Will Lancia make a new Monte Carlo?
Reports are surfacing that suggest that Lancia is considering reviving the Monte Carlo nameplate for a new model. The original Monte Carlo was a small mid-engined sports car from the 1970s, designed and built by Pininfarina. Because Chevy already had dibs on the name in the US (and does still), the American version was sold as the Scorpion, and was marred by modifications that were required for certification on American roads. Lancia raced the Monte Carlo in Group 5 and was the basis for the legendary Type 037 Group B racer.
Lancia's parent company Fiat has been in the process of rejuvenating its many brands, and with Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Ferrari all returning to their respective heydays, Lancia's next. But with only a handful of quirky models in its line-up, Lancia is in need of a halo car to boost its sales and image. A small, affordable mid-engined sports car could be just what the doctor ordered. But without a cost-effective platform in the Fiat Group on which it could be based, its production could be a tough sell to the bean-counters.
[Source: Autocar via Winding Road]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Federico Rentaca 5:43PM (3/17/2008)
Hei, first, Lancia has to make a new Delta. After that, Lancia will think to others! http://www.fleetblog.it/?p=59
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keithwwalker 4:49PM (6/04/2008)
Time for perspective, there were 2 faults with this car:
First, was the front only servo braking system which caused the fronts to lock up prematurely.
Second, the italians knew little about emissions so it made little more HP than a chevette of the day - which with modifications (carbs, cams & header) you could double the HP.
More perspective, is that it initially cost as much as a Porsche Boxster (when corrected for inflation)
Finally, the Beta coupe stable mate, went through a terrible rust related recall (engine subframe rusted and the engine fell out)
All these factors contributed to the sales floor disaster that it became.
Lets also remember that the design/engineering was wholly a Pininfarina affair, and that for a couple years FIAT management didn't know whether to sell this as an FIAT Abarth, Lancia or Ferrari Dino.
It was designed for a V-6 and only had a 1.8 I-4.
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fragmaster170 5:10PM (1/01/2007)
The original scorpions were comically bad.
They could be made very fun with some modifications but overall I think they were complete engineering disasters.
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Richard 6:33PM (1/01/2007)
Was this sold as the Scorpion or the Beta in the US?
I thought it was the Beta.
Lancia - at this point in time was the Rally leader with...uh...the Scorpion - which was a stunning Bs to the Ws machine in it's Alitalia Red-White-Green paint scheme. THAT was a car and re-igniting that marque would certainly be in the Who Doesn't Care column.
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lavardera 8:16PM (1/01/2007)
I always loved this car. When I was driving a fiat X19 I once parked next to one of these and I sware the were based on the same platform.
Fiat may not have anything mid engine to draw from now, but what they need to do is what toyota did with the MR2 - take a front drive engine and running gear and turn it around and put it at the back.
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jjj 10:47PM (1/01/2007)
Still a beautiful car.
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ray ray 10:57PM (1/01/2007)
I think the mods that had to be done for the US model just destroyed the original beauty.
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Lancisti 11:42PM (1/01/2007)
The Scorpion was far from an engineering disaster. It was a wonderful car that was really just underpowered because of the smog regs of the time.
To clarify they were called the Beta Scorpion in the US and Canada and the Beta Montecarlo in the rest of the world. Later versions of the Monte dropped the Beta tag. The rally version was called the Lancia Rally and was also referred to as the 037.
There was also a Beta Coupe, Spider/Zagato, and Sedan which were all from wheel drive. The Scorpion and Montecarlo powertrains were the same front-drive units moved to the mid position. Where do you think Toyota got the idea? :-)
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Chris Ice 10:48AM (1/02/2007)
Original scorpions were indeed disasters. This was not due to engineering failures, but as previous posters have pointed out, US Federal emissions and crash regulations. What was a svelte, fun, great looking car in europe came out as a heavy, slow, extremely overpriced car when it hit the US shores. Of the 1800 produced, roughly 1000 sold in 1976 and 800 in 1977...at which time US Lancia dealers started dumping these cars to get rid of them (thus propogating the "junk" perception). In Europe, meanwhile, S2 sales continued on into the early 80s.
The rally version (the 037 Rally) was as much based on a Scorpion as a NASCAR racer is on it's production counterpart. The only Scorpion/Montecarlo bits on the 037 were the driver/passenger tub and door handles. The rest was tube-framed, turboed, supercharged, craziness.
I'm not an automotive insider, but I'm hard pressed to see how/why Lancia would try to resurrect this car now. Lancia (think "Oldsmobile" of Fiats) is really struggling nowadays, and is considered the technology and luxury test-bed for Fiat. They haven't done sports cars for decades, and can't afford to today imo...they should stay focused on what they do well...luxury. If you've not ridden or driven a Thesis, you should...it's a treat.
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Gerry 11:23PM (1/02/2007)
DeLorean?
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Rick 3:32AM (1/28/2007)
Lancia Beta Montecarlo: 1975
Delorean: 1981
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