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Lancia

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Lancia Automobiles S.p.A.
Company typeSocietà per azioni
IndustryAutomotive
FoundedNovember 29, 1906
FounderVincenzo Lancia
HeadquartersTurin, Italy
Key people
John Elkann (President)
Saad Chehab (CEO of Lancia and Chrysler brand)
ProductsAutomobiles
Production output
97,757 (2010)
OwnerFiat S.p.A.
ParentFiat Group Automobiles S.p.A.
WebsiteLancia.com

Lancia Automobiles S.p.A. (Italian pronunciation: [ˈlantʃa]) 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 luxurious alternative to the models in the Fiat range upon which they are based. One of the firm's trademarks is the use of letters of the Greek alphabet as the names of its models.

History

Lancia Beta Torpedo (1909)
Lancia production between 1998-2010[1]
Year Cars
1998 175 215
1999 161 019
2000 170,348
2001 134,812
2002 110,529
2003 108,989
2004 118,201
2005 115,543
2006 122,956
2007 118,036
2008 113,307
2009 113,810
2010 97,757

Foundation and early years

Lancia was founded on 29 November 1906 in Turin by Vincenzo Lancia and his friend Claudio Fogolin, both being Fiat racing drivers, as Lancia & C. The first Lancia automobile the "tipo 51" or 12 HP (later called Alfa) was made in 1907 and produced from 1908. This car had a small four cylinder engine with a power of 58 bhp.[2] In 1937 Vincenzo died of a heart attack, and his wife Adele Miglietti Lancia and his son Gianni Lancia took over the firm. They persuaded Vittorio Jano to join Lancia as an engineer. Jano had already made a name for himself by constructing the Alfa Romeo 1750 Sport Alfa Romeo 6C, 2300, 2900, P2 Alfa Romeo P2 and P3 Alfa Romeo P3, some of the most successful racers of its time.

Lancia is famous for many automotive innovations. These include the 1913 Theta, which was the first production car in Europe to feature a complete electrical system as standard equipment.[3] The first car with a monocoque-type body – the Lambda, produced from 1922 to 1931 also featured 'Sliding Pillar' independent front suspension that incorporated the spring and hydraulic damper into a single unit (and featured on most production Lancias until the Appia was replaced in 1963). 1948 saw the first 5 speed gearbox to be fitted to a production car (Series 3 Ardea). Lancia premiered the first full-production V6 engine, in the 1950 Aurelia,[4] after earlier industry-leading experiments with V8 and V12 engine configurations. It was also the first company to produce a V4 engine. Also, Lancia pioneered the use of independent suspension in production cars, in an era where live axles were common practice for both the front and rear axles of a car. They also developed rear transaxles which were fitted to the Aurelia and Flaminia ranges. The innovativeness, constant quest for excellence, the fixation of quality, the complication of the construction processes and the antiqued machinery meant that all cars essentially had to be hand-made. With little commonality between the various models, the cost of production continued to increase extensively, while demand did not.

The original Lancia logo was designed by Count Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia. The logo shows a lance and shield with flag. The Turin automobile museum is named after him as Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile “Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia”. The logo was redesigned in 2007.

Association with other manufacturers

Lancia was not closely associated with any other manufacturer until the late 1960s. By this time, the company's expensive, high standards of production had become unsustainable. In aiming to produce a product of the highest quality, company bosses had sacrificed cost-effectiveness and when Fiat launched a take-over bid in 1969, they accepted. This was not the end of the distinctive Lancia brand, and new models in the 1970s such as the Stratos, Gamma and Beta served to prove that Fiat wished to preserve the image of the brand it had acquired.

During the 1980s, the company cooperated with Saab Automobile, with the Lancia Delta being sold as the Saab 600 in Sweden. The 1985 Lancia Thema also shared a platform with the Saab 9000, Fiat Croma and the Alfa Romeo 164.

Automotive

Current models

Ypsilon Musa Delta Thema Voyager
  • Supermini
  • 5-door hatchback
  • Minivan
  • 5-door
  • Small family car
  • 5-door hatchback
  • Executive car
  • 4-door sedan
  • Minivan
  • 4-door minivan

Lancia Ypsilon

Main article: Lancia Ypsilon

The Ypsilon is a supermini car produced from 2011, It is based on a updated Fiat 500 platform.

Lancia Musa

Main article: Lancia Musa

A small MPV produced since 2004 in two series, the Musa is largely based on the Fiat Idea.

Lancia Delta

Main article: Lancia Delta

A small family car unveiled at the 2008 Geneva motor show. Using stretched version of Fiat C-platform. Available as five-door hatchback. In the UK and Ireland it is sold as the Chrysler Delta.[5]

Lancia Thema

Main article: Chrysler 300

An executive car introduced in 2011, based on Chrysler 300

Lancia Voyager

Main article: Chrysler Town and Country

A minivan based on Chrysler Town and Country

Past car models

Lancia has a long tradition of passenger, fast touring, sports and racing cars. They have tended to emphasize quality, appearance and sophisticated design, somewhat at the expense of power and competitive pricing. Among the most beautiful, desirable and unusual models are various Lancia Zagato models.

The Lancia Aurelia introduced the front engine rear transmission configuration later used by Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Porsche, GM, and Maserati, as well as the V6 engine, which is now common. It also had inboard rear brakes, an important way of reducing un-sprung weight.

The Lancia Stratos was a successful rally car during the 1970s and helped the company to improve its sporting credentials.

Future models

At the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, three new Lancia vehicles were introduced, all based on Chrysler platforms. They include a car and convertible based on the new Chrysler 200 to be named Flavia, a luxury saloon/sedan based on the Chrysler 300 called Lancia Thema and a minivan based on the Chrysler Town & Country called Voyager. [6]

Trucks, buses and other historical production

Light commercial vehicles

  • Lancia Beta / Lancia Beta Diesel
  • Lancia Jolly
  • Lancia Superjolly

Trucks

Lancia Triota 1921
Lancia Esadelta C
Lancia Esagamma E
Lancia trolleybus in Athens
Lancia 3RO military truck
  • Lancia Eta (car with a loading area)
  • Lancia Jota (1915)
  • Lancia Dijota (1915)
  • Lancia Triota (1921)
  • Lancia Tetrajota (1921)
  • Lancia Pentajota (1924)
  • Lancia Esajota
  • Lancia Eptajota (1927)
  • Lancia Omicron
  • Lancia Ro (1932)
  • Lancia Ro-Ro (1935)
  • Lancia 3Ro (1938)
  • Lancia EsaRo (1941)
  • Lancia E 290 (1941) single-built electric truck
  • Lancia 6Ro (1947)
  • Lancia Esatau (1950–1968)
  • Lancia Beta / Lancia Beta Diesel
  • Lancia Esatau B (1955)
  • Lancia Beta Diesel (1959) Lancia Beta 190, with a supercharged twin-cylinder compressor – two stroke – diesel engine
  • Lancia Esadelta B (1959)
  • Lancia Esadelta C (1969)

Buses

  • Lancia Trijota
  • Lancia Tetrajota
  • Lancia Omicron
  • Lancia Ro
  • Lancia Esatau
  • Lancia Esagamma

Trolleybuses

  • Lancia Esatau V11

Military vehicles

  • Lancia IZM (1912) armored vehicle
  • Lancia 3Ro (1939) truck
  • Lancia EsaRo (1942) truck
  • Lancia Lince (lynx) (1942) armored car – a copy of Daimler Dingo MK I
  • Lancia 6Ro (1948) LKW
  • Lancia CL51 (Z 20) (1954) troop transporter
  • Lancia TL51 (Z 30) (1954) lorries

Lancia in the United States

While some models had been imported on a small scale in the 1950s and 1960s, Lancias were officially sold in the United States from 1975. Sales were comparatively slow and the range was withdrawn at the same time as Fiat in 1982.

In 2009, following Fiat's acquisition of a stake in United States-based Chrysler and part of Chrysler's restructuring plans, it was stated that Fiat plans for the Chrysler brand and Lancia to codevelop products, with some vehicles being shared. Olivier Francois, Lancia's CEO, took over as CEO of the Chrysler division in October 2009. Fiat has also stated that, depending on the market, some Chrysler cars will be sold as Lancias and vice versa. Francois plans to reestablish the Chrysler brand as an upscale brand, a position somewhat muddied after the Plymouth brand was discontinued.[7] At the 2010 Detroit Auto Show, a Chrysler-badged Lancia Delta was on display, likely the first Lancia to be sold as a Chrysler and possibly as a replacement for the Chrysler PT Cruiser.[8]

Lancia in motorsport

Formula One

A Lancia D50A Formula One car

After Vincenzo Lancia's son Gianni became director of the firm, it started to take part more frequently in motorsport, eventually deciding to build a Grand Prix car. Vittorio Jano was the new designer for Lancia and his Lancia D50 was entered into the 1954 Spanish Grand Prix, where Alberto Ascari took the pole position and drove the fastest lap. In the 1955 Monaco Grand Prix Ascari crashed into the harbour after missing a chicane. One week later Ascari was killed in an accident driving a Ferrari sports car at Monza. With Ascari's death and Lancia's financial problems the company withdrew from Grand Prix racing.[9] Altogether Lancia took two victories and ten podiums in Formula One.[10]

Remnants of the Lancia team were transferred to Scuderia Ferrari,[11] where Juan Manuel Fangio won the 1956 championship with a Lancia-Ferrari car.

Rallying

See also: Lancia in rallying
A Lancia Delta S4 Group B rally car

Lancia has been very successful in motorsport over the years, and mostly in the arena of rallying. Prior to the forming of the World Rally Championship, Lancia took the final International Championship for Manufacturers title with the Fulvia in 1972. In the WRC, they remain the most statistically successful marque (despite having withdrawn at the end of the 1993 season), winning constructors' titles with the Stratos (1974, 1975 and 1976), the 037 (1983) and the Delta (six consecutive wins from 1987 to 1992). The Delta is also the most successful individual model designation ever to compete in rallying. All this gave Lancia a total of 10 Championships over the years.

Juha Kankkunen and Miki Biasion both won two drivers' titles with the Delta. Among other drivers to take several World Rally Championship wins with Lancia were Markku Alén, Didier Auriol, Sandro Munari, Bernard Darniche, Walter Röhrl, Björn Waldegård and Henri Toivonen. The history of the brand in rallying is also tainted with tragedy, with deaths of Italian driver Attilio Bettega at the 1985 Tour de Corse in a Lancia 037 and then Finnish championship favourite Toivonen in a Lancia Delta S4 at the same rally exactly a year later. These deaths would eventually lead to the end of Group B rallying.

Sports car racing

A Lancia LC1 Group 6 sports car

During Lancia's dominance of rallying, company also expanded into sports cars in the late 1970s until the mid-1980s. Originally running the Stratos HF in Group 4, as well as a brief interlude with a rare Group 5 version, the car was replaced with the Monte Carlo Turbo. In 1982 the team moved up to Group 6 with the LC1 Spyder, followed by the Group C LC2 coupé which featured a Ferrari powerplant in 1983. The LC2 was a match for the standard-setting Porsche 956 in terms of raw speed, securing 13 pole positions over its lifetime, however its results were hampered by poor reliability and fuel economy and it only managed to win three European and World Endurance Championship races. The team's inability to compete against the dominant Porsche 956 and 962 sports cars led it to drop out of sportscar racing at the end of 1986 in order to concentrate on rallying, although private teams continued to enter LC2s with declining results until the early 1990s.

Engines

TV

During the 3rd episode of the 14th series of popular British automotive show Top Gear, the presenters argued that Lancia had more 'great' models than any other car company.[12] The presenters went on to test the Gamma Coupé, Fulvia Coupé, Aprilia, Beta Montecarlo, Beta Coupé, HPE, Stratos, 037, Delta Integrale and Thema 8.32. They also stated during their review that Lancia made the best looking cars, even though they are unreliable.

Discontinuation Of All RHD Models

Lancia stopped producing cars with the steering wheel on the right in the 1990s as follows:

  • Y10 - 1993
  • Dedra - 1994
  • Thema - 1994
  • Delta - 1995

See also

References

  1. ^ "Lancia production between 1998-2009". oica.net. Retrieved 2010-10-14.
  2. ^ Marc Vorgers. "Lancia history". classicargarage.com. Retrieved 2008-05-01.
  3. ^ "History/The first models". lancia.com. Retrieved 2007-06-21. [dead link]
  4. ^ "Lancia Coupés & Convertibles: the Aurelia B20 Gran Turismo". ritzsite.net. Retrieved 2007-06-21. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  5. ^ "CHrysler UK website". Chrysler.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-10-21.
  6. ^ http://www.freep.com/article/20110314/BUSINESS01/103140381/Cars-built-metro-Detroit-fill-key-roles-Fiat-brands-Europe?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CAuto News [dead link]
  7. ^ "Lancia, Chrysler to share products". Leftlanenews.com. Retrieved 2009-11-29.
  8. ^ Jared Gall (January 2010). "Chrysler Delta Concept - Auto Shows". Car and Driver magazine. Retrieved 2010-01-11.
  9. ^ "Formula One timeline". atlasf1.autosport.com. Retrieved 2007-06-27.
  10. ^ "Lancia Formula 1 Team". 4mula1.ro. Retrieved 2007-06-27.
  11. ^ "Lancia D50". ddavid.com. Retrieved 2007-06-27.
  12. ^ "Top Gear Loves Lancia part 1". Top Gear.com. Retrieved 2010-11-26.
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