Lancia Appia

The 50s were a period of unprecedented excitement for carmakers as they sought to revive their production facilities. The economic stakes were very high, both for the prestigious models as for the popular cars that were playing an increasingly important role in everyday life. Cars were seen as a symbol of emancipation, freedom and social success. With this in mind, Lancia decided in the spring of 1953 to launch a car to replace the Ardea.

ENTRY-LEVEL 

This new model, named Appia, was presented at the 35th Turin International Motor Show in April 1953. It rivalled the Austin A40, the Fiat 1100-103, the Peugeot 203, the Simca Aronde, the Opel Olympia Rekord and the Ford Consul as one of the most compact saloon cars on the market. Gianni Lancia, having taken over the management of the company in 1937 after the death of Vincenzo, the brand's founder, decided to give priority to the launch of the Aurelia in 1950. At the same time, he started working on the engineering to replace the Ardea. His wish was to maintain an entry-level model and support the Aurelia in the catalogue of the Turin-based brand. However, at Lancia, entry-level does not mean bottom of the range, far from it. The little Appia was distinguished by the technological innovations that were so dear to Lancia and which were quite unusual at the time for a popular car. Unable to compete with the giant Fiat in terms of production volume, and therefore selling price, Lancia clearly emphasised a sophistication to which customers had grown accustomed.

THE LITTLE AURELIA 

This rather luxurious saloon, very agile and similar in style to the Aurelia B10, was immediately well received. The car then enjoyed a ten-year career, during which more than 109,430 units of all versions were built and many new models were introduced. During the same period, the ingenious Lancia chassis was also offered as a bare platform to leading Italian coachbuilders such as Pinin Farina, Vignale, Allemano and Zagato, who offered versions that were both sporty and elegant.

The basic Appia had a rigid, lightweight self-supporting structure, with independent front wheels, telescopic suspension and a particularly narrow (10°) V-shaped 4-cylinder engine with an aluminium cylinder head. The majority of the engine's technical improvements were the work of Vittorio Jano, a prolific and talented engineer to whom Lancia owed many of its sports successes. The bodywork, which offered a very spacious passenger compartment, continued to feature opposing doors with no central pillar. Its overall rigidity was enhanced by the massive overhead pillars and large transmission tunnel.

A NEW BEGINNING 

The second generation of the Appia was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1956. Its three-box body was more modern, but its personality was less assertive compared to that of the previous version, to such an extent that it could almost be mistaken for a new model. The wheelbase was extended by 3 cm and the engine, with a new cylinder head and a new Solex 32 PBIC carburettor, saw its power increased to 43.5 bhp. This Appia 2, designed by Professor Antonio Fessia, who was just taking over the technical management of Lancia, soon proved to be the most brilliant and luxurious 1,100 saloon on the European market at the time.

Three years later, also at the Geneva Motor Show, the third and final evolution of the Lancia Appia was released. An immediate distinctive feature was the horizontal radiator grille, taken from the Flaminia, which replaced the shield-shaped radiator grille that had been used until then. The engine now developed 48 bhp at 4,900 rpm with a maximum torque of 8.7 mkg at 3,000 rpm. The last Appia left the Lancia Borgo San Paolo factory in Turin on 27 April 1963, to be replaced by the new Fulvia.