Fulvia Parked on Deserted Street - Leica IIIc + Color-Skopar 35mm f/2.5

Thank you all!

La Signora Fulvia has been a bit of obsession and a lot of joy. I'd wanted one of these cars since I was 12; I bought this one in 2021 and have been overhauling it one bit at a time since I brought it home. It is getting some of the last niggly little things done now. It is truly a delight to see and to drive.

G
 
Always love seeing your Fulvia. I had a similar obsession with the Alfa Giulia GT Junior. Italians - generally high maintenance I believe… but lovely
 
A stupid federal standard requires cars sold in the US to be the same height (bumper to bumper or something similar). So it's strange to see an Italian sports car, standing high above the asphalt of the road, as if it were some kind of Jeep. Anyway, good shot for one of the unique cars (V4 engine), brought to the world by Lancia.
 
jonal928 said:
A stupid federal standard requires cars sold in the US to be the same height (bumper to bumper or something similar). So it's strange to see an Italian sports car, standing high above the asphalt of the road, as if it were some kind of Jeep. Anyway, good shot for one of the unique cars (V4 engine), brought to the world by Lancia.
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Interesting comment, thank you.

My Fulvia Coupé is a 1967 model, sold new a year or three before the US Federal bumper height regulations were put into place. Never mind that, like most Fulvia Coupés I've seen at the annual Lancia Club meetings, the bumpers on mine have been removed (as per the standard Rally production HF models) and so the question of bumper height has been rendered moot ... Otherwise, the rear ride height is standard on this one and the front ride height has been lowered 20mm (and the front suspension arm lengths juggled a little bit) to achieve better overall suspension geometry and give it a touch of 'rake' from front to back.

However, the Fulvia Coupé always gives the impression of riding a bit high because it is a very small, light car and needs a good bit of suspension room to give a good ride along with its good compliance and handling. My car also seems to be riding a bit higher in this photo because of the body paint treatment ... I had the lower body panels, below the door sill, painted black when I did some rust repair a year or so back. To my eye, it thins out the body line a trifle and looks more sporty than the standard body color all the way down the to bottom edge with a chrome trim strip. You can see the difference more clearly with these two photos:



​

(Note also the change from the Campagnolo 13x5.5" wheels with 185/70-R13 tires in the upper photo to the Chromodora 14x6" wheels with 175/70-R14 tires in the lower photo... This also changes the appearance of its ride height as the larger wheels and shorter sidewalls tend to dominate the side-view proportions. It also restores the original gearing ... I got tired of having to spin the engine up to 4300 rpm to maintain a continuous 70ish mph highway speed when traveling; it now revs 3900 rpm at 70ish mph, much more relaxed for any distance use.)

The Fanalone style headlamp setup is being installed now, which will change the car's look yet a little further ... the 8" center high-low headlamps add a little more aggression to the front end and also make it look a little lower up front (never mind provide a LOT more light on the road in both low and high beam settings!) since the tops of the headlamps do not change, but the bottoms drop down another 1.25"...

The featured B&W photo in this thread is a bit high on contrast and the lower body line disappears into the shadows, which makes the car seem to ride a little higher than it actually does. It's quite low yet still has a goodly amount of ground clearance to match its World Rally Cup heritage...

Gads, I'm nutty on this car. 🙂

G
 
I remember going north to Car Week at Monterey a number of years ago when I had my '67 912. Going along 101 in Santa Barbara, about 3-4 Fulvia's passed on their way up too. I always thought it'd be fun to have one, until I found out their engine lacked some cc's compared to mine.
I like your car, Godfrey, it hits all the right buttons in my book.
 
Godfrey said:
Interesting comment, thank you.

My Fulvia Coupé is a 1967 model, sold new a year or three before the US Federal bumper height regulations were put into place. Never mind that, like most Fulvia Coupés I've seen at the annual Lancia Club meetings, the bumpers on mine have been removed (as per the standard Rally production HF models) and so the question of bumper height has been rendered moot ... Otherwise, the rear ride height is standard on this one and the front ride height has been lowered 20mm (and the front suspension arm lengths juggled a little bit) to achieve better overall suspension geometry and give it a touch of 'rake' from front to back.

However, the Fulvia Coupé always gives the impression of riding a bit high because it is a very small, light car and needs a good bit of suspension room to give a good ride along with its good compliance and handling. My car also seems to be riding a bit higher in this photo because of the body paint treatment ... I had the lower body panels, below the door sill, painted black when I did some rust repair a year or so back. To my eye, it thin⁷s out the body line a trifle and looks more sporty than the standard body color all the way down the to bottom edge with a chrome trim strip. You can see the difference more clearly with these two photos:



​

(Note also the change from the Campagnolo 13x5.5" wheels with 185/70-R13 tires in the upper photo to the Chromodora 14x6" wheels with 175/70-R14 tires in the lower photo... This also changes the appearance of its ride height as the larger wheels and shorter sidewalls tend to dominate the side-view proportions. It also restores the original gearing ... I got tired of having to spin the engine up to 4300 rpm to maintain a continuous 70ish mph highway speed when traveling; it now revs 3900 rpm at 70ish mph, much more relaxed for any distance use.)

The Fanalone style headlamp setup is being installed now, which will change the car's look yet a little further ... the 8" center high-low headlamps add a little more aggression to the front end and also make it look a little lower up front (never mind provide a LOT more light on the road in both low and high beam settings!) since the tops of the headlamps do not change, but the bottoms drop down another 1.25"...

The featured B&W photo in this thread is a bit high on contrast and the lower body line disappears into the shadows, which makes the car seem to ride a little higher than it actually does. It's quite low yet still has a goodly amount of ground clearance to match its World Rally Cup heritage...

Gads, I'm nutty on this car. 🙂

G
Click to expand...
Great informative response. Between the lines, it is evident that you are head over heels in love - like a young boy - with Mrs. Fulvia. And I'm totally with you on this.
 
AlwaysOnAuto said:
I remember going north to Car Week at Monterey a number of years ago when I had my '67 912. Going along 101 in Santa Barbara, about 3-4 Fulvia's passed on their way up too. I always thought it'd be fun to have one, until I found out their engine lacked some cc's compared to mine.
I like your car, Godfrey, it hits all the right buttons in my book.
Click to expand...
Thank you!

You've articulated the fundamental reason why Lancia Fulvia and other models were/are relatively rare in the USA ... In 1967 when my car was sold new, its showroom price (with a 1200cc V4 engine) was over $1000 more than a Jaguar E-Type coupe, with a 4.2L in-line 6 cyl. The reasons for this are mostly historical artifacts dating back to the end of WWII, but essentially the decider in the US market has always been bigger engine beats small engine.

The original engine in mine was that 1200cc DOHC v4 with about 80-85 hp, the standard Fulvia Coupé engine. The engine in it now is the 1.3S version engine which, with careful tuning, is probably turning about 100hp ... quite enough to have fun in a car that weighs in at 1900 lbs wet and ready to roll. They also made a 1600cc model in several states of tune, from about 115 to about 135 hp. Those in the full-on rally version included aluminum doors, hood, trunklid, and Perspex side and rear windows for an all up weight of about 1700 lbs wet ... and a five-speed transmission instead of my car's relatively wide ratio four-speed: those Fulvia Rally Coupé 1600 Corsa cars are quite fast!

jonal928 said:
Great informative response. Between the lines, it is evident that you are head over heels in love - like a young boy - with Mrs. Fulvia. And I'm totally with you on this.
Click to expand...
Thank you!

Yes indeed, I love the little beastie. I've wanted one since the day I first saw one at age 12—it took me 55 years to actually acquire one ... and I've been studying Lancia the company and the cars they made since that first time of seeing one. Like with my cameras and photography ... and my motorcycles, and my bicycles, and the Alfa Romeos that I had for decades .... I like to understand all I can about the subject of my interest. That's a lot of what fuels the pleasure and joy I have in the ownership beyond just the use of them. 🙂

G
 
I can fully understand the way you feel about this car - I've long been over my performance car/supercar phase and settled into a love for classics, especially those with a street or rally heritage. Simply lovely car.
 
Whilst on the subject of classics, it took me over 30 years to acquire the track prepared 2002 in my avatar, after I first drove one at the age of about 20. I’m slowly returning it to a street specification. Previously solid mounted suspension has the rubber bushings reinstated, roll cage removed, road seat belts acquired to replace harnesses, etc. Race spec engine tuned to 7,500 rpm and close ratio 5-speed dogleg gearbox will remain. These old cars really do get the blood pressure going!
 
Ah, memories! I had a 1971 BMW 2002 outfitted with the full spec Alpina kit for suspension and engine way back when. it was a kick to drive, albeit it broke rather often.

A couple of my local friends are a bit nutty on the 2002, but i had my fun with that meme and went on to Alfa Romeos for the ensuing three or four decades. Now that i have the Fulvia that i always wanted, I'm pretty much done. The Fulvia and my little Merc SLK daily are enough. 😉

G
 
Godfrey said:
Ah, memories! I had a 1971 BMW 2002 outfitted with the full spec Alpina kit for suspension and engine way back when. it was a kick to drive, albeit it broke rather often.

A couple of my local friends are a bit nutty on the 2002, but i had my fun with that meme and went on to Alfa Romeos for the ensuing three or four decades. Now that i have the Fulvia that i always wanted, I'm pretty much done. The Fulvia and my little Merc SLK daily are enough. 😉

G
Click to expand...
My first track car was a beautiful 1979 Alfetta GTV in gleaming red. Incredible car. Took far more abuse than it deserved and just kept on going. The 2002 and a Porsche 996 are my pair, now. Once you’ve been bitten by the automotive bug there’s no recovering it seems 😎
 
I was born in 1960. My early aesthetic education was 100% car-based. My father had a Mark 2 Jaguar with wire wheels. I was driven to school some mornings in a Ford Cortina. My mother had a Mini. I knew every car on the road and had strong likes and dislikes. I love your obsession with the detail of the Fulvia’s profile. You can get into Lancia with a Fulvia. I have dismissed my love of the Aurelia. They are serious money.



Lancia Aurelia B20 GT by Richard, on Flickr

Taken with a III and 35 Summaron.
 
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The next shot on the roll, the passing bus providing the speed.

med_U28906I1508463355.SEQ.0.jpg
 
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Godfrey said:
That bug got me six years before I could get a license...!
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You started that late?
Having grown up in the town that was home to the first American to win the World Driving Championship, I was into cars a lot sooner than that.
My first real car that I trusted to take me far and wide out into the world was a '68 1600 BMW I bought for $1600 in '72 with only 25k miles on it.
I sold it 9 years later, with 138k showing on the odo, for $1500. Only left me stranded one time out in the farm country of Ohio.
 
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