Lancia Appia C10S S1 1954
2019 Antwerp Classic Salon - Antwerpen (B)

1953 saw the introduction of the first series Lancia Appia at the Torino Motorshow. It looked like a smaller version of the Aurelia, but well proportioned and perhaps even more attractive. Power came from a 1100 cc V4 engine and the most striking features of the bodywork were the "saloon style" opening doors without a center pillar, granting an unparalleled access to the interior. Because of its engine displacement the Appia seemed directly pitted against the new Fiat 1100/103 which appeared that same year, but there was a huge price-gap: the Appia was about 50% more expensive than the Fiat. The Appia was also more luxurious and better finished, what we now would call a "premium product". In those post war years however the high price difference had a serious impact on sales: the first series Appia was sold 20,025 times between 1953-1956 where the Fiat 1100-103 was sold 257,000 times during the same period...
Still, it's a wonderful model and the car shown here already has its steering wheel on the left, which was not standard for Lancia at the time. That makes it a C10S, where C10 indicates the Appia berlina body style and S (for Sinistra) the left hand steering.