1971 Lancia Fulvia Sports Coupe

The Lancia Fulvia was introduced at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show and was built through to 1976. The car was named after the wife of Roman politician Marc Anthony. The car was intended as a replacement for the Appia and wore a design by engineer Antonio Fessia. The Fulvia had the earlier Flavia's front-wheel drive and a 'traditional' Lancia narrow-angle V-4. The engine design dated back to the Lambda of the 1920s.

The four-cylinder engine found in the Fulvia was designed by Zaccone Mina and used vee-angle with twin overhead camshafts mounted at a 45-degree angle. With its narrow-angle and compact design, a single cylinder head and just two camshafts were used.

The Lancia Fulvia was available in three body styles including a four-door Berlina on a 97.6-inch wheelbase, a shorter 91.7-inch wheelbase that bore a coupe body style, and a fastback by coachbuilder Zagato.

This 1971 Lancia Fulvia is an original example that was stored by a dealer in Naples until 1976, when it was sold to its first owner, Mr. Guarino Carmine. Mr. Carmine retained the car for the rest of his life. After his passing in 1993, his widow kept the car in the garage until 2008. A Swiss Lancia dealer was able to convince her to sell it. It then stayed in the dealer's own collection in Lugano.

The car arrived in the United States in May of 2014 after being imported by the current owner. The car has just 26,300 kilometers. It wears its factory-original color of Avorio Santa Anita, and the interior remains completely original.

The car is powered by a 1298cc dual overhead cam V-4 engine rated at 90 horsepower. There is a five-speed manual transmission and four-wheel power-hydraulic disc brakes.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2015