagged behind its German rivals for most of its career.

About 16,000 units were built until production ended in early 2009. And yet, it’s transitioning into a modern classic in 2021.

Lancia’s gradual demise (2010s)

Lancia became irrelevant during the 2010s as chronic underinvestment and years of badge engineering torpedoed its image. It was regularly left out of product plans; its product pipeline had run dry.

Sergio Marchionne, the former head of (and mastermind behind) the Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) group, didn’t mince his words when he spoke about the company’s future. “We have curtained our ambitions for Lancia. I’m going to be saying things that will hurt old Lancia people. The market has moved on and not every opportunity can be realised. We can’t cede to every demand,” he told Autocar in May 2014.

Wild rumours began swirling around the automotive industry. Some claimed FCA would send off Lancia by releasing a 21st-century Delta Integrale. Others speculated the brand would be sold, though neither a price nor a buyer was ever floated. In hindsight, these reports weren’t accurate and Lancia soldiered on.

Lancia’s stay of execution (2010s)

“There’s no hope for Lancia right now. Our resources are limited, and we need to make choices. Sometimes that’s painful,” Sergio Marchionne told investors during a press conference in 2017.

Lancia stopped selling cars outside of Italy that same year, so it was left with one car (the Ypsilon, pictured) offered only in its home market.

If this situation sounds familiar, it’s because that’s how Autobianchi was euthanised in the ’90s. And yet, the situation wasn’t as dire as it appeared: Lancia outsold Alfa Romeo in the European Union in the first half of 2019. Clearly, not all hope was lost.

What’s next? (2021-on)

The once-great Lancia withered on the vine as it entered the 2020s with a single model available in a single market. It fell under the Stellantis umbrella when FCA and France’s Peugeot-led PSA Group merged in early 2021, and most assumed the end was near for the storied Italian firm… But executives made a surprising announcement in May.

Company boss Carlos Tavares (an enthusiast who competes in classic rallies) said every Stellantis brand will be given 10 years and adequate funding to prove it deserves to live.

What’s next depends on the folks in charge of Lancia, then. While no firm product announcement had been made at the time of writing, former Citroën designer Jean-Pierre Ploué was appointed head of Lancia design in June 2021. His CV includes the original Renault Twingo and several Citroën models released during the 2000s, including the C6 saloon (2005), the second-generation C5 (2007) and the DS3 (2009).

“Lancia’s renaissance is a truly exciting challenge. Lancia is an iconic brand, which will be restored to its central historical position in Europe, leveraging on its huge potential,” Ploué announced.

It is most definitely 115 years and counting, then!