For years, one of my most prized brochures was the glossy job created to launch the Lancia Gamma in the UK in 1978. My local dealer, Knibbs, gave them out to anyone who looked half interested in 1980, mindful no doubt that the carburetted S1 was about to be usurped by the injected S2. I was enthralled not only by the cars, but also the lavish feel of this landscape brochure, tarnished only by a 'Six Year Anti-Corrosion Warranty' sticker added as an afterthought, this being the height of the Beta rust debacle.
Thanks to Patrick Ridley-Martin, I have the inside story of this 25-page epic. Now retired, and enjoying a CVT Panda that must be rarer than any Gamma, Patrick moved from Fiat to Lancia in the early '70s and stayed with the group until the launch of the Maserati Ghibli. "When I joined, Lancia was still at Alperton and had just gone over to the 2000HF with 'Daytona' dials, where the rev counter and speedometer needles swept around in unison," he recalls.
This story is from the November 2023 edition of Classic & Sports Car.
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This story is from the November 2023 edition of Classic & Sports Car.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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'I was enthralled by the lavish feel, tarnished only by an anti-corrosion warranty sticker added as an afterthought'