We’ve given the Fulvia some love here a number of times over the years, but now it’s Road and Track’s time to show us what made these so special. They tested not just the classic Fulvia 1.3 Rallye but also the rare and more expensive Zagato. Take your pick; you can’t go wrong
There was some skepticism about these small 1.3 liter Lancias, but that was quickly dissolved as soon as the staff took the Zagato out on the highway, where it happily (and smoothly) purred along at 70, thanks to its jewel of a 13 degree V4 and the very aerodynamic body.
These are of course FWD cars, which in itself was rather unusual at the time, especially in such sporty ones. The V4 was highly tuned, to 87 hp, which was pretty impressive for 1298cc at the time. That meant a bit of a high idle (1100 rpm) and a touch of hesitation getting off the line, but once under way, it moved out smartly. Of course their acceleration stats in today’s context look modest, with the lower geared Rallye posting a 12.6 sec. 0-60, and the higher geared Zagato taking 13 seconds. But that’s not what these were all about; buy a Hemi Coronet if that’s what you were after.
“These Lancias are the best handling fwd cars we’ve ever driven, and that’s saying something”. And good brakes complete the picture. Well, there’s a good ride quality too. And speaking of quality, there’s plenty of that to be seen throughout these cars inside, outside and under the hood. “Word is that these Lancias are also very reliable and long of life”.
Most importantly, “They are both delightful to drive”.
Is there a brand that fell further than Lancia? From Grand Prix winning race cars, to pioneering FWD cars, AWD rally dominance … to rebadged Chryslers and now, just one offering based on the Fiat 500. I started this a rhetorical question, but if any CC-er can think of another similar tale of decline I’m all ears. At least the Studebaker Packards died a quicker death than Lancia.
Chrysler built some of the most advanced and high-quality cars from their inception through the disaster of 1957, running competitively at LeMans before WWII, winning road races with Briggs Cunningham after the war, and dominating stock car racing with Carl Kiekhaefer. Since then, their badges have been worn by cars using components developed by Mitsubishi, Daimler, and now Fiat.
Bentley went from winning those LeMans races to being a rebadged Rolls-Royce to being a badge-engineered VW Phaeton.
There’s going to be a new IH Scout that will be a skin on an electric VW. The Scout may not have reached the highs of the D50 Lancias, but it is about to plumb the depths.
Thanks for these suggestions. Chrysler’s decline seems a little bit of a “long tail” flattened curve, given that 300’s and minivans have been around for so long now, but I agree that in the big picture, over decades, it’s pretty sad. Ditto Bentley, which hadn’t occurred to me. I actually think it’s cool that VW will revive the Scout name; it was gone so long that I think the revival is cool, so to me that is not quite “plumbing the depths”.
Yes, but that one model of Lancia, the Ypsilon, sold only in Europe, outsells ALL of Alfa Romeo’s ENTIRE range combined. Maybe there is some brand equity left? After the money FCA/Stellantis has blown on Alfa’s damp squib of sales success, is it any wonder that the new management at Stellantis has decided to give Lancia another chance?
Alfa sold over 80,000 cars worldwide last year, which is about twice Lancia’s number if I’m not mistaken. The Ypsilon is kind of an entry level hatchback, which would be pretty much DOA in North America, whereas Alfa produces vastly pricier models. Neither marque has a large enough range or following currently to actually be termed “successful”; while Alfa’s offerings are an interesting alternative to the establishment (the Germans) with a couple of absolutely bonkers variants that might as well be badged Ferrari (or perhaps Dino) on offer, Lancia really has been let down over the last decade plus, perhaps only to keep the brand alive. I’d certainly welcome a reawakening of the brand, but not just as rebadged Alfas or Chryslers or Peugeots or whatever. And I don’t really see the demand to justify much exclusivity.
Lancia must have had a minuscule presence in the US in those days. I was a junior gearhead, and I knew a lot of strange and unusual marques, but I didn’t know Lancia even existed until after they were part of FIAT.
Both of these models were lust-inducing to me when I spent a year studying in Italy in 1971-72. The coupe was/is such a beauty, and whenever I see one in the States, I still get that hankering. Someone who used a parking piazza near my school had a Fulvia Zagato in copper, with the aero headlamps that you couldn’t have in America, and it was striking, but not as appealing as the airy coupe.
If you were getting lusty at these while studying overseas in ’71 and can still lust-up today if you spy one, that deserves some admiration of a different sort – for reference, I was not-quite three in ’71, and probably studying my diapers – but anyway, I’m glad to hear of someone who likes the non-Zagato better, as I do too. Quite lustily, in fact.
This was the article that made me aware of the Fulvia, although I was already aware of Lancia in general. The Fulvia went straight into my fantasy garage, where it remains. The two lotto tickets I bought two weeks ago didn’t do the trick–oh well.
The last 2 ‘grafs of the article nailed it: with a Fulvia you were paying for the driving experiencing and the exquisite engineering, not plush trim or a lot of metal for the money.
When I got my first car, a Saab 95 V4, I had no illusions that it was as sophisticated as a Fulvia, but I thought it was cool that it had a V4 and FWD. I understand that when Saab was looking for a 4-stroke engine, the Fulvia V4 was on the shortlist, even though it wasn’t chosen in the end.
Came within a whisper of purchasing the Zagato in 1967, when I was discharged from the Navy in Naples. As a long time fan of Lancia, I so much wanted that car.
Practicality won out, however, and I purchased a ’67 Volvo 122S station wagon instead.
Glad I did.
Inquiries into the state of parts and service in the USA revealed I had made the right choice.
The “boxier” looking one I’ve seen on the road a time or two in my 60+ years. The other one; never that I can recall.
$3250 of 1967’s monies for rubber mats and one blowhard fan speed, but but also engine castings of complex art, and, in today’s money, $6,000+ forged crankshafts. And not even good road circuit cars for the flat-cap weekend racer set, unlike, say a Porsche. They really were trinkets for the wealthy few, perhaps even the snobby few who bought the history as much as the exquisite engineering, but I think I’d have been in their number if so monied in 1967. They are a car I will always want to drive one day, until the day comes I’m not breathing to do so. And in a dream, I want several engine castings on display as abstract pieces on my wall: they could pass as that, easily. All of that high price, btw, came at no profit to the maker, who practically never turned a dime in the entire life of the company.
The reference to high quality of finish is understandable, but history shows it to be wrong. The aluminium Zagatos were sort-of tacked on all over the existing structure, very much lovingly hand made and hand variable. Very loving also of corrosion, and very unloved by panelbeaters who could find no commonality one to the next when the inevitable repair time came around.
Barry Koch (above) is right: the factory coupe is prettier, and for me, by some margin. The Zagato has a nice old tail on it, but the front is all a bit heavy and industrial. It looks better without bumpers, incidentally, though that doesn’t eliminate the – dare I say it – rather underdone near-blandness of the design.
I’d still have either in a heartbeat tomorrow, of course. Or better still, both. They’re such tiny little jewels in real life, it’d be one for each pocket.
One of my father’s friends bought a 1973 Fulvia Coupé new, which he had fully restored in 1980 because it was so rusty. Can you imagine having to do that to a 2015 car today? He bought an Alfasud Sprint to replace it as his daily driver which I guess was something of a spiritual successor. Justy’s comment is spot on about the Zagato – too heavy at the front – used to see one in the paddock at Prescott hill climb in the U.K. and it was even less attractive in the flesh.
I was often disappointed that most French and Italian cars, so well received and popular in Europe, did so very badly in America.