Lancia Beta Trevi (1981) – Enthusiast Wanted

With the Beta, Lancia had a complete model line in house. The Italians first put the name on the Beta Berlina, a liftback that came on the market in 1972. This was followed in the course of the 1970s by other body styles such as the Coupé, Spider, HPE and of course the Montecarlo with mid-engine and rear-wheel drive. Remarkably, the Beta Trevi only came on the market in 1980, eight years after the first Beta saw the light of day. That is striking, because the sedan is one of the more traditional body shapes. Among the other Betas, the Beta Trevi is therefore a fairly common sight. Incidentally, the sedan lost the ‘Beta’ designation from 1983 and went through life as Trevi in ​​its last year of production.

Lancia Beta Trevic

However, this copy comes from 1981 and is therefore still called Beta Trevi. With the Beta Trevi, Lancia tried to polish up the image of rust sensitivity somewhat. That mission has been successful in this case, because the photos that the seller has attached to the advertisement show that the bottom is in any case still hard. The other parts do show some rust, but that doesn’t seem to be excessive for a 40-year-old classic car. The body and wheels also look good, although the left rear door is a bit duller than the rest of the paint. This may indicate that the door has been replaced or repainted. It is a bit of a pity that we cannot trace the brand of the tyres.

Where the Beta Trevi is less noticeable on the outside than the rest of the Beta family, that is not the case at all for the interior. The striking dashboard of the Beta Trevi was designed by the Italian architect Marcello Bellini and at first sight is reminiscent of a kind of cheese with holes. In any case, it is an original way to hide the control buttons and indicator lights. In the middle is the control for the ventilation, to the left of this are the control buttons for the rear window heating, the rear fog light and the warning lights. There are several indicator lights on the right side of the ventilation buttons. An original set-up, quite different from the overall straightforward approach of the 80s.

Lancia Beta Trevic

The mileage of 12,153 kilometers, which according to the seller is classified as ‘logical’ by the RDW, seems a bit on the low side to us. In that case, the Beta would have driven an average of only 296 kilometers per year. We don’t know the exact story of the car, but the odometer has only five boxes. Since the National Autopas Foundation was only founded in 1991, ten years after this car came on the market, it could well be that the clock has already passed. In any case, the Lancia enthusiast has a good basis for this Beta Trevi to really make something beautiful out of it. The MOT expires in April 2024, so it has recently passed the judge. The asking price of €3,998 does not seem excessive given the condition of the oldtimer, moreover, it is currently the only Lancia Beta on the AutoWeek used car finder. Who will work on it?