1968 Lancia Fulvia Sports Zagato

An obsession with Lancias led Angelo to this Fulvia Zagato that took five years to restore

OWNER: Angelo Monteleone

LENGTH OF RESTORATION: 5 years

I have always been a Lancia aficionado, from a Beta at age 17, through to a Monte Carlo, Flavia and now Fulvia Zagato.

The marque has always been my passion and obsession. True enthusiasts will tell you there is no line but a glorious, seamless transition between the two.

Growing up with strong Italian heritage, I was a bit late to the Italian car obsession, as my friends already had their boy racer Alfa GTVs and Fiat 124 sports by the time I began. Being a bit conservative, I decided to buy a gentleman’s car – a Lancia.

My first Lancia Beta was a fantastic driver’s car – the handling, the distinctive exhaust note, the comfort and its uniqueness.

I don’t think there has ever been a period in my life that I didn’t have a Lancia of some sort – saying that out loud sounds a little tragic. There have been other cars along the way, but they always shared space with a Lancia.

Where it all began with the Zagato.

I purchased my first Zagato-bodied car in 2010 – a Lancia Beta Zagato with its unique removable centre roof and drop-down soft rear screen.

That car led me down the restoration path and subsequently gave me the confidence to take on more projects. They’re an analogue machine and I feel confident doing a lot of the work myself.

The panel beaters always tell you it should be six to eight weeks. They neglect to tell you that’s six to eight weeks working one day a month only!

Rather than getting upset that progress was slow, I would visit and collect all the parts removed and use the time to teach myself some new skills. Thankfully, nothing is too much of a challenge on these old cars.

I found my first Fulvia Zagato, a 1969 series I in 2012, tucked away in south coast NSW. The car was a barn find and it still has its original NSW window label identifying it as last registered in 2000.

Zagato arriving at its new digs.

It was owned by a lovely elderly gentleman. I was the first to call and immediately bought it. He later told me the phone didn’t stop ringing all day.

He was a lot like me, did all the work himself, but quality finishing wasn’t his strong point as the car was painted over with a rattle can.

Years later I posted him photos of the finished car, to which he replied graciously with a short message saying “well done”.

Elio and Gianni Zagato were known for building bespoke lightweight bodies for competition – they were racers at heart.

One of their distinctive design traits is the double bubble roof (which is notably absent from this design as there was sufficient headroom) which allowed extra clearance for wearing a race helmet.

The Italian Car industry in the sixties was not like today’s modern assembly lines. They produced volume cars in-house but turned to designers and coachbuilders such as Carrozzeria, Pininfarina, Bertone and Zagato to build their hero cars.

The Fulvia Sports Zagato was the product of a young engineer Ercole Spade in 1965 with its distinctive pointed, but curvaceous rear end and its blunt front sporting rectangular headlights.

The rear hatch lid is electrically controlled from the dashboard to open a few inches allowing air sucked in by the functional bonnet scoop to flow freely through the cabin.

By this photo, it was all coming together.

The slightly slanted Rallye 1.3, 1298cc V4 engine – sitting just ahead of the front axle is fitted to a glorious four-speed gearbox. The ride is smooth and civilised with very little outside noise from the sweeping body shape.

There were no shortcuts on my car. All mechanicals have been recommissioned with new parts from Italy.

The interior leather biscuit colour scheme is sympathetic to the original factory option.

Plush biscuit leather trim.

Local firm European Auto Refinishers were commissioned for repairs and painting and brightwork parts re-chromed or polished. Restoration was completed in July 2017.

Zagato styling is distinct and can be polarising for some. There is no doubt they put their sometimes-quirky stamp on everything they produced from Fiats through to Aston Martins.

I tell everyone that my Fulvia Zagato gets more looks than any Ferrari out there. It’s just something that is a wow factor when people see it.

Like a well-tailored suit, it just fits around you so beautifully.

Angelo’s Lancia fleet. Both very special.

These days I’m the President of the Australian Lancia Register in Victoria. My aim is to share the passion I have for these cars, far and wide.

The hope is to inspire as many people as I can because these beautiful cars need to be dusted off and used.

Cars have always been a way to bring people together—through driving, restoration and participating in club events. There is a great sense of family and commonality in that.

My name is Angelo Monteleone and I drive a 1968 Lancia Fulvia Sports Zagato.