Lancia Beta Monte Carlo

Could be a hot Ferrari from this angle and it’s mid-engined. too! Their rarity ensures that this Lancia is a real head turner.

Cabin is roomier than X1/9 although hardly of better quality. Look for ageing

Montes rot of course, so check, especially inner wings and chassis

Monte Carlo became an accomplished race and rally car in its time. Base car can be easily modified

Although called a Beta, Monte had few carry over parts from the range

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What is a Lancia Beta Monte Carlo?

Like the Fiat X1/9, it’s a baby Ferrari and like the great little Fiat relation, the Beta Monte Carlo is a car for the purist. At long last, Lancia is having a glamourous comeback with news of the pretty Fulvietta concept car going into production in 2007, the forthcoming new Lancia Delta complete with Integrale option, and the Fenomenon Stratos, the new concept car which may be put into production if Prodrive’s feasibility tests show a big ‘thumbs up’ On these grounds, a renewed interest in the classic Lancia Beta Monte Carlo may be wholly justified, especially if one forgets that the Monte Carlo actually started out as the Fiat X1/20 and only took its Lancia badge at a fairly advanced stage of development. The Beta Monte Carlo of the 1970s is a glorious mix of the good and bad - something only the Italians can do. A pretty Pininfarina shape, fine performance, mid-engine handling, dangerous brakes and dubious build quality - yes that’s the Beta Monte Carlo.

History

Fiat picked the artistic brains of Bertone and Pininfarina at the end of the Italian hippy Sixties: the company needed a replacement for its Fiat 850, and two prototypes were developed in parallel: the X1/9 and the X1/8. Bertone was responsible for the former, a mildly disguised version of another prototype suggested for the De Tomaso Ford; Fiat bosses liked it so much that Pininfarina’s X1/8 was left to languish for a while.

A year or so later, in 1972, two 1:1 models were built, and the project - bigger than the original concept - adopted the X1/20 name. Three years on, the new car was launched at the Geneva Motor Show. Its smaller sibling, the Fiat X1/9, was already selling well; Fiat had also already introduced a prototype very similar to what would become the Lancia Beta Monte Carlo - a joint Fiat-Abarth effort called the Abarth 030 and powered by the Fiat 130’s engine, a six-cylinder 3.2 unit bored out to 3.5 and developing 285bhp. Fiat’s portfolio of new models seemed complete, ensuring the marque’s presence both in the commercial and in the racing world. Fiat knew it could count on the Abarth 131 to carry the prestige flag of racing and, at the same time, to encourage the public to identify with its ‘family car’ image. In contrast, Lancia did not have a sports car in its range, (if one excludes the Stratos, which Fiat would shelve a touch prematurely,) so it made sense to ‘transplant’ the X1/20 project over from Fiat: a purely commercial decision.

The Monte Carlo basic design did not change dramatically over its nine year life span, from 1975 to 1984. Like the X1/9 on which it was based, the Beta Monte Carlo was a mid-engine, two-seater sports job, endowed with a unique steel body; it shared with the Beta and the X1/9 the engine, transmission and allround MacPherson strut suspension set-up. Pininfarina, frozen out of the X1/9 project, got the job of applying the magic styling touches to the Monte Carlo, and also actually building it. Fiat had big plans for this model, expecting it to do well in North America where it was marketed under the powerful name of ‘Scorpion’ (with obvious hints at the Abarth heritage) because another car had the rights to the Monte Carlo name. Sadly, the car did not live up to the Americans’ expectations, or – rather – its looks were not matched by its performance. It may have had something to do with the emasculated 1.8-litre engine which came with the Scorpion, thanks to American regulations regarding tough exhaust emission control.

The Lancia Beta Monte Carlo lived a parasite life, relying on the Lancia Beta for its running gear, though its twin-cam engine has different head, cams and mountings. In 1978 the Monte Carlo was suspended from production to sort out the sensitive lockprone brakes and some other incidentals, but when it was withdrawn in ‘84, it disappeared for good. A supercharged version was never offered for the road car, and only around 7500 cars were actually made, of which about 1000 came to the UK.

Driving

When the X1/9 was launched, experts said it was a cracking car that cried out for more power. On the face of it, the bigger brother Lancia was the perfect answer. Why the Lancia Beta Monte Carlo/Scorpion did not fare well in North America was that, despite its very good handling for which the midengine layout was to thank, the car was not as fast as its fine body led people to believe. Lancia desperately tried to address the many problems afflicting the early models especially, by withholding production for two years (1978-1980) - a decision previously unheard of in the Italian car industry - in order to solve what would be perceived as a chassis weakness, such as fearful braking in wet or even damp conditions.

A mid-engined car such as the Monte Carlo, which is already unusually light at the front, would not benefit from servoed front brakes, as they would lock under certain circumstances such as wet roads. And lock they did. The brake servos were blamed for that, as they were only fitted to the front. At the Monte Carlo re-launch, they had been duly eliminated in favour of bigger 9.9in discs and a variable braking control device, thanks to a mechanical link which calibrated the leverage. Improved spring and damper rates encouraged more competent handling, and torque was improved by fitting a Magneti Marelli electronic ignition system.

The Monte Carlo has balance and poise provided that it’s not pushed too much, especially during cornering. Autocar, testing the new car back in the Seventies, noticed a mild understeer in all circumstances, substituted by oversteer due to lift-off of throttle mid-corner, a trait which could be easily corrected and even give the driver some entertainment. The sporty Lancia is relatively easy to climb into, and slightly uncomfortable to drive in, much as the rest of Italian classics. The rear window has a particularly impractical wedge-shape, but despite its narrow glass area, rear view is surprisingly good. It’s noisy and not too refined, but a bit roomier than an X1/9.

Prices

For around £1000 one can find a Monte Carlo in dire need of a full restoration - and that will prove pricey. If not keen to spend all weekends in the year (and beyond) in one’s garage under a car, £3000 - £4000 will buy a nice, drivable car, but twice as much will get a gem, a proper Beta Monte Carlo to have fun with, dodgy brakes notwithstanding.