Made in Italy
In the midst of an attempt at resurrection, Lancia confirmed, on the sidelines of the launch of the Ypsilon HF Rally 4, that the next model, the Lancia Gamma, will be designed and developed in Italy and produced in the Stellantis factory in Melfi. This marks Lancia's return to the premises where, from 1995 to 2003, the second generation of the Ypsilon was built. Opened in 1994, the Melfi plant is currently responsible for the production of the Jeep Compass and Jeep Renegade. The announcement is obviously good news in this “annus horribilis” of Italian automobile production, the news of which has been punctuated for months by bad news of partial unemployment, cessation of production and relocations to Poland, the Serbia or Morocco.
A crossover coupe sedan?
Cousin of the future DS8, the Lancia Gamma will be built in 2026 on the basis of the STLA Medium multi-energy platform. A priori, this Gamma will not be exclusively electric, but should offer hybrid. It would nevertheless be presumptuous to declare victory…the rebirth of Lancia remains very uncertain, because everything will depend on the success or not of the new Ypsilon, which, after already a few months of marketing, does not seem to be gaining too much traction… The Gamma resumes the name of a sedan and coupe model of the brand, which was manufactured between 1975 and 1984 in just over 22,000 examples. The future Gamma will be a raised five-door model with a coupe profile, closer to a high-legged 408-style sedan than to a classic SUV.
An atypical design?
The first photo shows part of the stern with the “Chalice” motif. The three-part optical design, inaugurated by the new Ypsilon, should also be found on this raised sedan. The image highlights an elegant vertical optical unit. A nod to the Thesis, a big commercial failure from the beginning of the century but which stood out with its baroque and charming design? At the bottom of the slightly hollow trunk, the model name is written in a straighter font than that used for the Ypsilon.
Lancia will have a lot to do to find a place in the top of the range, after the failure of the Thesis and the “joke” that was the last Thema, launched during the Marchionne era, which was only a Chrysler 300C rebadged.
To summarize
In the midst of a relaunch, and the Ypsilon has barely got its career on track, Lancia is already “teased” its next model, a seemingly elevated sedan which will take the name Gamma. For now, the only thing certain is its place of production: Melfi, Italy.
