I purchased this series 1 1969 Lancia Fulvia 1.3S sports Zagato out of Italy. The body, engine and interior are very nice. The paint quality was not the best, which is mostly a reflection of the attitude of many Italian owners in which cars are mostly to drive and enjoy instead of showing them
The series 1 Fulvias are the ones to get. These were built before the Fiat take over and were built the "Lancia way" of doing things. Lancia was known for over engineering and over building their car, which is one of the reasons why they did not survive. This car has a steel body with aluminum doors and lids. The very early cars had all aluminum bodies but they also had a smaller displacement 1.2 liter engine. I think the late series one cars are a good compromise between additional power and keeping the original pure aesthetics of the car.
These cars are rather interesting with their small but peppy V4 front wheel drive engine. Their interior is very Italian and pleasing to look at. I love the spare tire tucked in its own compartment. Of course there is the hood which opens to the side. Leave it to Lancia to come up with such a design, which actually works rather well.
I no longer have this Fulvia but a 1962 Flaminia still lives in the garage.
