Vehicle Description
Chassis No. 812.01-2531
Engine No. 814.00 2530
Lancia's Appia replaced its Ardea as their primary small family car
offering, unveiled to the public at the 1953 Torino Motor Show. The
model featured numerous Lancia technical hallmarks, including
sliding pillar front suspension and a jewel of a V4 engine
displacing 1,090-cc. While the vast majority of Appias produced
were the standard saloon variants, some were bodied as commercial
vehicles, while another group of chassis were supplied to
coachbuilders for the fitment of more sporting custom bodywork,
these jobs entrusted primarily to Vignale, Pininfarina, and Zagato
who all left their mark on the Appia's underpinnings.
The most attractive versions were the Coupes bodied by Zagato,
which were offered in three distinct series with numerous small
variations. Among these, the early "covered headlight" GTE models
truly stand out - later versions modified the front end to
eliminate the headlight covers - best estimates are that around 167
of these early covered headlight body cars were produced.
Approximately 35 of these were ordered new by Max Hoffman's Hoffman
Motor Company in New York, including the subject car. When new,
these diminutive little cars retailed for around $4,875 -
considerably more than a new Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce,
and nearly half the cost of a new 300 SL Roadster!
This delightful example of Lancia's covered-headlight Zagato-bodied
Appia GTE Coupe is a U.S.-market example boasting a very good
quality older restoration and benefiting from significant recent
specialist attention. The Lancia Appia Zagato Register records that
it is one of a batch of cars produced in February 1959 and ordered
by Hoffman Motor Company. Though its specific early U.S. history
has yet to be fully researched and discovered, eventually the
little Zagato coupe landed overseas with a collector in Australia.
While in that country, it would be discovered and acquired by
Italian car aficionado and California Mille founder Martin Swig in
the early 2000s, with a view towards leaving it "down under" for a
few years and driving it in the annual Melbourne Mille.
After some cosmetic and mechanical preparation, Swig ran the car on
the Melbourne Mille on at least one occasion and then brought the
Appia Zagato back to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2005. Residing
in the Swig collection over the past two plus decades, the Appia
has been used - albeit sparingly - in numerous events and shared
garage space with a brace of other special Lancias, Alfa Romeos,
and Fiats.
Most recently, in 2024 David and Howard Swig entrusted the Appia
Zagato to Raffi Najjarian's Pit Stop Automotive in Brisbane,
California, to freshen it mechanically for continued road use. A
thorough mechanical revival was undertaken at a cost of over
$22,000, including a complete brake overhaul, rebuilt wheel
cylinders, new water pump, valve adjustment, and much more. The
fuel system was addressed with a rebuilt carburetor and mechanical
fuel pump, while the tank was removed and properly cleaned out. A
range of other maintenance needs were addressed, and the Appia has
been enjoyed on several spirited test drives since completion.
Today, this delightful, jewel-like Lancia is a testament to the
marque's engineering prowess, and its timeless lines penned by
Zagato evoke considerably more exotic Italian thoroughbreds.
