Lancia · 1953–1963
Lancia Appia
The Lancia Appia is a passenger car introduced in 1953 by Italian car manufacturer Lancia as a replacement for the Ardea, and which remained in production for ten years. The Appia was the last in a long line of Lancia production cars dating back to the Lancia Lambda (introduced in 1922) to use sliding pillar front suspension. All three series produced had a 1089cc Lancia V4 engine. In addition to the saloon, a number of special bodied Appias were produced, including a coupé by Pinin Farina, a convertible and 2-door saloon by Vignale and an aluminium-bodied GT by Zagato, as well as light commercial vehicle variants. In total 107,000 Appia were built: 98,000 saloons, 3,863 commercial vehicles, and 5,161 chassis supplied to coachbuilders. Following a custom started in the postwar years, the new model was named after a Roman consular road, the Via Appia.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Predecessor: Lancia Ardea · Successor: Lancia Fulvia
All Lancia Appia data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years →
The saloon
=== Background === In 1950 Lancia had introduced its first all-new postwar model, the Lancia Aurelia, a small but expensive luxury car with sophisticated engineering features like the first ever V6 engine, inboard rear brakes and a transaxle gearbox. Alongside it Lancia was still producing the Lancia Ardea, a pre-war design that although once innovative was in need of replacement. The new small Lancia was designed under engineer Vittorio Jano. Initially an updated version of the Ardea's 17° V4 engine was considered, but a clean-sheet design was ultimately chosen. At little over 10°, the new V4 had the narrowest angle of any V4 engine, and used solutions unprecedented at Lancia, like dual in-block camshafts in place of overhead ones. As the Ardea resembled a scaled-down Aprilia, the Appia mimicked the Aurelia's appearance, substituting its exotic parts with more cost-effective ones, such as a solid axle and a four-speed gearbox in block with the engine. For its mechanical features—sliding pillar front suspension, V4 engine, rear-wheel drive, absence of a centre pillar—the Appia can be considered the last in a line of Lancias which stretched back to the 1922 Lambda. First series. The Appia Berlina (saloon/sedan) was introduced in April 1953 at the Turin Motor Show. The chassis code is C10 for the right hand drive saloon—the standard version, as was customary at Lancia—and C10S (from Sinistra, Italian for "left") for the left hand drive variant, available on request. Under the Appia's bonnet there is a 38 PS 1.1-litre engine, which according to the manufacturer could push the car to 120 km/h (75 mph). The body style is similar to the Lancia Aurelia. To save weight the doors and rear fenders of the first few thousand examples were aluminium. The bumpers were also aluminium,
Commercial variants
Starting with 1954 Lancia also built light commercial bodies on the Appia chassis, replacing the analogous versions of the earlier Ardea. Three models were offered: the Furgoncino panel van (chassis code C80 or C80S for left hand drive), Camioncino pick-up (C83 or C83S), and an ambulance based on the Furgoncino, the Autolettiga (C86 or C86S). In respect to the saloon, all had shorter final drives, lower horsepower engines, widened axle tracks, upsized 16-inch wheels and larger tyres—and consequently bodywork altered to accept these modifications. With the introduction of the second series Appia in 1954 all three models received upgrades similar to the saloon's, while keeping the body style almost untouched. Commercial variants were not upgraded to third series specifications, as during 1959 they were phased out in favour of a forward control full-fledged van using Appia drivetrains, the Lancia Jolly.
Coachbuilt variants
First series Appias were only offered in factory body styles. This changed with the second and third series Appias, which were also built as a platform chassis intended for coachbuilt bodies. Towards the end of 1955 a first batch of 14 chassis based on the brand new second series Appia were built and handed over to some of the most prominent coachbuilders of the time: Allemano, Boano, Ghia Aigle, Motto, Pinin Farina, Vignale and Zagato. Initially all fourteen chassis were coded tipo 812.00, based on standard saloon mechanicals; five of were upgraded to a more powerful 53 PS engine and floor-mounted shifter, and given the new type designation 812.01. At the April 1956 Turin Motor Show, a month after the successful introduction of the second series Appia in Geneva, five specially bodied Appias were shown: a coupé and a two-door saloon by Vignale, a coupé each from Pinin Farina, Boano and Zagato. Between Spring 1956 and Spring 1957 the coachbuilders presented their one-off interpretations of the Appia at various motor shows. Later more 812.01 chassis were built, bringing the total of unique to thirteen. Of the coachbuilders who had worked on the first fourteen chassis, two were selected by Lancia to produce special Appia body styles: Pinin Farina for the coupé, and Vignale for the convertible. Their nearly definitive proposals debuted at the March 1957 Geneva Motor Show, and soon went into limited series production. Built by their respective designers on chassis supplied by Lancia, these were included in Lancia's own catalogue and regularly sold through Lancia dealerships. In the later years other variants were added to the official portfolio: Vignale's Lusso, Zagato's GTE and Sport, and Viotti's Giardinetta. All of these variants were built on the 812.01 type chassis with
Specifications
=== Body and chassis === The Appia Berlina used unibody construction. Front suspension was of Lancia's sliding pillar type, with hydraulic dampers. At the rear there was a solid axle on leaf springs, with hydraulic dampers; the axle had an aluminium differential housing and a stamped steel structure. All Appias were equipped with hydraulic brakes, and drums an all four wheels. Series three cars gained a dual braking circuit and twin leading shoe, finned aluminium front drums with cast iron wear rings; the rears remained solid cast iron. When leaving the factory they would originally fit Pirelli Cinturato 155HR15 tyres (CA67). Engine and transmission. The Appia had a V4 engine with a 10.14° angle between the cylinder banks and a single head for all four cylinders. All models had a bore and stroke of 68 mm × 75 mm (2.7 in × 3.0 in), for a total displacement of 1,089 cc (66.5 cu in). The valvetrain comprised two angled poppet valves per cylinder, actuated by pushrods and rocker arms; there were two in-block camshafts, the left hand one for all exhaust and the right hand one for all intake valves, driven by a chain with hydraulic tensioner. The cylinder heads were aluminium, as were crankcase and oil pan, integrated in a single casting; the cylinder block was cast iron. The transmission was a four-speed gearbox, the top three synchronised. The clutch was dry single plate, mechanically actuated. Performance. An S1 Berlina saloon tested by the British The Motor magazine in 1954 had a top speed of 76.1 mph (122.5 km/h) and could accelerate from 0–60 mph (97 km/h) in 32.5 seconds. A fuel consumption of 29.0 miles per imperial gallon (9.7 L/100 km; 24.1 mpg‑US) was recorded. The car was not at the time available on the UK market but an Italian price of 1,328,600 Lire was report
Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.
Specifications
- name
- Lancia Appia
- Manufacturer
- Lancia
- Production
- 1953–1963
- Designer
- Pinin Farina (Coupé), Giovanni Michelotti at Vignale (Convertibile and Lusso), Zagato (Appia Zagato)
- Class
- Small family car
- Layout
- Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive
- Body style
- 4-door saloon, 2-door saloon (Vignale), 2-door coupé (Pinin Farina), 2-door coupé (Zagato), 2-door convertible (Vignale), 3-door estate (Viotti)
- Related
- Lancia Aurelia
- Engine
- 1.1 L Lancia V4 (petrol)
- Transmission
- 4-speed manual
- Wheelbase
- 2480 mm S. 1, 2510 mm S. 2, S. 3
- Length
- 3865 mm, 4010 mm S. 2, 4020 mm S. 3
- Width
- 1420 mm, 1485 mm S. 2, 1390 mm S. 3
- Height
- 1422 mm, 1405 mm S. 2, 1450 mm S. 3
- Kerb weight
- 820 –
- Predecessor
- Lancia Ardea
- Successor
- Lancia Fulvia
- sp
- uk
Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Measured facts from Wikidata (CC0). Check the linked sources for citations.
More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1801826CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancia_AppiaCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1375696438 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lancia_(3496663950).jpgCC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo: allen watkin from London, UK · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.