The Fulvia’s influence on rally racing cannot be understated. At the peak of its evolution before replacement by the Stratos HF in 1974, the 1.6-litre HF (High Fidelity) car, bearing the name of HF Squadra Corse, gave Lancia the means in which to win multiple European Rally Championships races from 1970 to 1972. This was followed by topping the latter year’s International Championship for Manufacturers; a second Makes championship win followed two years later in the revamped World Rally Championship.

As an ultimate road car, the Fulvia Coupé Rallye 1.6 HF had few contenders. A 75 millimetre stroke and 82 millimetre bore gave Lancia’s engineers a 1,584 cc engine, enough to make 114 brake horsepower with a 10.5:1 compression ratio; 135 brake horsepower (and later 165 brake horsepower) was soon possible thanks to larger twin 45 millimetre carburettors, greater camshafts, and higher compression pistons.

Nicknamed ‘Fanalone’ owing to its larger-than-standard inner-spotlights, this particular 1.6 HF was delivered in August 1969 to a Mr Carranza Amedeo D'Inzillo through Andrea Martin Agostini, the Lancia concessionaria in Catanzaro, Italy. Originally wearing the registration “84927 CS”, it was re-registered as “Y64174” by 13 May 1981, as D’Inzillo had sold the car to its next owner in Rome. Its most recent registration was issued in 1986, to a Pietro Ghisoni, and has stayed with the car since.

Two generations of Ghisoni had restoration work performed on the car, in 1988 and 1995, comprising a respray, retrim, and mechanical work, documented in the service history (available to view on file). During the rebuild, the black interior was retained while the exterior was sprayed in Grigio Escoli Metallizzato, a grey metallic hue popular on later Fulvia Coupés. It later came to be owned by The Sportiva Collection in 2020.

This attractive Fulvia is a mouthwatering prospect for those captivated by Lancia’s rallying exploits. It is offered for sale with a toolkit, an impressive history file documenting its restoration and Italian ownership chain, further to paperwork from Automotoclub Storico Italia and a Certificato di Identità issued by the Lancia Club.