Lancia’s Fulvia was introduced at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show and built through to 1976. It was named for the wife of Roman politician Marc Anthony, who was an influential figure in the power struggle that followed the death of Julius Caesar. The Fulvia, ostensibly intended to replace the Appia, was designed by engineer Antonio Fessia and took up the earlier Flavia’s front-wheel drive. Rather than the Flavia’s flat-four engine, the Fulvia used a “traditional” Lancia narrow-angle V-4, a legacy dating back to the Lambda of the 1920s.

The Fulvia’s four, designed by Zaccone Mina, used vee-angle with twin overhead camshafts mounted at 45 degrees. The compact geometry allowed for the use of a single cylinder head and just two camshafts. Three body styles were offered, a four-door berlina on a 97.6-inch wheelbase, which provided comfortable seating for four; a shorter 91.7-inch wheelbase that bore a coupe body style; and an attractive fastback by coachbuilder Zagato, which was built on the coupe floorpan and was known as the Sport.

Carrozzeria Zagato was founded by Ugo Zagato, a craftsman with aluminum, in Milan in 1920. Their first work was for Fiat, but by the 1950s, they were also building for Alfa Romeo and, notably, Lancia. The Appia Zagato, Appia GTE, Aurelia 2500, and Flaminia Sport were iconic styles for the Turinese automaker, and all were bodied by Zagato. By the 1970s, the popular Lancia Fulvia Sport and Beta Spider were a mainstay of Zagato’s business.

This remarkably original 1971 Lancia Fulvia was stored by a dealer in Naples until 1976, when it was sold to its first owner, Mr. Guarino Carmine. He owned it for the rest of his life. After his passing in 1993, his widow kept it in the garage until 2008, when a Swiss Lancia dealer convinced her to sell it. It then stayed in the dealer’s own collection in Lugano. The beautiful car, showing just 26,300 kilometers, arrived in the United States in May 2014, after being imported by the current owner. Its factory-original color of Avorio Santa Anita, a stunning and rare yellow hue, is in exceptional condition, and the interior remains completely original. This car is very authentic and well-preserved and comes with tools, an owner’s manual, and a jack.

This svelte Coupe is clean throughout and ready to please its new owner and Zagato connoisseur.