International Lancia Forums

Further to my query back in september, I finally saw the car before xmas, its 1966 and pretty well rust free. however its not been on the road for 10 years, and obviously needs recommissioning. It has the potential to be a nice car, but do I need another project?????????. Ilove the shape, but I could easily spend 15to 2000 pounds on exhaust battery tyres brakes etc. Or should I put the money into a series 2 Fulvia, that is on the road and useable before the inevitable rust rears its head . I,m confused , Any help, re running costs potential value Etc . Many thanks in advance . Colin Newby PS I do get to inspect the car on a ramp and hear the engine running before I buy.

why inevitable rust ? go Fulvia ! sounds to me to be the way to go; but why inevitable rust !

give it a 10kg anti.rust wax treatment inside, outside, every<where % keep it garaged in winter

Hi Colin

While the Flavia and Fulvia share a lot of technology they are very different cars. The Flavia is a relaxing touring car and the Fulvia is obviously more sporting and capable of further development. I chose a Flavia Coupe because of the Pininfarina design and their comparative rarity. Very few people know what they are and the late '50s Ferrari/Maserati looks are very attractive. I have just finished taking mine apart and I can vouch for the engineering integrity of the running gear. I doubt if my engine has been apart before and at 200,000KMs + shows very little engine wear. One broken piston ring, one cracked exhaust valve and minor wear on the middle main bearing. From a maintenance point of view, the Fulvia benefits from higher production numbers and easier spares availability while some Flavia parts are becoming quite difficult to source. Body condition is the thing to worry about. Check the door fit. It should be very tight and ill fitting doors suggest rotten structure. If you can get the car on a ramp, get a light and a screwdriver and poke around the front of the sill where it meets the front wing. This area is often crushed by jacking the cars on rusted metal. If it is full of filler, back away. Check the six mounting points for the sub-frame. The pair at the front are very exposed to road muck and can rust away. The rears are often protected by engine oil but can be affected by rusty floors. Also check the rear spring mounts and cross member. Any serious corrosion in these areas makes the car a labour of love as professional repair is not really financially viable. Unless the Flavia is very cheap indeed, I would advise that you look further and buy the best example you can afford. I have noted a rise in asking prices recently but it is still an undervalued car.

Good luck with your purchase.

Michael Findlay

I love the Flavia Coupe; S2 I like better than S1...but that is just mho.

had Chris of - http://www.fulvia-zagato.de - fame (&amp; countless others) read Michaels recommendations;, or countless other recommendations in/on vivalancia &amp; elsewhere, about Lancia &amp; all / any other &quot;no longer newish car; and taken an expert, who spoke the lingua-franca &amp; knew what to look for with him ........

There is an Ital Lancia Community, isn't there ! Someone from that scene certainly would / could have been of major-assistance in their own country ! Even if it cost some Sheckels for their time &amp; expertise !!

Had Chris demanded that the car be put on a lift, taken along some basic tools (plastic hammer, poker, giant flashlight &amp; night-stealth scope (you neve(seldom know where an ambush will happen, so why not take one)
&amp; remembered &quot;buyer beware&quot; he &amp; countless others (myself included, in a small way) wouldn't have been &quot;blind-sided&quot; into buying a nightmare.

Of course, this is not only a dangerous situation in Italy; there are smiling wolves in little Bo' Peep Clothes awaiting the unwary ....everywhere.

In this forum, posted in various languages &amp; at numerous Lancia (etc) meetings I have heard horror stories, including 1 unhappy story where a Fulvia traded-hands within the same family. No one was aware that it was a shambles, after sitting in the garage for so long !!.
How was 'late-owners wife, the aunt of the young buyer', to know the condition of her late husbands pride &amp; joy?

Or a story of a Beta that also was (also) sold by the wife of a deceased Lancia Collector, directly from his Lancia collection in south France - at a super-low price....S. France, where there is no snow...sold to a Beta expert; who 100% knew what to look for (or so he said). Who made it to the foot of the trail leading up to his house in the wilds....hundreds of km / several hours after buying the car...only to have it break into 2 pieces when he was driving 5kph.
I arrived to visit him &amp; his Beta collection ....climbing on a parallel trail as he was walking up; to get his tractor !! To pull 1 section of the Beta up to his barn at a time.

The Gods that protect those who buy / drive old cars was protecting him that day; had they not been I would have never met him &amp; never heard this incredible story...with his beautiful young children &amp; dogs playing in the grass.

Ha ha !! I remember it now ! His asking me &quot;how can I explain this to my wife ? She may forbid me from buying any more Beta &amp; I love Beta&quot; !! I had no answer ready for him !!

I reply to the Irish Man who lived at the top of a french mountain, in the middle of wine countrym who had a barn full of Beta. He said &quot;well, at least it was cheap&quot;; referring to his 2section aquisition &amp; &quot;there are lots of good parts I need for my other Beta&quot;.

The point of this additional comment is: at least it was cheap.

He had bought it for parts anyway &amp; not for a horrific never ending song of love ! Lucky Fella !

Thanks for all your help, I've decided to buy the Fulvia, nodoubt I'll be back on the forum before long. Ifanyone is interested in the Flavia it is located in Northern Brittanny, I'd be glad to help. Colin

finally I have read some good news:)...in a month of freezing cold, ice, wind, war, earthquakes.
The good-news maybe, in the larger sense of things, a small item...but several of us are smiling! I know I am.
& I didn't even buy the car !
Now to the inevitable ?'s:
photos, condition report (price, if I may be so bold) & where will it reside --- so that we can someday see it at a Fulvia Meeting !!