1963 Lancia Flavia Convertible
by Vignale
£49,950
1 of just 40 or so UK delivered, RHD cars
Comprehensive 11 year restoration
Fascinating and well researched history
Believed to have been owned new by Lord Delfont’s wife, Carole Lynne
Beautiful Vignale design, penned by Giovanni Michelotti
Model History
This could easily turn into a love letter to Lancia, a company that so many of us petrolheads owe so much to.
In a world where every tiny decision must make complete financial sense to even be considered, there isn’t a place for a company like Lancia anymore. Yes, they exist today under the Stellantis banner, offering a fun, electric city car, that is no doubt a re-badged Jeep, Alfa Romeo or Fiat. However, when one knows the history of Lancia it soon becomes clear that this goes beyond an insult, even towards something like a punishment.
In their heyday Lancia were champions of innovation, pushing boundaries at any cost and as a result they set many a world first but also got into tricky financial waters as a result. Here are just some of the world firsts that Lancia were credited with
- First production monocoque car (Lambda, 1922)
- First production independent front suspension (Lambda, 1922)
- First OHV production V8 (Trikappa, 1922)
- First wind-tunnel-designed production saloon (Aprilia, 1937)
- First production V6 engine (Aurelia, 1950)
- First mass-produced narrow-angle V4 (Appia, 1953)
- First twincharged (Supercharged and Turbocharged) car (Delta S4, 1985)
They even put a Ferrari V8 in a front wheel drive saloon with deployable rear spoiler!
The Lancia Flavia was no different, launched at the Turin Motor Show in 1960 it was designed to sit between the Lancia Appia and the Lancia Flaminia. Rather than make a more potent version of the V4 in the Appia or a detuned V6 from the Flaminia, Lancia in all its wisdom decided to design and make an all new 4-cylinder boxer engine! Originally launched in 1.5 Litre form, the engine grew to 1.8 Litres from 1963, with fuel injection as an option and finally, in 1969, it grew again to 2.0 Litres. Oh, and they made it the first Italian front-wheel drive too, just to complicate things further.
Various body styles were offered. The Berlina (saloon) was the launch model and was the only option for the first couple of years after which the Coupé and Convertible were launched.
The Coupé was designed by Pininfarina but it was Vignale and their designer, Giovanni Michelotti, who penned the Convertible. To write about Giovanni Michelotti would make this already too long a description even longer, so you might have to just find him on Wikipedia and read the jaw dropping list of cars he designed, ranging from some of the most beautiful Ferrari racing cars from the 1950’s, through Alfa Romeo’s, Maserati’s, Lancia’s, right up to the Triumph Stag (seriously!).
In total, Lancia produced over 100,000 Flavias in all forms but of those, just 1,600 were the Vignale Convertible and of that small proportion about 40 examples came to the UK in Right Hand Drive. The price may well have had something to do with that, as in 1963 a brand new Vignale Convertible was £2,685. Doesn’t sound much but to put it into perspective, an E-Type was £1,913 and a Porsche 356 Cabriolet was £2,527.
Motor Car for Sale
The Lancia Flavia Vignale Convertible for sale at Wrightson Automotive is one of those extremely rare UK RHD examples. The new Lancia, resplendent in Bianco Saratoga with Nero (Black) interior, with a matching hardtop, was delivered to London in May 1963, fitted with the more powerful and desirable, 1.8 Litre engine.
The first owner is believed to have been Lord Bernard Delfont, a very famous theatre impresario at the time. An enquiry for information via Classic & Sportscar magazine resulted in a letter from a friend of the Delfont family confirming that Lady Delfont, better known by her professional name of Carole Lynne, was a huge Lancia fan and that this was most likely her car when new. During the restoration, an old French Franc was found under the seats, painting wonderful images of Lady Delfont, complete with head scarf, blasting across France on her way to the Côte d’Azur for the Summer.
It isn’t clear exactly when Lady Delfont parted ways with the Flavia but we know that a Mr. Henry Powell from Romford bought the car around 1975. In 1976, the onset of recession in the UK was making things difficult for Mr. Powell, a self-employed builder, so he sold the car to his father-in-law, Peter Hayward. The plan was to buy the car back once things picked up again but for one reason or another, this never happened and the Lancia was parked in Mr. Haywards garage until his death in 2003. With his house being sold, the car was moved to a secure barn near Colchester until 2010 when it was finally moved to a garage near Brightlingsea.
In 2013 the decision was made to sell the car and it was subsequently put up on good old Car & Classic. Andy Lerry of County Classics saw the advert and appreciating how rare these cars were, especially with their factory hardtops, he shot straight down and bought it. In November of that year, the current owner, a long-standing client of County Classics, bought the Lancia and embarked on what can only be described as the “mammoth” task of restoring this lovely little motor car.
The hours put in, not only having the car restored, but sourcing parts and even re-instating the original registration number that the car wears today, would most likely tally up into months in total. The attention to detail and authenticity is key as well, yes he could have ordered some new stainless steel bumpers but they simply don’t fit or look as good as those fitted to this particular car at the factory, so the originals were restored and re-chromed at great expense. This vein of doing right by the car and its history as opposed to what is right for the owner’s bank balance, runs consistently over the next 12 years.
The body was bare metal restored, the engine was rebuilt, the whole interior was retrimmed, including a new hood and an upgrade from the rubber mats it would have had when new, to a more befitting full carpet specification. Everything that needed attention was gone through and being a Lancia, sourcing the parts and the right people was a huge task in itself. The owner tracked parts down as far afield as South Africa, Slovenia and of course, Italy. He had the front badge custom made as he wasn’t satisfied with the accuracy and design of the reproductions on offer.
To say this was a labour of love would be quite the understatement. It has been painful, expensive and time consuming but with the help of great people and businesses like Enrico (Reg) Riga of Shirehampton Motors, Ian Slark Classic Restorations, Omicron, South West Auto Trimming and South West Colour, it was absolutely worth it, hugely satisfying and has returned an extremely rare Lancia to the road. So we can and should all take out hats off to the current owner.
We all know that to go and find a lesser car and get it to this level would not only cost so much more than just buying this car but one would need to allow for years of running around and stress before you could jump in and enjoy it. The sensible thing to do, is to side step all of that cost and aggravation and just buy this one!
