1959 Lancia Flaminia

The Via Flaminia was an ancient Roman road leading from Rome to Ariminum, and in keeping with company tradition, was the name of a Lancia model. Introduced in 1957 and produced through 1970, it was Lancia's flagship model and a replacement for the Aurelia, Lancia's first new postwar model. Also named after a Roman road, the Aurelia continued Lancia's tradition of being a mechanical tour de force. It was introduced in 1950 and was one of the first to be equipped with series-production V6 engines. Francesco de Virgilio, working under the direction of Vittorio Jano, developed the engine, giving it a 60-degree design angle, a hemispherical combustion chamber, in-line valves, and a single camshaft between the cylinder banks. Initially displacing 1.8 liters, the engine capacity eventually grew to 2.5 liters by the close of Aurelia production.

Lancia produced 18,201 examples of the Aurelia from 1950 through 1958 and 12,633 examples of the Flaminia during its 13-year production lifespan.

The Aurelia had introduced several ground-breaking mechanical innovations but by 1955, the company's fortunes had somewhat diminished. Needing to breathe new life into their model line, the Turin-based automobile worked with Carrozzeria Pinin Farina to produce the Florida Saloon based on the Aurelia. It was a concept car that was introduced later that year at the Turin Auto Salon. The positive reception by the public convinced Lancia to approve a production version, which was eventually called the 'Flaminia.'

The chassis, engine, and many of the mechanical components of the Flaminia were evolutions of the Aurelia. While the Aurelia had used a sliding pillar design for its front suspension, the Flaminia used a more conventional design with double wishbones, telescopic shock absorbers, coil springs, and an anti-roll bar. The Aurelia had originally used a semi-trailing arm setup for its rear suspension, but it was replaced by a de Dion tube in the Fourth series and carried through to the Flaminia.

The V6 engine had an increased bore and decreased stroke, resulting in a displacement size of 2,458cc and offering around 101 horsepower with a single carburetor and 138 horsepower with the triple-carburetor setup. In 1962, displacement increased to 2,775cc, and with a triple-barrel carburetor, between 126 and 148 horsepower was offered. With a triple carburetor, horsepower rose to 150 bhp.

The V6 engine was mounted longitudinally and sent the power to the rear wheels via a four-speed rear-mounted transaxle.

The Aurelia had been the first road-going car to be fitted with radial tires as standard equipment, and the Flaminia would continue to use the radial tire technology. Body styles included a coupe and four-door saloon (Berlina), with the coupes resting on a 99-inch wheelbase platform while the saloons measured 113 inches. Pininfarina, Zagato, and Touring provided the coachwork for the coupe, Pininfarina for the saloon, and Touring built a Convertible. It was initially built only as a Berlina, with a Pinin Farina coupé eventually becoming available. Three years later, at the Turin Salon, the company introduced two sportier versions with shortened wheelbases, the Flaminia GT and the Flaminia Sport. The GT was a Grand Tourer built by Touring of Milan and clothed in aluminum. While the Pininfarina-designed Flaminia's had two headlights, the Touring-bodied examples had four-round headlights, a shorter cabin, and seating for two. The GT was offered as a coupe and convertible (cabriolet with optional hardtop). The Convertible was produced through 1964 with a total of 847 examples built including 180 with the larger, 2.8-liter engine. Approximately 871 examples were coupes bringing the total GT production to 1,718 units. The Flaminia GTL was introduced in 1962 and produced through 1965 with approximately 300 examples built, most (297 units) with the 2.8-liter engine. They rested on a slightly longer wheelbase which accommodated the 2+2 seating arrangement.

The Flaminia Sport was the work of Ercole Spada with coachwork by Zagato. Bestowed with several of the firm's unique styling cues, it wore a curvaceous body, a double-bubble roof, a central bonnet scoop, and covered headlamps. With the introduction of the 2.8-liter engine in 1964, the Sport became known as the Super Sport. Along with the uprated engine, the Super Sport wore updated styling features including a Kammback, lower front hood, revised air intake, a larger windshield, and tear-shape headlight casings. Built through 1967, Lancia built 593 examples of the Sport and Super Sport, including 99 of the first Flaminia Sport with covered headlamps.

The Lancia Flaminia Berlina was introduced in March of 1957 at the Turin Auto Show and drew design inspiration from the Florida I prototype, including the suicide rear doors that opened opposite to the front doors. The Berlina was the only body style to last through the entire production of the Flaminia and the only one to be built by Lancia themselves. They were built at Lancia's Borgo San Paolo factory with 3,344 examples powered by the 2.5-liter engine and 599 with the larger, 2.8-liter unit.

Pininfarina designed and built the Flaminia Coupe and its design was heavily inspired by the Florida II prototype and built atop a shortened wheelbase. The front end of both the Berlina and the Coupe were very similar, but the headlight frames of the coupe were completely round, unlike the saloon which pointed slightly upwards. Its overall design theme was clean and elegant, with the angular architecture of contrasting panels with inclines joined by short radius curves. Produced until 1967, a total of 5,236 examples of the coupe were built with 4,151 fitted with the 2.5-liter engine and 1,085 with the 2.8-liter unit.

Special Creations
Pininfarina was commissioned to build four stretched Lancia Flaminia limousines for Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Italy. They had a 131.9-inch wheelbase and were officially called the Flaminia 335 (due to its 335 cm wheelbase size) and unofficially known as the Presidenziale or Quirinale. The four cars were named Belsito, Belmonte, Belvedere, and Belfiore, and all four examples survive in modern times. Two of them are on display in museums, with one residing at Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile and the other at Museo Storico della Motorizzazione Militare.

Tom Tjaarda of Pininfarina was commissioned to build a one-off coupe in 1963. It used a short chassis and was equipped with a 2.8-liter engine with three carburetors.

Successor
In short, the Flaminia did not have a successor. During the lifespan of the Flaminia, it was joined by a small family car called the Appia, and large family car called the Fulvia, and an executive car known as the Flavia I. Production of the Flaminia and Flavia I ended in 1970, with the Flavia I being replaced by another executive car called the 2000.

by Daniel Vaughan | May 2022