Lancia Beta Coupe Polycarbonate Windows

Lancia has a habit of building cars that punch well above their weight, and the Lancia Beta Coupé was no exception. Born in the mid-1970s, it arrived at a time when Italian sports cars were either breathtakingly expensive or ridiculously unreliable, and sometimes both. The Beta Coupé was supposed to change that. It was affordable, stylish, and packed with the kind of sharp handling that made every drive feel like a tarmac rally stage.
Based on the Lancia Beta saloon, the Coupé was smaller, lighter, and much sportier. It had a shorter wheelbase, a lower stance, and an unmistakably Italian design, sleek, elegant, and with just the right amount of aggression. It wasn’t a full-blown exotic, but it looked and felt special, like something that could easily have worn an Alfa Romeo badge instead.
Under the bonnet, the Beta Coupé packed a range of Fiat-derived twin-cam engines, starting from a 1.3-litre unit and going up to a punchy 2.0-litre version. Power ranged from 80 to 120 horsepower, which doesn’t sound like much today, but with the Beta Coupé’s lightweight body, razor-sharp steering, and perfectly tuned suspension, it was more than enough to keep things exciting. This was a driver’s car, not just a fast one. The balance was spot on, the front-wheel-drive setup felt alive, and the Beta had a way of tucking into corners like a well-trained rally car.
Speaking of rallying, Lancia knew their way around the sport, and while the Beta Coupé never saw the same kind of success as the Stratos or the Delta, it did get its moment in the spotlight. The Lancia Beta Coupé 1800 ran in Group 4 rallying, and while it wasn’t as wild as its mid-engine Stratos sibling, it was a seriously capable machine on tarmac rallies, making use of its excellent chassis balance and rev-happy engine to keep up with more powerful competitors.
Then came the Lancia Beta Montecarlo, an offshoot of the Beta Coupé that took things to another level. With a mid-engine layout and a Pininfarina-designed body, it looked the part of a true exotic, and it even found success in Group 5 racing, where it helped Lancia claim a World Championship for Makes title in 1980 and 1981.
But for all its brilliance, the Beta Coupé’s reputation took a hit thanks to one infamous issue, rust. British models, in particular, were plagued with corrosion problems, which led to headlines that tarnished the Beta’s name and even saw Lancia recall and buy back some models in the UK. It was an unfair end for what was otherwise a brilliantly engineered and hugely enjoyable car, but in the court of public opinion, the damage was done.
Today, the Beta Coupé is a rare sight, but for those who know, it’s still one of the most underrated Italian sports cars of its era. It had the soul of a rally car, the handling of a proper sports coupe, and the kind of charisma that only an Italian car can deliver. If you find one today that hasn’t been eaten by rust, you’ve got yourself a hidden gem, a car that proves Lancia could make magic happen, even when the odds were stacked against them.