Lancia Fulvia 1.3 Coupe S3

Click Here for Full Screen Image - Click Here to Download Image

First shown in Berlina saloon form at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show, the Lancia Fulvia is one of those beautiful little cars that the Italians do so well, being widely praised both for its looks and its fabulous dynamics.

The gorgeous Coupe version was launched in 1965 – dainty and chic from all angles, it also had a wonderfully airy interior that was austerely yet elegantly trimmed. More than just a pretty face, it also went extremely well with superb handling and an amazingly willing V4 engine.

No wonder it did so well in competition – right from the start it became the car to beat in everything from rallying to circuit racing to hillclimbs to sprints, famously winning the International Rally Championship in 1972. Works Fulvias were used for ten seasons between 1965 and 1974, racking up countless wins in events as diverse as the Daytona 24 Hours, the Safari Rally and the Targa Florio.

The engine, designed by Zaccone Mina, was a narrow-angle V4 and was mounted well forward at a 45 degree angle in front of a transaxle. Initially the displacement was just 1,091cc giving 58bhp but this progressed through various stages of development, the 92bhp 1,298cc engine becoming standard although a highly tuned 1,584cc HF version was also available with 132bhp.

Independent front suspension used wishbones and a single leaf spring, while a beam axle with a panhard rod and leaf springs was used at the rear. Four-wheel Dunlop disc brakes were fitted to first series Fulvias, while the second series from 1970 gained larger Girling calipers all round and a brake servo. Testing an early car in 1967, the American magazine Road & Track summed up the Fulvia as "a precision motorcar, an engineering tour de force." Production finally came to an end in 1976.

This very late model Fulvia Coupe S3 was first registered in August 1976 and officially joined the Stondon Collection in 2001, although it may have been in John Saunders’ possession since 1993. Nothing is known of the car’s history prior to this as the only documentation is the complete V5. A lovely scarlet red (unlike the brown quoted on the registration document), an online check reveals that it was last taxed for the road in 1994 so will doubtless require thorough recommissioning before use.