An extremely rare and charming commercial variant of Lancia’s V4-powered Appia. Wonderfully restored from the ground up, with an authentic character. A delightful classic for promotional use or for collectors of unusual Italian vehicles.
Featured here is a lovely example of Lancia’s endearing Appia Furgoncino. Hailing from 1956, this is a Series II C 80 model and is believed to be one of approximately 2,900 of its kind produced. It is in home market specification with right-hand drive, as Italy was one of the last holdouts of left-hand traffic on mainland Europe after the war. While the commercial Appia was relatively popular in its day, as with any commercial vehicle, attrition rates are high as these little trucks were subjected to daily abuse. Thankfully, this wonderful Furgoncino (literally, “small van”) lived a gentle enough life to earn a well-deserved restoration back to original specs. According to a previous owner, the ground-up restoration was done in Switzerland and has seen only light use since. The paintwork presents in good condition, showing a few minor imperfections in the finish but otherwise well-detailed. Typical for Lancias of the era, the body is beautifully crafted with doors that open and shut with Mercedes-like solidity, and a sensation of quality that belies its purpose as an economical delivery car. Chrome adornments are minimal but present in good condition overall. Some polish marks are evident in the bumper, while the Carello headlight rims and proud Lancia radiator grille are excellent. Polished aluminum hubcaps adorn the correct 16-inch wheels with period-correct Michelin X radials (Lancia was an early adopter and champion of the radial tire). At the back, twin barn-doors open up to a generous cargo area with a spare wheel neatly slotted below the load floor.
