Italian Style: 1970 Lancia Fulvia 1300S
Oh Lancia, why do you temp me so? The Lancia Fulvia Tipo 818 is a classic Italian saloon available from
1964-1976 as a Berlina, Coupe, and Sport. The one to get is the Coupe, which offers 2+2 seating and styling by Piero Castagnero of Centro Stile
Lancia. The Fulvia coupe prices have been surprisingly calm for the past decade, and there was a time when the Fulvia was an interesting option to the Porsche 912, but now it clearly offers a better value for the money. Find this 1970 Lancia Fulvia 1300S offered for $21,500 in Petaluma, CA via craigslist.
The comparison to the classic Porsche isn’t just because the seller mentioned a possible trade for a Porsche, but also because of the style over substance that both the 912 and the Fulvia posses. The Fulvia is a front drive classic that should be shunned for its wrong wheel drive, but somehow the beautiful silhouette silences all naysayers.
A longitudinal V4 engine is mounted up front (canted over at 45 degrees)
and connected via a transaxle to the front wheels. The 1.3 liter
narrow 13 degree V4 uses two
overhead camshafts (one for exhaust valves, one for intake) and a single
head (similar to Volkswagen’s H2O cooled VR6 setup) to produce 87
horsepower.
There is an interesting article from Hemmings written in January of 2013 (read it here) that mentions that prices are low and calls the Fulvia an “investment-grade European.” The prices haven’t dropped, but they haven’t done an E30 M3 yet, so get them while they are cheap.
See a better way to drive an Italian without breaking the banca? tips@dailyturismo.com
youtube.com/watch?v=NQhwNtY3N2k
List of things which are a better value than a Porsche 912:
a) Lancia Fulvia
b) the F-35
c) those metal rods in the eastern section of the Bay Bridge which will have to be replaced at a cost of one zillion dollars
d) any new sailboat over 30'
e) the last dozen marquee Nieman-Marcus Christmas gifts
f) the leadership services of Bob Nardelli
g) etc.
There. I'm felling much better now. That being said, at equal asking prices, I'd take the Fulvia!
Front drive. I think it accepted more because it's known as one of the worlds most sublime handling cars and then oh, there is that world rally championship.
Full disclosure, I have one.