Quote:
Originally Posted by gary396
Just collected my Fiat Panda ‘runaround’ from the local independent Fiat / Lancia specialist and they had 7 Intergrales in - a couple for sale, the rest being worked upon for service etc. Also a lovely little Fulvia HF in the showroom.
It looks like a ‘nothing’ little garage in a sleepy village but always some fine looking Integrales in there.
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Ahhh, yes - the Integrale! I was lucky enough to own an early 8-valve before values went ballistic. LHD of course.
Great car - loved it. Not outstandingly fast in a straight line, but the handling was very impressive and it could get round corners better than most road cars I've driven, and I've driven a few.
We went spectating on the RAC Rally in it one time, and when we discovered the stage we'd chosen to spectate on had been cancelled, it was a mad rush on Cumbrian back roads to get to another stage in time to see the cars. It should have been about a half hour drive but was covered in about twenty minutes. The journey left an indelible impression on SWMBO, who still describes it as the scariest twenty minutes of her life!
Sadly, though, as much as I loved the Lancia, it was, unfortunately, afflicted with the same problem that many Italian cars of that period had: on a quiet winter night, you could sit and listen to it rusting!
That said, with values as they are now, I wish I still had it...