Need This Like a Hole in The Head! Lancia Beta Coupe

[Aussiecsi]

I think it comes down to what your end game is . Is this just a weekend "toy" that for $5k wont be a big loss if all goes South ?....or are you wanting to make some $$'s ? If the latter, then probably better options out there as a bit of a niche market for these things . BTW, the Beta was my daily driver before I bought my current E9 back in 1987 ....I obviously have a penchant for rust. But you can probably imagine what it was like stepping out of the Lancia into the csi back then ! Anyway, you're a pretty resourceful chap so whatever you decide I'm sure you will make it work .

 

[Wes]

I think it comes down to what your end game is . Is this just a weekend "toy" that for $5k wont be a big loss if all goes South ?....or are you wanting to make some $$'s ? If the latter, then probably better options out there as a bit of a niche market for these things . BTW, the Beta was my daily driver before I bought my current E9 back in 1987 ....I obviously have a penchant for rust. But you can probably imagine what it was like stepping out of the Lancia into the csi back then ! Anyway, you're a pretty resourceful chap so whatever you decide I'm sure you will make it work .

My thinking was buy, give it a tidy up and have some fun then flog it. They are a little niche but looking ahead I see values going up rater than down. This seems to be the case in the UK, which seems about 1-2 years ahead of our classic car market on most things. CSL prices were a case in point as almost nobody in Australia wanted to pay six figures for a project CSL only 3 years ago. Now you can't find one.

 

[Eric V]

Oil between the valve covers is just going to be valve cover gaskets or distributor mount gasket. Going through the disused systems (fuel, cooling, brakes, charging and electrical) is all simpler than an E9 and cheaper too. That and some serious cleanup would be a lot of fun and you would have a beautiful driver with rust. If the car mostly hides the rust well and it won’t bother you it sounds like a good car for you.

 

[sfdon]

Great reading on the inter web about these.
Clarksons comments are revealing.
Is a ‘77 a first or second gen car?

 

[Bmachine]

Alright, straight from the peanut gallery here, so discard at will.

Most of us, and you have shown yourself to be at the pointy end of that group, just cannot leave well enough alone. “Oh, I’ll clean it up a bit and just drive it for fun. $1k spending at the most.” Yea right! A year and xxxxxx dollars later... “I really should repaint this and then, promise, I’m done!”

If you are going to put a finger in this kind of pie at all, you better be ready for the highly likely possibility that it will turn into a much bigger project than originally planned without you ever really realizing it. And if you’re going to tempt that fate, it better be something that will really be worth it in the end. To me, this Beta has a bit of 70’s malaise feel to it. Just one man’s humble opinion here, but Lancia made plenty of beautiful (Aurelia, Flavia) or, at least, iconic (Fulvia, Stratos) designs. You’d want to be sure the Beta is on either of those lists in your book.

 

[Wes]

Alright, straight from the peanut gallery here, so discard at will.

Most of us, and you have shown yourself to be at the pointy end of that group, just cannot leave well enough alone. “Oh, I’ll clean it up a bit and just drive it for fun. $1k spending at the most.” Yea right! A year and xxxxxx dollars later... “I really should repaint this and then, promise, I’m done!”

If you are going to put a finger in this kind of pie at all, you better be ready for the highly likely possibility that it will turn into a much bigger project than originally planned without you ever really realizing it. And if you’re going to tempt that fate, it better be something that will really be worth it in the end. To me, this Beta has a bit of 70’s malaise feel to it. Just one man’s humble opinion here, but Lancia made plenty of beautiful (Aurelia, Flavia) or, at least, iconic (Fulvia, Stratos) designs. You’d want to be sure the Beta is on either of those lists in your book.

Fair points.

That said, I've restored multiple classic cars all on, or under, budget. The one's I let go were also at a profit. This funds my passion projects.

The key to this is a mix of research and project management. You also need to stick to your plan. A period steering wheel here, Alpina's there and the budget is blown!.

For some people it's not about money at all and they will happily spend their last dollar on their car. This thread isn't about doing that.

My main question(s) on this car were do we think that values will rise, as have almost all other European classics. If that's the case this is a good buy. I could simply put it in a shed and do nothing for a few years. These are also not common cars either.

Half the fun for me is trying to guess the market as playing with old cars as an investment is the best of both worlds. For the record E9s are my passion projects though.

The other question is where is the market right now? From what I can tell a good driver car sits around 20k AUD based on some listings. I've not seen any sold for that.

Option three would be buy, put some lipstick on it and then sell as a project BHCC style but with better pics.

Option four is take a pass (again) and focus on my next big project - more on that soon.

 

[craterface]

Arde has had me work on the Fulvia- be prepared to own special tools to do basic jobs.
He knows where to source them.

I think the Beta is a lot more Fiat than the Fulvia, and therefore easier to work on. It may be the same or very similar to the engine in the 124 spider etc.

My friend in San Mateo also has a Fulvia, and he has had some big bills from Raffi.

 

[Bmachine]

My main question(s) on this car were do we think that values will rise, as have almost all other European classics. If that's the case this is a good buy. I could simply put it in a shed and do nothing for a few years. These are also not common cars either.

Half the fun for me is trying to guess the market as playing with old cars as an investment is the best of both worlds.

Ah, gotcha. If it’s more with investment in mind, then it’s a totally different ballgame.

 

[Arde]

Ah, you are thinking investment.
Not sure about AUS, but real assets are good in these times of stimulus packages, inflation rumors, K shaped recoveries, and other topics that would take me into domestic politics against my will. Art may be simpler because it does not rust. With https://www.masterworks.io you can invest in art without having to pick winners or even spend money on framing the paintings. Then you have crypto currencies, even jokes like Dogecoin got pricing action (not a good day today).
That Lancia may be good, easier to store than real estate!