The passion for FCA Heritage brands Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Lancia and Abarth knows no geographical boundaries. That’s why the expert team that performs Certification of Authenticity inspections on classic Abarth and Lancia cars has been in demand around the world.

The certifying staff have literally toured the globe, making numerous stops in Europe and even some in North America, meeting passionate and enthusiastic collectors on their travels. 

One special mission took them to Jacksonville, Florida, where a collector requested certification for no fewer than six magnificent models. They included all the main Lancia rally cars—a Fulvia 1.6 HF, a Stratos, a Rally 037, a Delta S4 and a Delta Integrale 16V —plus a Fiat 131 Abarth Rally. The same collector also wanted them to certify his prized Lancia LC2 in New York, so he generously flew the whole team to the Big Apple in his private jet. After certifying the LC2 and making a stopover in Chicago to inspect a Delta HF Integrale Evoluzione with only 53 km on the clock, the team travelled all the way to Seattle for another assignment.

The most impressive specimen they examined on this American adventure was undoubtedly a Lancia LC2 with chassis number 0001, the first of five LC2s built from 1983 to 1985 for World Endurance Championship races. The competition car is fitted with a 2598.7 cm3 Ferrari V8 engine with two KKK turbochargers and develops 700 hp at 9000 rpm. The aluminium and magnesium chassis and composite body enable the LC2 (which weighs only about 850 kg) to reach a top speed of 360 km/h.

The LC2 wasn’t the only "number one" endurance car that the experts evaluated in 2017. In Marseille, France, the team also appraised the first Lancia LC1 to roll off the production line back in 1982. It was based on the engine from the Beta Montecarlo Turbo, boosted to 450 hp and subsequently to 500 hp. The open sports car has a very lightweight body (only 58 kg) that is extremely sculpted and aerodynamic, with a wide rear spoiler and side skirts that reduce air flow along the sides to generate greater downforce. 

Also in the States—specifically Austin, Texas—the FCA Heritage experts had the opportunity to certify a rare Cisitalia Abarth 204 A. Not just any model, but the one in which Tazio Nuvolari won the last race of his career on 10 April 1950, setting the speed record in the Palermo-Monte Pellegrino hillclimb. The car’s generous owner even loaned the certifiers a historic runabout from his private collection to get around in during their stay in the city. 

Many other cars have been certified all over the world in the first two years since the department was established. The rather long list includes various Delta HFs in Athens; a Lancia Aurelia B24, a Fulvia Zagato, a Fulvia Safari and a Delta Integrale in Geneva; a Lancia Rally 037 in Frankfurt; a Ritmo Abarth 130 TC and a Delta HF Integrale in the country town of Haslemere, south of London; and finally, more Lancia and Fiat Abarth rally cars in nearby France, between Marseille and Montpellier. 

The journey has just begun!