Lancia Flavia
Encyclopedia
The Lancia Flavia is a medium sized luxury saloon, launched with a 1500 cc engine at the 1960 Turin Motor Show by Lancia
and introduced in major European markets during the next twelve months. Coupe and cabriolet versions developed by Pininfarina
quickly followed, together with one or two low volume 'specials' including an eye-catching Zagato
coupe. Performance improved over the next ten years as the engine size increased, progressively, to 2000 cc. The car remained in production until 1970 when it was updated and renamed as the Lancia 2000
.
In 2011, Fiat
announced that the Chrysler 200
convertible would be sold in Europe by Lancia under the Flavia name beginning in the first half of 2012. However, it will remain branded as the Chrysler 200 in the UK and Ireland only.
aluminium boxer engine
, Dunlop
disc brakes on all four wheels, front wheel drive and front suspension
by unequal length wishbones. This model was soon joined by a two door coupé
, designed by Pininfarina
on a shortened platform. Vignale
built a two door convertible
, while Zagato
designed an outlandish-looking light weight two door sport version. The sport version has twin carburetor
s for extra power (just over 100 hp/75 kW), however this version of the engine was notoriously difficult to keep in tune. Even the single carburettor engine suffered from the problem of timing chain stretch. Sprockets with vernier adjusters were fitted to allow for chain wear and the cam timing was supposed to be checked every 6000 miles. Early cars also suffered from corrosion of the cylinder heads caused by using copper gaskets on aluminium heads, nevertheless the car was quite lively for its day considering the cubic capacity.
Later development of the engine included an enlargement to 1.8 L, a mechanical injection
version using the Kugelfischer
system, and a five speed manual gearbox. Towards the end of the sixties, when Fiat
took control of the company, the Vignale and Zagato versions were discontinued. The coupé and saloon versions received new bodywork, first presented in March 1969 at the Geneva Motor Show. The engine increased to 2.0 L in capacity, available with carburetor or injection, and four or five speed gearbox. The 2.0 L models were only made with revised Pininfarina Coupe and revised Lancia Sedan bodies.
Build and ride quality were superb, and the durability of these cars are excellent considering the relatively modest performance specifications. The meticulous engineering makes maintenance of these oldies simple, although it can be quite expensive due to the scarcity of parts.
By 1967 the engine size had grown to 1800 cc. Testing a four door Flavia, rival Autocar
magazine recorded a top speed of 103 mph (165.8 km/h), a 0-60 mph (96.6 km/h) time of 15.0 seconds and an overall fuel consumption of 30 mpgimp. This put it behind the rival BMW 1800 TI for performance, though slightly ahead on fuel consumption. The testers commended the smoothness of the engine but found it lacked low speed punch. Overall they thought the performance pleasingly 'deceptive' because the car was 'faster than it feels'. The UK car market was still insulated by tariffs, but with the BMW 1800 TI retailing at £1498 and the Fulvia's recommended retail price now £1909, sales volumes were clearly not a Lancia priority. From the dominant UK domestic market player, the mechanically less sophisticated Ford Corsair 2000E
was retailing at £1008.
Lancia
Lancia Automobiles S.p.A. is an Italian automobile manufacturer founded in 1906 by Vincenzo Lancia and which became part of the Fiat Group in 1969. The company has a long history of producing distinctive cars and also has a strong rally heritage. Some modern Lancias are seen as presenting a more...
and introduced in major European markets during the next twelve months. Coupe and cabriolet versions developed by Pininfarina
Pininfarina
Pininfarina S.p.A. is an Italian car design firm and coachbuilder in Cambiano, Italy.Founded as Società anonima Carrozzeria Pinin Farina in 1930 by automobile designer and builder Battista "Pinin" Farina, Pininfarina has been employed by a wide variety of high-end automobile manufacturers,...
quickly followed, together with one or two low volume 'specials' including an eye-catching Zagato
Zagato
Zagato is a design consultancy and engineering services company situated just outside Milan, Italy.The company's premises occupy an area of , of which are covered....
coupe. Performance improved over the next ten years as the engine size increased, progressively, to 2000 cc. The car remained in production until 1970 when it was updated and renamed as the Lancia 2000
Lancia 2000
The Lancia 2000 is a car produced by Lancia between 1971 and 1975. Designed by the Lancia engineers prior to the acquisition of the Fiat, the 2000 was, in both the sedan and coupe, an evolution of the now outdated Lancia Flavia.-The 2000 sedan:...
.
In 2011, Fiat
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
announced that the Chrysler 200
Chrysler 200
The Chrysler 200 is a mid-size sedan and convertible produced by Chrysler, being introduced for the 2011 model year. The Chrysler 200 is an update and new nameplate for the outgoing 2010 Chrysler Sebring....
convertible would be sold in Europe by Lancia under the Flavia name beginning in the first half of 2012. However, it will remain branded as the Chrysler 200 in the UK and Ireland only.
Chronology
The Lancia Flavia was developed by Professor Antonio Fessia in the late 1950s, and introduced for sale in the UK in 1961. Initially available only as a four door saloon, it featured a 1.5 LLitre
pic|200px|right|thumb|One litre is equivalent to this cubeEach side is 10 cm1 litre water = 1 kilogram water The litre is a metric system unit of volume equal to 1 cubic decimetre , to 1,000 cubic centimetres , and to 1/1,000 cubic metre...
aluminium boxer engine
Lancia Flat-4 engine
Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia...
, Dunlop
Dunlop (brands)
Dunlop was originally a brand of tyre produced by the Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company at the end of the 19th century, taking its name from John Dunlop. The brand is now used for many other products either derived from rubber or with a looser connection to rubber.Ownership of the brand has become...
disc brakes on all four wheels, front wheel drive and front suspension
Suspension (vehicle)
Suspension is the term given to the system of springs, shock absorbers and linkages that connects a vehicle to its wheels. Suspension systems serve a dual purpose — contributing to the car's roadholding/handling and braking for good active safety and driving pleasure, and keeping vehicle occupants...
by unequal length wishbones. This model was soon joined by a two door coupé
Coupé
A coupé or coupe is a closed car body style , the precise definition of which varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and over time...
, designed by Pininfarina
Pininfarina
Pininfarina S.p.A. is an Italian car design firm and coachbuilder in Cambiano, Italy.Founded as Società anonima Carrozzeria Pinin Farina in 1930 by automobile designer and builder Battista "Pinin" Farina, Pininfarina has been employed by a wide variety of high-end automobile manufacturers,...
on a shortened platform. Vignale
Vignale
Vignale was an Italian automobile coachbuilder company. Carrozzeria Alfredo Vignale was established in 1948 at Via Cigliano, Turin by Alfredo Vignale in Grugliasco, near Turin ....
built a two door convertible
Convertible
A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...
, while Zagato
Zagato
Zagato is a design consultancy and engineering services company situated just outside Milan, Italy.The company's premises occupy an area of , of which are covered....
designed an outlandish-looking light weight two door sport version. The sport version has twin carburetor
Carburetor
A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....
s for extra power (just over 100 hp/75 kW), however this version of the engine was notoriously difficult to keep in tune. Even the single carburettor engine suffered from the problem of timing chain stretch. Sprockets with vernier adjusters were fitted to allow for chain wear and the cam timing was supposed to be checked every 6000 miles. Early cars also suffered from corrosion of the cylinder heads caused by using copper gaskets on aluminium heads, nevertheless the car was quite lively for its day considering the cubic capacity.
Later development of the engine included an enlargement to 1.8 L, a mechanical injection
Fuel injection
Fuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
version using the Kugelfischer
Kugelfischer
Kugelfischer is the name for a mechanical fuel injection pump. It was produced by FAG Kugelfischer and later by Robert Bosch GmbH...
system, and a five speed manual gearbox. Towards the end of the sixties, when Fiat
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
took control of the company, the Vignale and Zagato versions were discontinued. The coupé and saloon versions received new bodywork, first presented in March 1969 at the Geneva Motor Show. The engine increased to 2.0 L in capacity, available with carburetor or injection, and four or five speed gearbox. The 2.0 L models were only made with revised Pininfarina Coupe and revised Lancia Sedan bodies.
Lancia 2000
The Flavia was revised and re-named the Lancia 2000 in 1971. The 2000 featured Girling disc brakes (replacing the Flavia 2000's Dunlop), Stainless steel bumpers and, for the fuel injected models, Bosch D-jetronic Analog-electrovalve fuel injection. These were built to 1973 or 1974 although brand new models remained in stock until 1975. As with the Flavia 2000, the 2000 was only made with Pininfarina Coupe and Lancia Sedan bodiesBuild and ride quality were superb, and the durability of these cars are excellent considering the relatively modest performance specifications. The meticulous engineering makes maintenance of these oldies simple, although it can be quite expensive due to the scarcity of parts.
Engines
| Model | Years | Engine | Displacement | Power | Fuel system |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berlina | 1960-62 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1500 cc | 78 PS | single carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| Coupé, Cab, Sport | 1962 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1500 cc | 90 PS | double carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 1500 | 1963-68 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1488 cc | 76 PS | single carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 1800 | 1963-68 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1800 cc | 92 PS | single carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 1800 Sport | 1963-67 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1800 cc | 105 PS | double carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 1800 Iniezione | 1965-68 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1800 cc | 102 PS | fuel injection Fuel injection Fuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s.... |
| 1500 | 1969-70 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1490 cc | 80 PS | single carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 1800 | 1969-70 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1816 cc | 92 PS | single carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 2000 | 1969-74 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1991 cc | 114 PS | single carburetor Carburetor A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom.... |
| 2000 Iniezione | 1969-74 | Lancia Lancia Flat-4 engine Lancia, known for their advanced engineering, surprised the auto world by designing a new aluminum flat-4 engine for their 1961 Flavia. Though it was a pushrod engine, it was advanced for the time. The pushrod version of the Lancia boxer was only ever used in the Flavia... H4 Flat-4 A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase... ohv |
1991 cc | 126 PS | fuel injection Fuel injection Fuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s.... |
Performance
The British "Motor" magazine tested a 1500 cc car in 1961 and found it had a top speed of 92.6 mph (149 km/h) and acceleration from 0-60 mph (96.6 km/h) in 18.6 seconds. A "touring" fuel consumption of 30 mpgimp was recorded. On the British market it cost £1499 including taxes of £688.By 1967 the engine size had grown to 1800 cc. Testing a four door Flavia, rival Autocar
Autocar
Autocar is a weekly British automobile magazine published by Haymarket Motoring Publications Ltd. It refers to itself as "The World's oldest car magazine".-History:...
magazine recorded a top speed of 103 mph (165.8 km/h), a 0-60 mph (96.6 km/h) time of 15.0 seconds and an overall fuel consumption of 30 mpgimp. This put it behind the rival BMW 1800 TI for performance, though slightly ahead on fuel consumption. The testers commended the smoothness of the engine but found it lacked low speed punch. Overall they thought the performance pleasingly 'deceptive' because the car was 'faster than it feels'. The UK car market was still insulated by tariffs, but with the BMW 1800 TI retailing at £1498 and the Fulvia's recommended retail price now £1909, sales volumes were clearly not a Lancia priority. From the dominant UK domestic market player, the mechanically less sophisticated Ford Corsair 2000E
Ford Corsair
The Ford Consul Corsair, manufactured by Ford Motor Company in the United Kingdom, was a midsize car introduced at the London Motor Show in October 1963 and available as either a saloon or estate from 1964 until 1970...
was retailing at £1008.