1991 Autobianchi Y10 1300 GT: The Dark Side Of The Farce

As a marque, Autobianchi was never allowed to flourish. The closest they got to prime time was as Fiat’s experimental branch, back in the ‘60s, with the Primula. In 1969 came the A112 – a a genuine success story that also turned Autobianchi back into a one-trick pony, the king of tarted-up Fiat city cars. The A112’s follow-up, the Autobianchi Y10, showed this to be the case. It was also Autobianchi’s final act.

Autobianchi got lumped together with Lancia sometime in the ‘70s, so the new Fiat supermini was really a little Lancia. Whatever meagre brand identity Autobianchi still had by the early ‘80s was fast evaporating, but the segment still existed.

Using the Fiat Panda’s capable platform, the Lancia folks developed something even boxier (but more aerodynamic) than the donor Fiat. The rear end was especially abrupt. Initially, it was supposed to be made of composite material, but structural issues called for the use of metal in the end. Still, the rear end would always be painted black (save for a few special editions), in a sort of reminder of what should have been.

The Lancia/Autobianchi folks decided to develop a new semi-independent rear suspension, rather than use the original Panda’s somewhat crude beam axle. When it appeared in late 1984, the Y10 featured a choice of a 999cc or a 1049cc 4-cyl., i.e. the Panda’s two largest engine options. The 1049cc was even available with a turbo, churning out 85hp – quite the pocket rocket. Like the Panda, a 4WD version was also added to the range.

Our feature car, which is a series 2 (1989-92) is prominently displaying the Lancia HF callout on a series 1 grille, which looks a bit out of place on a Y10. The owner, not content with this minor attempt at individualization, also painted the hood (ineptly) in mat black and replaced the Autobianchi logo with a likeness of Darth Vador. The farce awakens.

It’s a little hard to make out in this particular car, but the Y10 was about as luxurious inside as a contemporary Mercedes. If one were to tick all the optional extras, the Autobianchi was even capable of besting the higher end of the Japanese offerings in terms of wow factor.

Not many people forked out the millions of extra lira for the full digital display, but you could if you wanted to. The Alcantara padding, on the other hand, was standard on all cars.

Not all markets were able to accept the turbo due to emissions controls, so when the Y10 was given a minor upgrade in 1989, a 1297cc engine was made available on the higher end models. This was a 72hp Brazilian-made motor, designed with catalytic converters in mind. Japanese market cars were provided with this engine from that point on. At the time, Autobianchi and Lancia were distributed by Autozam, so quite a few were imported here. But unlike the Delta Integrales and Themas, many (if not nearly all) Japanese market Y10s seem to have gone to the crusher by now.

When the Y10 received another facelift in 1992, it was made to look more like a Lancia – and indeed the Autobianchi marque was put to rest in all foreign markets. It soldiered on in its homeland until 1995, when the big A logo was unceremoniously cast onto the dung heap of automotive history. Not that anyone ever really missed it. Nowadays, Lancia is playing the role of Autobianchi, perilously poised on the plank with its lone deluxe supermini in its rump range. Ready to join the dark side…