How we purchased a traditional Lancia and drove it again to the UK

The itemizing may not have jumped out at me if the identical automobile had been completely posed on a turntable in a kind of sterile-white studios favoured by the UK’s extra aspirational traditional automobile sellers.

However because it was, the pale blue coupé was nestled right into a sunlit scene of bucolic Campanian attraction, backed by wonky vine posts, verdant meadows, blossoming timber and rugged peaks past.

To me, it was a Caravaggio among the many classifieds, and I began dreaming of bringing the automobile again residence to Scotland and transplanting a little bit style of that scene to our rain-soaked shores, a form of automotive Portmeirion.

Regardless of my being a lifelong botherer of Italian vehicles and power Lancia fancier, the Fulvia Coupé 2+2 didn’t steamroll my consciousness like Turin’s incendiary Stratos, 037 or Integrale had.

However its good-looking kind, intriguing V4 engine and less-heralded rally triumphs (see separate story, proper) turned my head, and I used to be stunned to find how inexpensive they have been – particularly in Italy. This one – a 1974 1.3S – was listed at simply £7900.

The automobile was a part of the mannequin’s remaining iteration, the Fulvia 3, however the first Fulvia Coupé was launched in 1965, with in-house styling by Piero Castagnero impressed by Riva’s beautiful mahogany speedboats.

Mechanically idiosyncratic, it inherited a lot from Castagnero’s contrastingly quadrate Fulvia saloon: a V4 chain-driven twin-cam engine with solely 13deg between its banks and a shared alloy head, after which canted on its aspect by 45deg and mounted forward of the entrance axle, with a four-speed, all-synchromesh gearbox driving the entrance wheels.

Double wishbones and a transverse leaf spring suspended the entrance finish, with longitudinal leaf springs and a lifeless axle behind, whereas all 4 corners boasted disc brakes.

The advanced little engine began at 1216cc and 80bhp (it was a 100mph automobile even at that), rising by way of 1231cc and 1298cc to 1584cc.

The primary high-performance ‘HF’ model mined an additional 7bhp from the 1216cc unit through uprated camshafts, manifolds and carburettors, and it was slenderised through thinner metal with aluminium for the door skins and bonnet, shedding 125kg to tip the scales at a flyweight 825kg.

This was street automobile engineering the Lancia method, and to hell with the bean-counters.

The most well liked manufacturing mannequin arrived in 1969 because the 1.6-litre, five-speed Rallye HF. This sequence of 1258 vehicles was often known as ‘Fanalone’, which means ‘massive headlights’, on account of upsized, 7in internal lights.

With its engine producing 115bhp at 6200rpm, the Fanalone hit 60mph in 9.9sec, though an extra-special run often known as ‘variante 1016’ added one other 15bhp because of rally-bred camshafts and a better compression ratio.

Additionally in 1969, a takeover by Fiat introduced much-needed funding in Lancia, and a yr later the second-series Fulvia Coupé appeared with adjustments together with a five-speed gearbox for all variations, dual-circuit brakes and revised styling, with UK vehicles additionally getting raised outer headlights for compliance causes.

Engineers on the time claimed to introduce Fiat elements solely by alternative relatively than pressure, however ongoing downgrades to trim finishes and the deletion of aluminium panels on the HF mannequin hinted that compromises have been being decreed from on excessive. Nonetheless, it was higher to have Lancia with a contact of Fiat than no Lancia in any respect.

Formally an extension to the second sequence, the Fulvia 3 arrived in 1973, bringing with it primarily light beauty adjustments each outdoors and in. By then the mannequin shared a manufacturing line with the brand new, Fiat-engined Beta Coupé, and it was discontinued in 1976.

All of which made mild studying on my flight to Naples in September 2017. From descending previous Vesuvius and a few gelato-fuelled days spent marvelling on the Amalfi Coast to viewing the automobile in a hilltop farmyard with a glass of home-made limoncello served by the vendor’s mamma, it was the car-buying journey goals are product of.

Most significantly, the Fulvia actually was nearly as good because it seemed: a 12-year-old repaint of its Bleu Agnano bodywork nonetheless seemed tidy, the inside was aged however intact, there was no signal of both rust or repairs and a passenger experience didn’t sound any mechanical alarm bells. Quickly, it was mine, for £7500.

For one more £650, a transporting agency would ship the automobile to IJmuiden port, close to Amsterdam, so three weeks later I met it there on a humid Dutch night time to catch a ferry to the UK.

The import course of was pretty simple: no VAT or import responsibility have been payable, however I had to inform HMRC concerning the automobile and supply the DVLA with a relationship letter from FCA (Lancia’s UK consultant on the time), plus an MOT certificates.

Put up-Brexit, there may be nonetheless no responsibility however 5% VAT would have utilized, whereas the 40-year historic car testing exemption means a V112 declaration now suffices as an alternative of an MOT.

I’d have volunteered to get the automobile examined anyway and nonetheless periodically take it for MOTs. Legally, classics have to be saved ‘roadworthy’ at a minimal, however that primarily covers lights, brakes, ranges and tyres.

I selected revered Lancia-whisperer – and former Fulvia rallyist – Neil Jeffrey at Automobile Craft Scotland for a radical inspection and pre-test checks.

To my reduction, his opinion of the bodywork and chassis strengthened my very own earlier starry-eyed evaluation: they have been glorious. There was nonetheless oily work to be executed, although.

Contemporary fluids and plugs have been joined by the likes of latest engine and gearbox mounts, rear suspension bushes, CV joint gaiters and brake strains.

The gas filter and regulator meeting was cleaned, the distributor refurbished, the timing and valve clearances set and the 2 double-barrel Solex carburettors adjusted for noticeably sweeter operating.

The traditional underseal was additionally wirebrushed off and changed: having seen the husks of rust-ravaged Fulvias, I’m not taking any possibilities with this one. An advisory-free MOT adopted, with storage prices to that time of £3100 in labour costs and £1100 in elements.

That was on the higher finish of my expectations, however I used to be pleased nonetheless. Since then, the one extraordinary mechanical expense has been to restore a leaking brake grasp cylinder, and that was again in 2021.

I’ve made different enhancements. The warped vinyl door playing cards have been changed with sensible new recreations from Italy, and the manually adjustable entrance seatbelts have been substituted with inertia reels for security and luxury.

Manky previous sound deadening within the footwells was binned and crusty glue residue sanded from the ground, which was then expertly prepped and repainted by GBL Motors in Edinburgh.

Becoming the substitute deadening stays on the to-do record, together with new headlining that’s ready on a shelf.

The Fulvia’s aftermarket Melber Main alloy wheels suited it properly however have been 1.5in wider than normal and vulnerable to rubbing tyres on the rear wheel arches.

The tyres themselves have been sufficiently old to vote, so I took the prospect to refinish the unique metal wheels the vendor had provided and match them with period-correct Michelin XAS tyres, that are nonetheless in manufacturing utilizing a modernised compound.

Promoting the Melbers helped fund the change, the impact of which was transformational: steering weight, grip, experience and dealing with all improved.

And people are among the many dynamic skills photographer Max Edleston and I’ve resolved to discover alongside the Scotland-England border the place Dere Avenue – the Roman superhighway to the northern excessive of the Empire – stands in for Through Fulvia, the 179BC street main east from Turin, after which the automobile was named.

There’s a particular consumption warble and slight metallic churn to the intense and free-revving engine, and even with us and our issues including 20% to the automobile’s kerb weight, there’s nonetheless shocking urgency obtainable with revs, the feeling of which is heightened by the Fulvia’s sound and smallness.

The dog-leg gearbox has a reasonably lengthy throw and desires two distinct actions into fourth however in any other case shifts sweetly, with satisfying north-south adjustments into third and fifth.

The ratios are quick and carefully stacked, explaining the undistinguished 0-60mph time of 11.9sec recorded by Autocar’s street testers in 1974, and fourth gear is usually required when driving on the town.

Fifth is direct drive and no leggier than within the earlier four-speeder, sitting loudly slightly below 4000rpm at 70mph, which might turn out to be carrying on motorways and sooner A-roads.

Fortunately, the border nation is scattered with attention-grabbing minor roads. Distant, quiet and unfailingly scenic, these rally-ready capillaries go well with the Fulvia completely.

Miki Biasion – two-time Integrale-driving WRC champion – owns a Safari version Fulvia and says works drivers used to left-foot brake to get the most effective from the automobile, coming into bends quickly after which braking aggressively to start out the flip.

For civilian driving, nevertheless, fluidity is your pal. The pedals encourage a heel-and-toe method, letting you interact the cornering gear of alternative with a contented bark from the engine.

There’s scant really feel from the servo-assisted brakes, however they’re simply modulated and reassuringly efficient. The worm-and-roller steering, though composed and delicately weighted as soon as on top of things, isn’t overly incisive, and sharp inputs upset the suspension, so set your lock early, settle in and also you’re rewarded with a candy and nimble pivot.

Thanks partially to beneficiant sidewalls, mid-corner bumps don’t upset the chassis, and the understeer you may anticipate from that extreme-front engine place and thin, 165mm-wide tyres doesn’t materialise.

As soon as into your rhythm, it’s a pleasure. However it additionally makes you realise what wizards these rally drivers have been to place the front-drive Fulvia on a knife-edge and break rear-end grip whereas retaining absolute management.

It’s a actually partaking traditional to drive; my arms, legs and mind are frequently busy, and the trouble is rewarded. Watching the greenery pace by from the supple-riding Fulvia’s near-pillarless glasshouse, there’s not a lot I’d swap this time and place for.By way of practicalities, it’s a manageable automobile to personal and run.

I’m 6ft 2in and there may be good house within the entrance, though my driving place renders the tiny rear bench unusable. The boot, with its superbly engineered computerized prop, is spacious albeit compromised when carrying the spare wheel, and the engine bay permits good entry to the entire main elements.

There’s an energetic marketplace for spares (be they used, refurbished or recreated), a wholesome variety of specialists and good assist from the Lancia Motor Membership, which has members and teams throughout the nation.

Actual-world gas financial system averages just below 30mpg, however the tank solely holds 38 litres. It’s exempt from car tax, and I’m paying simply £90 yearly for insurance coverage on a 2000-mile restrict by way of a Howden Insurance coverage multi-car coverage.

It’s insured for £17,500, which pretty displays the present worth, so it has greater than washed its face financially, together with £560 for the steel-framed, inflatable Carcoon wherein it lives to chase away rust, mud and unintended knocks within the storage.

There’s at all times a to-do record, at present topped by a brand new timing chain and opening up the engine to analyze barely low oil stress and occasional oil smoke.

Jeffrey has beneficial an digital distributor, costing round £300, for brighter efficiency, whereas the entrance leaf spring wants re-securing to cease it splaying. Some new carpets and instrument lenses would gentrify the cabin, too.

In the event you haven’t guessed, I’m enthusiastic about this automobile. I prefer it dynamically, aesthetically and, with its rally provenance, narratively.

One way or the other, it even works fiscally. Viva la Fulvia.