Lancia Flaminia

Lancia Flaminia
Kerb weight		1,430 kg (3,153 lb) saloon 1,440 kg (3,175 lb) coupé
Chronology
Predecessor	Lancia Aurelia

The Lancia Flaminia (Tipo 813/823/824/826) is a

Flaminias were produced by Pininfarina for use on state occasions.

There were 12,633 Flaminias sold over 13 years.[3] Coupés outsold the four-door saloon, an unusual occurrence otherwise seen at the time only in American compact and midsize models whose coupé versions were standard factory models that cost the same or less than the sedan, while the Flaminia coupés' coachbuilt bodies made them considerably more expensive than the limousine-like Berlina.

Name

The Flaminia was named after the

.

Development

The Flaminia's chassis was a development of the Aurelia's, but was significantly upgraded. The front

only. They benefitted from radial tyre technology Pirelli Cinturato 165H400 CA67.

The original two bodies of the Flaminia were developed by

Flaminia development timeline: Spring 1955: Pinin Farina Florida 4-door based on Lancia Aurelia chassis. March 1956 (Geneva): Pinin Farina Florida 2-door based on Lancia Aurelia chassis. April 1956 (Turin): Lancia Flaminia with 'suicide' door and coil spring suspension. March 1957 (Geneva): Lancia Flaminia with traditional door arrangement.

Engines

The Flaminia's engine was an evolution of the world's first production

Engines

Year	Displacement	Configuration	Power	Notes
1957–1961	2.5 L (2458 cc/149 in3)	Single-carburetor	102 CV (75 kW; 101 hp)
1957–1962			119 CV (88 kW; 117 hp)	2-door versions
1961–1963			110 CV (81 kW; 108 hp)	Different carburetor
1957–1962		Triple-carburetor	140 CV (103 kW; 138 hp)	Sport, Convertibile, GT
1962–1970	2.8 L (2775 cc/169 in3)	Triple-barrel carburetor	128 CV (94 kW; 126 hp)	Berlina
1962–1967			136 CV (100 kW; 134 hp)	Coupé
1962–1967			150 CV (110 kW; 148 hp)	Sport, Convertibile, GT, and GTL
1964–1967		Triple-carburetor	152 CV (112 kW; 150 hp)	Super Sport

Body styles

Flaminia Berlina

The first Flaminia berlina was revealed at the Turin Auto Show in March 1957. It differed from the production version by having Florida-inspired suicide rear doors that opened opposite to the front doors.^[4] All the other versions have front-hinged doors. The saloon version of the car was generally designated by the Italian word for this body style, Berlina. Designed by Pininfarina and based on the Florida I prototype, this was the only body to be built by Lancia themselves, as well as becoming the only body to last through the entire production period. There were 3,344 Berlinas built with the 2.5 L engine (102/110 bhp specification), and additional 599 with the 2.8 L (128 bhp). They were assembled at Lancia's old facility at Borgo San Paolo as the last model to be built there.^[2][3]

Flaminia Coupé

The Coupé was also designed by Pininfarina, and built by the coachbuilder. It was very similar to the Florida II prototype with a 2+2 layout. Like all other 2-door versions, the Coupé had a shortened wheelbase relative to the Berlina. The front end of the Coupé does not differ from the Berlina majorly, but the headlight frames are completely round, whereas they point slightly upwards in the saloon. The Coupe also fitted the unusual 175HR400 Pirelli Cinturato CA67 millimetric tyre. 5,236 Coupés (4,151 with the 2.5, 1,085 with the 2.8) were built until 1967.^[2][3]

Flaminia GT, GTL and Convertible

Flaminia Sport and Super Sport

The Sport was built by Zagato, and was also a two-seater. It used the same shorter wheelbase chassis as the GT, and had a very distinctive rounded aluminium body with pop-out handles. It was featured in the Ian Fleming novel, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.^[5] The Super Sport replaced the Sport in 1964, with the introduction of the 2.8 L 152 CV (112 kW; 150 hp) engine. The first Sports had flush covered headlights, later changed to more classic round ones. The Super Sport also saw some changes - the rear was updated to a Kammback, while the front was made more aerodynamic with distinctive tear-shape headlight casings. Until 1967, 593 Sports and Super Sports were built (99 Preseries, 344 Sports, 150 Supersports).^[2][3]

• 
  Front of Flaminia Sport Zagato, first series (note covered headlights)
• 
  Front of Flaminia Sport Zagato, second series (1960)
• 
  Rear of Flaminia Sport Zagato, second series (1963)
• 
  Front of Flaminia Super Sport Zagato (1964)
• 
  Rear of Flaminia Super Sport Zagato (1965)

Flaminia 335 "Presidenziale"

When in 1960

as regards the various electrical extras. They were seven-seater landaulettes, in dark blue livery with black Connolly Leather upholstery, a Voxson radio and Pirelli tyres.^[2][3] They were first used in Turin for the inauguration of the Celebrazioni del Centenario dell'Unità d'Italia (celebrations for the centenary of Italy's unification), and subsequently for the state visit of Queen Elizabeth II.

This model was officially called the Flaminia 335 (due to its wheelbase of 335 cm, or 131.9 inches), and is also commonly referred to as Presidenziale or Quirinale (after

). The individual cars were named Belsito, Belmonte, Belvedere and Belfiore.

All four survive today, and were restored by

Two of them are on display in automobile museums: one at Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile, to which it was donated by President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, and another at Museo Storico della Motorizzazione Militare together with other retired presidential cars. The remaining two are still kept in service for the most solemn state occasions, like the Republic Day parade or presidential inaugurations.^[7] There were rumours of a fifth 335 being donated to the Queen, but this seems unsubstantiated.^[8][9]

Coupé Speciale

A one-off coupé built in 1963 and designed by Tom Tjaarda at Pininfarina, based on the short chassis 2.8 litre triple carburettor model.

References

External links

• flaminiagt.co.uk - A record of the restoration of a 1961 Lancia Flaminia GT Touring