Hiding in this garage is a vehicle that could be ideal for enthusiasts seeking a small Italian classic. This 1981 Lancia Beta Coupe might not be a fire-breathing beast, but it has avoided the rust issues that often plague the marque. It is in excellent mechanical condition and is ready for action with a new owner behind the wheel. I must say a big thank you to Barn Finder Barney for spotting the Beta listed here on Craigslist near Oracle, Arizona. The seller set their price at $6,400, but it appears they are willing to negotiate.
Lancia released the Beta in 1972, with the Coupe joining the party in 1973. That variant remained in production until 1984, during which the company sold over 111,000 examples globally. This 1981 example is a survivor that presents nicely in Silver. The paint hasn’t developed any matte areas or patchiness, thanks to its garage-kept history, which has protected it from harmful UV rays. The panels are as straight as an arrow, but some readers will already wonder about rust. That isn’t a concern, because the Arizona climate has protected it admirably. The factory sunroof allows wind-in-the-hair motoring for those who prefer Mother Nature’s cooling to air conditioning. The alloy wheels are spotless, and the glass is clear.
Small Italian sports cars typically don’t deliver enormous power, and the ’81 Beta Coupe is no exception. Its DOHC 2.0-liter four develops 108hp and 114 ft/lbs of torque. Thankfully, power feeds to the road via a five-speed manual transmission, and not the three-speed automatic that hampered outright performance. The power and torque figures are modest, but with a curb weight of around 2,580 lbs, the Beta is a surprisingly energetic little beast. The seller recently fitted a new exhaust and battery, investing over $2,000 to ensure that this Lancia is a turnkey proposition. For those doubting the mechanical hardiness of the Beta, it is worth remembering that Top Gear UK undertook a special episode in 2007, driving three cheap classics across Botswana. Jeremy Clarkson chose a Beta Coupe that had obviously led a hard life. It suffered a few glitches along the way, but completed the journey to almost universal amazement. Therefore, treating this Beta with respect should allow it to ply our roads reliably for many years.
This Beta might be relatively cheap, but its interior is nicely equipped by the standards of the day. In addition to Black leather trim, it features air conditioning, power windows, a rear defogger, a tilt wheel, factory floor mats, and an AM/FM radio/cassette player. The dashpad has cracked in a couple of spots, but a mat would disguise that shortcoming if the buyer didn’t wish to splash the cash on another pad. Otherwise, the condition is impressive, with no major faults or issues. The leather looks soft, the plastic has survived the Arizona sun, and the carpet is excellent.
Lancia was once a powerhouse in the World Rally Championship, sweeping all before it with the Fulvia, the 037, and the Delta Integrale. However, the vehicle manufacturing industry places little emphasis on sentimentality. Showroom success is what matters most, and Lancia is failing badly on that front. Production volumes are at their lowest in the company’s history, and it would be unsurprising if Stellantis chose to “retire” the brand in the next few years. Therefore, preservation could be crucial so that future generations can appreciate the marque’s vehicles. This 1981 Beta Coupe is in excellent condition for its age, offering its new owner the opportunity to do so. It is affordable, and the recent mechanical work would allow the buyer to enjoy its sparkling performance immediately. I believe that it will find a new home, because the seller’s price is very realistic. Do you agree?
So tempting. If only it wasn’t so far away. I was surprised to learn Lancia was still in business. Parts shouldn’t be a problem.
This is a beautiful car, a wonderful Italian, and the price is quite tempting. I have never developed much affection for the big and heavy American muscle cars, and this little coupe seems just right for the twisty two lanes in my neighborhood.
I had one , probably the fastest 4 cyl around at the time, tough leather seats , but …. The 1800cc engine they put in sideways had shift control bars to make shifting possible with ball and sockets . I had no issue when I used it ( i have a tendency to shift lightly) but when I sold it to a friend he was diminutive in stature but strong armed when shifting and popped a ball and socket . A replacement had to come from Italy , took 2 months and broke 2 weeks later. I came across one about 4 or 5 yrs ago in pristine condition for only $3500 and passed on it . Oh one more thing they did recall all of them because the engine mounts tend to rust and the engines kind of would fall out.
Only the very earliest Beta sedans had the design flaw that trapped water in the rear mount points for the powertrain subframe, leading to rapid rust-out there; those were the only Betas recalled and bought back by the factory for rust. That design flaw was corrected by the time the other Beta variants (coupe, spider and HPE) entered production, all before they ever started exporting any to America.
American Lancista John Montgomery and his son developed replacement shift linkage bushing sockets of a durable self-lubricating Delrin-like plastic, still available from FiatLancia.us — if it hasn’t been done already, get 3 bushings to replace them all together at once and be done with it, but later Betas like this one shouldn’t need the Heim-joint rod they also offer in their “full kit”, which is only needed for early Betas that also had plastic bushings in that link.
Fortunato Valenza in Italy also recently developed some very clever bronze bushings that should be even more durable and allow a lighter shift action (IME the plastic bushings can feel a bit stiff).
There’s also another bushing that can fail at the bottom of the front vertical strut rod in the linkage, where it pivots at the transmission bellhousing; this can be replaced with a simple rubber grommet from a hardware store (keep the original steel center sleeve to press into the grommet), but I prefer the more durable silicone 1061T36 grommets from McMaster-Carr.
It was really fast as i have discovered as a driver of an Autobianchi Lancia Abarth that i used to race it as well. We started from stop, i went in front of the Lancia for a few seconds but then it passed me like a wind beating the hard won giant killer image of my Abarth! No other car had done that before and no other since. I kept the Abarth for 3 years, then it was Fiat Bertone (Abarth engine) X1/9 time!
If you want a Beta coupe in the USA, an ’81 is the one to get, the only year they were available here with fuel injection for the best power, reliability and all-around drivability you could get in an American-market Beta. It’s a Bosch L-Jetronic system, pretty much standard across every model that used it, so FI parts aren’t hard or expensive to find, and it’s pretty simple for DIY’ers or any shop familiar with ’80s Euro makes to troubleshoot. There’s also a few FB groups and the BetaBoyz UK forum full of enthusiasts for shop talk, and Midwest-Bayless is your best source for parts here.
Lancia also started using an electrophoretic primer coating in ’81, greatly improving rust resistance. That said, the black/ribbed (?) rocker sills here aren’t a factory original appearance, so I’d inspect that area closely. The sunroof is a nifty manual design, just flip a handle down and slide it back. Take care to keep the drainage tubes running from the front corners down the A-pillars clear to prevent overflow leaks and pillar rot from the inside.
Accu-Form Plastics still offers a molded dash cap to cover the cracks, and Covercraft still offers a tailored DashMat for additional protection. It’s good the leather upholstery here appears intact, if a bit tired, but this soft glove-grade leather responds very well to generous application of mink oil (the liquid, not the boot paste), which I’ve seen rejuvenate it to nearly-new appearance and suppleness; just slather it on until it won’t absorb any more, then wipe off any excess.
The Lancia Beta was the very first model ever mass-produced to the overall engineering formula that ultimately prevailed industry-wide, boasting a FWD transverse powertrain with a DOHC engine and 5-speed transmission, 4-wheel disc brakes, rack and pinion steering (even a power ZF rack here), and a fully-independent strut-based suspension with a multilink rear — all commonplace nowadays, but few cars had any of that, let alone all of that, in 1972 when the Beta debuted, nor many more by the time it finally retired a dozen years later.
As such, it’s a classic Italian sports car that drives surprisingly like a completely modern car. The ride is taut yet supple, steering is light yet accurate and communicative, and cornering is precise, level and tenacious — “as if on rails” never meant so much until I got my Beta Zagato spider. Pushing it hard past the limits of grip, neutral understeer develops as a progressive, controllable 4-wheel drift wide of the line rather than nose-heavy plowing. Go into a corner hot with a line a bit tighter than you’d want, ride the drift out to where you want it, ease off the gas or feather the brakes to lock it down, floor it again to power out and away, puts a smile on my face every time.
Non che male! Che bella machina! Anche poco costso
I had a 1981 Beta Coupe and it was fun to drive, but handled about the same as the 1979 Toyota I had at the same time. It was fun until the engine caught fire while I was sitting at a traffic light. I had to jump out of the car and run for the curb. The diagnosis was that one of the high pressure injector lines broke loose and doused the engine in gas. Everything from the windshield forward was a total loss. In spite of that experience I would give this one a try if it weren’t 2500 miles from me.
I already have way too many cars, but If this wasn’t on the other side of country, it would be on the way to my barn… If as clean as it looks and described, the ask is a bargain…
Beautiful car. Looks good from every angle. 👌
Nice