Lancia Ardea 4.Series - far ahead of the competition

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Lancia Ardea 4.Series - far ahead of the competition

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Created on November 10, 2023

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

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Bruno von Rotz

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the wheelbase of 2.44 meters largely benefited the occupants

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - from series 2 there was 12 volts on board and therefore brighter light

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - unmistakably a Lancia

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - visually easily confused with the pre-war Aprilia

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - a thoroughly designed automobile

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - only 1.38 meters wide

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - sufficient ground clearance even for bad roads

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the compact saloon can also cope with narrow roads

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - steering on the right

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - five gears available

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - was way ahead of other cars at the time

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the last version was certified with a top speed of 108 km/h

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - large wheels make the Lancia comfortable even on poor terrain

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - compact sedan of the fourth series

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - narrow and tall, typical of a pre-war design

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the trunk lid was enlarged over time

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the doors open in opposite directions, the stable construction does not require a B-pillar

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - View of the interior

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - complete cockpit with large steering wheel

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - functional workplace

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - Lancia sign and radiator mascot

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - a flick of the wrist and the hood is open

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - to open the hood, just turn the radiator grille

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the longitudinally mounted engine is very short thanks to the V4 layout

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the tank is just behind the engine and slightly higher, the gasoline finds its way to the carburetor by itself

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - An automatic mechanism keeps the hood open

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - Chassis badge

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the larger and undivided rear window was only available from the third series onwards

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the dashboard is in body color

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - small rear window

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - Radiator mascot shows the way

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - Ventilation openings for the engine

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Lancia Ardea (1939) - near-production prototype

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Lancia Ardea (1940) - with self-supporting bodywork

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Lancia Ardea (1940) - the first series in the review

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Lancia Ardea (1940) - V4 engine in longitudinal and side view

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Lancia Ardea (1940) - Limousines of the first series

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Lancia Ardea (1939) - First series - in the sales brochure

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Lancia Ardea (1939) - First series - in the sales brochure

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Lancia Ardea (1948) - Series 2 - popular and practical

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Lancia Ardea (1947) - Series 2 - Illustration in a sales brochure

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Lancia Ardea (1948) - Series 2 - hardly distinguishable from the first series from the front

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Lancia Ardea (1949) - outwardly hardly changed over the years

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Lancia Ardea (1948) - Series 2 - counter-rotating doors allow easy access

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Lancia Ardea (1948) - but only the second series had a trunk accessible from the outside

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - 4th series vehicle

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - Series 4, compact elegance

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - with five-speed gearbox - Illustration from the owner's manual

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1949) - with self-supporting sheet steel body

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - Series 4, the luggage has to share the space with the spare wheel

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1950) - Advertising from 1950

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - Series 4 - on the sales brochure

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - as a representative of the forties and fifties - Concours d'Elégance Suisse "spéciale" 2021 in Coppet

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Lancia Ardea Series IV (1950) - at the Concorso d'Eleganza Italiauto in St. Urban on May 3, 2015

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Lancia Ardea (1950) - with doors opening in opposite directions - Dolder Classics May 2019

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Lancia Ardea Berlina (1940) - at the Mille Miglia 2021

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Lancia Ardea 550 Furgoncino (1947) - barn find, offered for Euro 11'500 - Auto d'Epoca Padova 2015

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Radiator mascot on the Lancia Ardea - Auto e Moto d'Epoca Padova 2015

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - weighing less than 800 kg

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Lancia Ardea 4th series (1952) - the typical radiator makes a good appearance

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Summary

Today, most people know the Lancia brand for models such as the Stratos, Delta and Thema. But 80 years ago and more, the Turin-based manufacturer was already shining with pioneering cars such as the Ardea, a four-door small car with excellent use of space and a five-speed gearbox. This driving report discusses the history and technology of the small Lancia and shows it in many current and old pictures, as well as in the sales literature of the time.

This article contains the following chapters

Pioneering design
Refined in stages
Performance boost at the end
Inexpensive, but not cheap
By far

Estimated reading time: 6min

Preview (beginning of the article)

A car that could accommodate an entire family and some luggage in a length of 3.8 meters and consumed around 7.5 liters per 100 km would hardly be associated with the 1930s. But with the Ardea, Lancia actually created a small car with these characteristics and was also far ahead of the competition with its standard five-speed gearbox (from 1948). When it was launched in November 1939, the Lancia Ardea was somewhat overshadowed by the Lancia Aprilia, which had only been presented shortly before, and which it followed in terms of design. Compared to the Aprilia, however, the Ardea was a whole lot smaller. In fact, it was the smallest car that Lancia had ever built.

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