The Lancia Scorpion, as it is called in the USA, is the North American import version of the Lancia Montecarlo. The Scorpion is distingtuishable by its odd-looking pop-up headlights and heavy aluminum front and rear bumpers, all of which were added to the car to meet Federal regulations when the cars were imported in 1976. You will note in the picture above that I was only too happy to remove all that and get my own car looking more like its original European design.

Official production numbers list 1806 cars imported into the USA. Most were model year 1976, with the last few hundred designated model year 1977. These latter cars were redesigned with glass in the rear buttresses and a few other minor changes. While the European version was equipped with a 1995cc twin-cam motor, an oil crisis in the USA and last minute changes at parent company FIAT resulted in the Scorpion shipping with a 1756cc motor that only developed a paltry 81 horsepower. The Scorpion's weak performance and high price tag led to very poor sales, and the line was quickly discontinued.

I saw my first Scorpion in 1984, but it wasn't until years later, when I was browsing the internet one Thursay in April 1998, that I stumbled upon this car. I immediately recognised it, and remembered how much I'd admired the one I'd seen years earlier. Two days later I was in Chicago, and had a bill of sale in my hand. And thus it began. My objective with this project is to address the shortcomings of the car as I see them. These include a lack of horsepower, mediocre handling, some minor braking issues, and returning the car to its original pre-Federalized design, at least on the exterior. I'm reworking the interior in a more contemporary racer style, while at the same time trying not to to get too "Speed Ricer". I know this is subjective, but most would agree what I have now is nicer than the red and brown mixed-color interior I got the car with. I won't install glue-on neon seat piping or light-up flame graphic floor mats, I promise!

The following pages detail the evolutionary process. As you will see, I've changed directions a few times, and the car has become the testbed for some experimentation. Some has worked, some can and has been improved by trying something else. Will I ever get it done completely? I don't know, but the fun is in the journey, no?