Lancia Thema
Reviewed by Unique Cars and Parts
Our Rating: 3
Introduction
During the mid-1980's that the Fiat group began to rationalise it chassis/platforms so that the same body could be used on different Fiat, Alfa Romeo and
Lancia models. The
Pininfarina designed Thema, which replaced the Gamma, was the first of the Fiat group models to pioneer the new platform, sharing it with the Fiat Croma. As was to be expected the
Lancia version sat at the top of the new range, with a sporty Alfa Romeo version just below it.
The Fiat group needed the Thema to be successful, particularly in the UK market where the
Lancia Beta had suffered extremely poor press, due mainly to the perceived
rust problems and subsequent safety issues. There was no doubting the Italian cars of that era did suffer from
rust more than most others, but the drubbing in the press was a little over the top.
Lancia gambled on a media campaign that included two page advertisments in many high-brow publications. Just one such advertisement stated the following..."We have to admit it, we love being first. 25 years ago we built the first Italian car with front wheel drive.
Independent suspension was one of our ideas: integral body construction another. Now we're keeping up the tradition with a totally new driving experience. The Lancia Thema".
"Never before has one car offered you so much sporting brio couched in so much sedan comfort. Inside, it's big, plush and superbly appointed. While under the bonned lurks a 4-cylinder
turbocharged 165 HP engine. It has an intercooler and overboost protection derived from formula one engines. It can hit 0-100 kph in just 7.2 seconds and achieve a top speed of 218 kph. But you'd never think it."
"The engine purrs along softly. Beautifully balanced on conuter-rotating shafts. For the family-man Fangios out there, we've even produced a 6-cylinder V-engine (the sort that power-housed our Lancias round the Mille Miglia back in the 50's). We've got a
turbo-diesel model by far the fastest one of its type. And a 2000 with electronic
fuel injection that ranks with the best in Europe today. The Themas incorporate a wealth of new thinking and advanced technology. What better way of keeping yourself ahead?"
As mentioned in the advertising blurb above, the Thema came with a choice of either a 1995cc four cylinder (petrol), 2849cc V6 or a 2445cc
Turbo Diesel. To counter the "rusting chassis" issues, the Thema used a galvanized steel chassis and
rust protection that equaled or bettered that of its competitors. Build quality was higher than the Fiat Croma's and on par with the Saab 9000's. The sales organisation, however, was poor in many markets and secondhand values for the car suffered.
Production of the Thema ceased in 1994 when
Lancia withdrew from right-hand drive markets (including the United Kingdom) in response to dwindling popularity and sales. (The station wagon version was never offered in right-hand drive.)
Lancia continued, however, to be one of the most popular manufacturers in the Italian market and the Thema's replacement, the Lancia Kappa, sold well.
Thema 8.32
The ultimate Thema, the '8.32' ("8" standing for the number of cylinders and "32" for the number of
valves) was assembled at Lancia's S. Paolo plant in Turin. It used a 2927 cc Ferrari V8. This engine was based on the unit used in the Ferrari 308 qv and some of the componentry was assembled by Ducati[4] from castings made at Maranello. The engine differed from other Ferrari V8s of the time in that it was equipped with a 90 degree crankpin type crankshaft rather than the usual 180 degree type, smaller
valves and different firing order. All this to make the engine characteristics more suitable in a 4-door luxury saloon. Both Series 1 and 2 cars in non catalysed form produced 215 bhp (158 kW) and were capable of 0-100 km/h in 6.8 sec and 149 mph (240 km/h) whilst catalysed versions were slightly detuned to 205 bhp (151 kW) which gave 0-100 km/h in 7.2 sec and 145 mph (235 km/h).
The car offered good performance (though the
Turbo version was quicker than the catalytic version from 0 to 100 km/h) and excellent refinement, including a luxurious hand made wood-and-leather interior by Poltrona Frau complete with the same luxury equipment as LX versions of the Thema. Unfortunately, a price tag of £40,000 (or more) in Britain, and the fact that only left hand drive versions were produced, limited its appeal, with only 9 being officially sold there. It was even a rare sight on Italian roads, with just 2370 Series 1 built between 1986 and 1988 and 1601 Series 2 built between 1989 and 1992.
Even 64 numbered editions where made,32 series 1 and 32 series 2. These where only delivered in Ferrari-red and should be sought after examples in the future. Five non catalyst Thema 8.32s were exported to Taiwan and 2 of them still survive today.In addition to the sedans, 21,074 Thema station wagons were built by
Pininfarina between 1986-1994 in their Borgo San Paolo plant.
Thema Engines
Thema powerplants originated from the Fiat engine series designed by Aurelio Lampredi, the famed engine designer formerly of Ferrari and Alfa Romeo. The straight-4 2.0 L petrol engine, available in both naturally-aspirated and
turbocharged versions, was refined and offered good performance. Earlier Themas were also offered with a 2.8 L PRV V6 engine, developed in cooperation with Peugeot,
Renault, and Volvo. This unit was replaced in 1992 with a 3.0 L Alfa Romeo V6 engine.replaced the Gamma in 1984, and is widely acknowledged today as being one of the most spacious and comfortable European cars of its time.
