Friday, 07 October 2022 / Published in Lanoguard, Restoration

Lancia Fulvia Series 3

We had this Fulvia in for an inspection. There is a lot of work required, but rather than pull the full back to bare metal resto switch, we will instead be working with the customer and his budget to take the project in stages. We agree the first stage would be to get a better idea of the works required, and then simply Lanoguard the car to buy some time before attempting the resoration in stages next year.

For now marvel at the wonderfully compact V4 Narrow angle engine (yes this is the one VW copied for their VR series)

Stage 1 – Underbody Inspection

We’re going to look at some pictures from the initial inspection, then we’ll see how she looks after we’ve cleaned up the underside..

ancia Fulvia underneath engine — Here is the view underneath the engine, one of the advantages of a slow oil leak over a long period of time is it can reduce corrosion

corrosion on front subframe — Unfortunately the oil leak hasn’t reached this part of the front subframe – this looks like one of the first priorities for welding work

front off side underneath the wheel well — Front off side underneath the wheel well, CV boot leaking grease and damper dust boot on its last legs, but not bad for a 1975 car

fulvia underside years of mud and silt forming a crust — Fulvia underside – years of mud and silt forming a crust

Fulvia rear showing beam axle and panhard rod — Fulvia rear underside showing beam axle and one side of the panhard rod which attaches to the beam and stablises the axle from unwanted movement

Fulvia off side rear jacking point – let’s look on the bright side – we’ve seen cars 30 years newer where the jacking points have collapsed

Another bit of not so good looking Lancia, this has some bits of dry grass mixed in with the mud

Inside one of the wheelarches - the mud could be hiding things.. — Inside one of the wheelarches – the mud could be hiding things..

Lancia rear wheel arch before pressure wash and wire brush

Stage 2 – Pressure Wash and Wire Brush

Fulvia wheel arch after pressure wash and scraping

lancia right hand wheel well after cleaning back — Right hand wheel well after cleaning back

another shot of the front subframe corrosion

Front subframe corrosion from a different angle

Rear wheel well on the nearside towards the rear

rear wheel well on near side towards front — Rear wheel well on near side towards front

Rear off side wheel well towards rear – and what a way to end – behold the shiny 1975 metal!

Stage 3 was to Lanoguard the underneath of the Fulvia. This photo was after the second coat of Lanoguard and it was eye opening how well the first coat had paused corrosion.

fulvia lanoguarded with a second coat — Showing the best side after Lanoguard, almost looks like no further work required..

The next job is to remove the front subframe and repair. The idea is to take the restoration in stages and keep the car running. I suppose you’d call that a rolling restoration.

If you use Lanoguard before major corrosion sets in, your car will last a lot longer. Whilst there is clearly a lot of work to do on the Fulvia, things could be worse, bear in mind the Fulvia is nearly 50 years old and then take a look at this 2009 Honda..