Lancia Ardea
| Lancia Ardea | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Lancia |
| Production | 1939–1953 approx 32 000 vehicles |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Small family car (C) |
| Body style | |
| Layout | Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 903 cc Lancia V4 Max. Power output 26 bhp (19 kW) at 4600 rpm |
| Transmission | 4-speed manual (1939–1948) 5-speed manual (1948–1953) |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase |
|
| Length | 3,615 mm (142.3 in) |
| Width | 1,380 mm (54.3 in) |
| Kerb weight | 780 kg (1,720 lb) (saloon) |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Lancia Augusta |
| Successor | Lancia Appia |
The Lancia Ardea was a small family car produced Italian car manufacturer Lancia between 1939 and 1953. Its unusually short bonnet reportedly contained the smallest V4 engine ever commercialized in a small family car
Nearly 23,000 of the Ardeas produced were standard bodied saloons but between 1940 and 1942 approximately 500 Ardeas were manufactured with lengthened bodies and a squared off rear cabin for use in Rome as taxis. After the war more than 8,500 commercial adaptations of the Ardea known as 'furgoncini' (light van versions) and the 'camioncini' (car based light trucks) were also produced.
The third series Ardea, produced from 1948, was the first mass-produced car with a 5-speed manual transmission. Ardea was named either after Ardea town (Lazio), or Via Ardeatina, Roman road leading from Rome to that town.
Instrumentation included a centrally mounted speedometer, the fuel level and the oil pressure. A third dial directly below the driver's sight line was a clock, unusually on this size of car. The three floor pedals followed the pattern still 'conventional' for a manual transmission car (clutch, brake, gas) but to the left of the clutch pedal was a small foot operated dipper switch for the headlights. Control knobs lined up along the base of the fascia included a hand throttle.
Early Italian images of Ardea interiors confirm that Lancias of the period were still right hand drive, a position elsewhere taken to imply driving on the left side of the road. However, right-hand drive is practical even where drivers drive on the right-hand side of the road as it allows a better view of the edge of the road, which is useful when driving on rough roads in mountainous districts. This did mean that drivers of cars with centrally located floor mounted gear shifts, such as the Ardea, needed to learn how to shift with the left hand. During the 1920s Italian leader Benito Mussolini required all Italian drivers to drive on the right, but Lancia would continue, through the 1950s, to supply right hand drive cars in areas viewed by other automakers as left hand drive markets.
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Wikipedia