Lancia Gamma

The Lancia Gamma (Tipo 830), stylised Lancia γ, is an executive car (E-segment in Europe) manufactured and marketed by the Lancia subdivision of Fiat. Following its debut at the 1976 Geneva Motor Show as Lancia's new flagship, the Gamma was marketed as a 4-door fastback saloon known as the Berlina (1976–1984) and as a 2-door coupé (1977–1984), both designed by Pininfarina – with 15,272 and 6,790 manufactured, respectively. The Gamma superseded the Lancia 2000.

Lancia Gamma saloon was designed at the Pininfarina design studio by Leonardo Fioravanti, under the direction of Centro Stile Lancia's Sergio Camuffo. Early design proposals with different rear portion were created by Aldo Brovarone who would later design the coupé version. Fioravanti based the design on the 1967 Pininfarina BMC 1800 Aerodynamica concept car designed by Paolo Martin to which Fioravanti also contributed.

The fastback style of the Berlina featured a conventional boot at the rear, rather than a hatchback. At the car's press launch Pininfarina said a hatchback was avoided to save the inconvenience to back seat passengers, when luggage is loaded, from ostensible drafts.

Gamma is the third letter of the Greek alphabet. Lancia had used Greek letters to denote its models before 1945, and the nomenclature was revived with the Lancia Beta in 1971, the first Lancia developed under Fiat supervision. The Gamma is also shared front-wheel drive and suspension elements from the Beta.

The Lancia Gamma is a front-wheel-drive car with a longitudinally-mounted boxer engine and a 5-speed manual transmission, later joined by an optional 4-speed automatic transmission. The Gamma received a mid cycle face-lift, receiving Bosch L-Jetronic fuel injection as well as a new corporate grille, 15-inch "sunburst" alloy wheels, and a revised interior with new instrumentation, interior lighting, badging, handbrake and gear lever gaiter.

Though Fiat had planned to use one of their V6 engines, Lancia developed unique flat-four engines for the Gamma. The Flavia and Flavia Coupé had used 1.8 and 2.0 litre flat-fours and the Lancia 2000 used the 2.0-litre version. Engine designer De Virgilio also drew up a four-cam V6 engine for the Gamma with either 3- or 4-litre displacement, but this never came to fruition.

The flat engine, though large for a modern four-cylinder petrol engine, lacked the cachet associated with six- and eight-cylinder engines but enabled Pininfarina chief stylist Aldo Brovarone to lower the coupé's bonnet line and to steeply rake its windscreen. Pressure cast in alloy with wet cylinder liners, the engine was light and though it only produced 140 PS (103 kW), 120 PS (88 kW) in 2.0-litre form, 95% of its maximum torque was available at just 2,000 rpm.

Initially available with a displacement of 2.5 L (Gamma 2500), it was later joined by a 2.0 L version (Gamma 2000), which resulted from the Italian tax system (cars with engines larger than 2.0 L were subject to a heavier tax burden). The displacement was lowered by decreasing the bore rather than the stroke of the engine. Both displacements were using Weber carburetors, and the 2.5 L also came in a version fitted with fuel injection (Gamma 2500 I.E.)