Lancia Appia 3 Series - 1960
— A great Lancia packaged in a small car —- Model The Appia 3 Series is the most powerful and fastest Appia ever
- Style Underneath classic lines, this is a true Lancia, faithful to the pillarless antagonistic doors, and the first one adorned with the new rectangular grille.
- Features A concentrate of luxury and avant-garde in a small format.
- History A car that has spent its life in Italy and has kept its original livery.
- Condition A quality restoration with a very well preserved interior.
With the Appia, Lancia had succeeded in making a real breakthrough in the segment of entry level, small and popular cars. The brand was faithful to its DNA of technologically advanced cars offering comfort, performance and subtle elegance. The Third Series of the Appia line of cars was an instant commercial hit and was definitely a true Lancia.
A successful and popular Lancia
By 1959, the Appia was well established in the Lancia range. Its first presentation in 1953 even overshadowed its big sister launched in 1950, the Aurelia. This little car had all the DNA of the bigger Lancias since it managed to combine elegance, performance and comfort, without forgetting the true technical sophistication dear to the brand.
After the first series seen at the Mille Miglia, a second series was launched, very similar in appearance but in reality very different, with a 42.5 hp engine, a new cylinder head, an electric starter, a reinforced clutch, and 14 inch wheels instead of 15. Both sporty and refined, it proved to be enduring, and journalists from the leading Italian motoring magazine, Quattroruote, covered no less than 160,000 km without incident with one of them!
With such a reputation, Lancia continued its offensive on these small entry-level cars by launching a third series at the 1959 Geneva Show. This new iteration of the Appia naturally took up the developments seen on the Series 2, but the styling evolved profoundly with a new rectangular grille. It inaugurated a new stylistic identity for the brand, which had then changed ownership with Carlo Pesanti at the helm. This grille would become a new recurrent stylistic feature under his era.
On the other hand, the antagonistic doors without central pillar, already seen on the Ardea that preceded the Appia, on the Aurelia B22 and the first Appias, were kept. Thus, under a very classic and sober, even austere line, Lancia kept this very strong stylistic signature which was then one of the pillars of its identity.
The 3 Series was not content with stylistic changes, its power jumped to 48 hp, making this little car the fastest in its category with a top speed of 135 km/h. Finally, it innovated with a new dual braking system.
It was an instant commercial hit with no less than 55,000 cars sold, a great success for the brand.
©Aguttes
The Lancia Appia Série 3 from the ANNA LISA collection
Fully restored in the late 1980’s, the Appia Series 3 from the ANNA LISA Art On Wheels collection sold new in Italy in 1960 is still in its original livery with a blue / light grey metallic colour scheme.
In spite of some superficial corrosion on the body and chassis, the car is still in good condition, as it had been completely stripped down during its restoration.
The interior, typical of this period, is sober and a bit austere. The sloping dashboard is more modern. The interior is still very clean and well preserved with seats covered in plastic and Appia rubber mats.
The engine, not blocked, has to be restarted, which should be quite simple.
