Lancia Fulvia

Fab Fulvia was great rally car and a good bet for historics. It’s easier to run than you’d first credit

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Fancy owning a motorsport legend for road and track use? Paul Davies looks at true classics that made their names on stages and circuits, and still provide fine drives today

Sixties and seventies front-wheel-drive rally winner, and a real Italian Job into the bargain? Must be the Mini surely? Hang on ‘though, this one’s got bigger wheels, a V4 engine, five gears, four wheel disc brakes and a solid beam rear axle. In fact we’re talking about the Lancia Fulvia Coupe, undoubted star of European rallying for almost a decade. By the time the Mini’s success on the International stage was beginning to fade, the little Lancia was just getting into its stride. Never a popular car in Britain (although it would win the RAC Rally two years running) the Fulvia was most at home on European events. Sweden’s Ove Andersson was the first star for the Italian team, bagging second on both the Monte Carlo and Acropolis rallies in 1967 against strong Porsche 911 and Ford Escort opposition. Taking 1-2-3 placings on the 1969 San Remo Rally, and a win on the tough Marathon de la Route the same year, were early high spots, but it was also a dramatic one for the most successful British driver in the car, the late Tony Fall. After winning the ’68 TAP Rally of Portugal, he went back to finish first the followingyear – only giving his wife a lift in the car between the final control and the finish ramp saw him disqualified! The Fulvia’s finest hour came in 1972 when drivers Sandro Munari, Simo Lampinen, and Harry Kallstrom, beat arch rivals Fiat to the International Rally Championship title. From then on it was down hill really, as first the Fiat 124 Abarth and then the Lancia Stratos took over. More power and a supercar ended the Fulvia’s fling but the point was made. Technically advanced – the V4 was a narrow degree configuration, which allowed the use of just one cylinder head topped by two, chain driven, overhead camshafts – the Coupe was a short-wheelbase version of its Berlina (saloon) brother. First cars had just 1091cc, but this was systematically increased to 1584cc. Power wentfrom 59bhp to 130bhp in the Variante ‘works’ replicas. HF cars were lightweight, and more powerful, as the base for the rally cars. Whilst the Mini – even in Cooper S form – was quite crude, the Fulvia was an advanced bit of kit. They’re still around today, mostly left-hand drive with for some reason Holland being the source of many fine examples nowadays, and a good buy, if you get a good one. And spares, and body parts, are still available. But despite the obvious advantage over the Mini (those big 14ins wheels) the car hasn’t made much of an impact on historic rallying in the UK. OK, it’s a bit on an oddball but someone really should have a go!