Lancia Kappa


The Lancia Kappa or Lancia k is an executive car manufactured and marketed by Italian automaker Lancia from August 1994 to July 2000. It seats five passengers and shares its platform with the Alfa Romeo 166. The Kappa was produced with saloon, estate, and coupé body styles. It was only built with left-hand drive and has a front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout.
After its debut at the 1994 Paris Auto Show, production reached 117,216 units, over six years. The Kappa was manufactured at the Fiat factory in Tetti Francesi, Rivalta di Torino and was designed by the Centro Stile Lancia in collaboration with the I.DE.A Institute.
Lancia had earlier used the Kappa nameplate for the 1919 Kappa, with evolutions called Dikappa and Trikappa).

Overview

The Kappa nameplate followed Lancia's frequent use of Greek letters for its model names, in this case the tenth letter of the Greek alphabet. In writing, Lancia often referred to the Kappa simply as the k, which is fairly similar to the original Greek letter κ.
In Poland, where Fiat Auto is the largest domestic car manufacturer, the Kappa served as the official government car.
Autocar's Peter Robinson reviewed the Kappa in November 1994. He commented on the car's bland styling which was justified by Fiat's Paolo Cantarella on the basis that the designers did not want to create too much "visual noise". The body was reported as having twice the torsional rigidity of the outgoing Thema and as 15 percent stiffer than any of its rivals. The automatic Aisin-Warner gearbox was shared with the Volvo 850. Robinson went on to say "the Kappa´s dimensions ensure a commodious interior, the impression of space only heightened by a low cowl and very Japanese-looking fascia, somewhere between a Honda NSX and Lexus LS400." Rear cabin room was described as "immense" but the cushion was criticised for being too flat, a fault rectified in later iterations of the car. Robinson criticised the "horrid mock wood with which Lancia frames the prominent central console that runs from the handbrake, up the full length of the dash and over the top." About the driving characteristics, Robinson wrote: "If Lancia quietened the starter motor, this would be one refined drivetrain...with no hint of any 5-cylinder unevenness." The 2.4 litre engine tested appeared to have been tuned for low-end torque, a characteristic of this Alpine brand. The engine was praised by Robinson for its "smooth responsiveness" and "torque steer has been eliminated...and the Servotronic steering is terrific, with just the right degree of self-centering." His summary of ride and handling was that car was better than average but not class-leading: "On the Lancia there is too much body roll and the front grip in the wet didn't inspire confidence."

Model history

1994 - Kappa production begins.1996 - The estate body style, marketed as Station Wagon, joins the lineup. The naturally aspirated 2.0-litre gasoline engine is fitted with a variable geometry inlet manifold. Inside the cabin, the seats are replaced by a new design, including new upholstery patterns.1997 - The coupé body style is launched, while at the same time, some changes are made to the interior, trunk, suspension and engine bay, as well as new alloy wheels are made available.1998 - The 2.0 L turbocharged four-cylinder engine gets replaced by the five-cylinder engine, while the turbodiesel was upgraded to a JTD engine. The bumper guards, previously black, are changed to body-coloured, and the base trim level, LE, is dropped, leaving only the more lavish LS and LX. At the same time, a special trim level is introduced for the turbocharged gasoline engine, called simply the "Turbo", distinguished by the lack of chrome decals around the window frames. The interior materials are also upgraded across the lineup, including the addition of a leather-wrapped steering wheel with a different design and front central armrest.1999 - The other two five-cylinder engines are modified along with the air conditioning unit.2000 - The Kappa gains xenon HID headlamps. Production of the sedan and SW versions ceased in July 2000. Total production number of the Kappa Berlina was 104,752 cars.

Kappa SW and Coupé

The station wagon version of the Kappa, designated "SW" by Lancia, was designed and built by Pininfarina and did not differ from the saloon's exterior dimensions, sharing most of its body panels. Only 9,208 cars were built in Pininfarina's factory. The estate version was also available with Boge-Nivomat self-levelling hydropneumatic rear suspension.
The Coupé was designed by Centro Stile Lancia and built by Maggiora. It is technically quite different from the saloon, having a shorter wheelbase, wider rear track and a distinctive profile with frameless doors. The front, from bumper to the window screen, was identical to the other Kappa body styles. It was Lancia's first coupé since 1984, when the Beta and Gamma coupés were discontinued and remains the last Lancia to feature this body style to this day. The small production capacities at the Maggiora factory for this essentially hand-made car, and the relatively high price, destined it to be a rare vehicle. For cost cutting reasons, the rear lights were shared with the Delta. 3,263 were manufactured from 1996 to 2000.
Car magazine described the Coupé as looking "top heavy, like a Bentley Continental that's been heated up and squeezed at both ends." However, the car's engine range was praised for matching the vehicle's dynamics, the 2.4-litre five cylinder and the 3.0-litre Alfa Romeo-derived V6 coming closest to "infusing the k Coupe with the classy character its styling tries to suggest." "It's the spiky turbo four that asks the hardest questions of the chassis and the all-strut suspension doesn't flounder. It shines. A viscous coupling helps the front wheels cope with the onslaught of the engine's old school, big-bang turbo delivery, and it feels remarkably untroubled." About the refinement and ride, John Barker reported that the occupants "are completely isolated from any vibration while the ride is smooth at moderate speeds, parrying bumps quietly and unobtrusively." The interior was described as "appealing" and having "curvy, attractive door casings, plump supportive Recaro seats and a good choice of plastics.". The 1997 price was estimated at 24,000 pounds sterling.

Engines

The Kappa has a Transverse engine layout, all powering only the front wheels. The engines were available with either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission, unless otherwise indicated.

2.0 20V

2.4 20V

3.0 V6 24V

  • 2959 cc, 'Busso' V6, DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder, at 6,300 rpm and of torque at 4,500 rpm
  • not fitted with V.I.S
  • slightly modified in 1999
  • Available with 5-speed manual transmission or 4-speed Z.F. 4HP-18EH automatic or from 1998 with Z.F. 4HP20. The latter marketed as a sequential, adaptive automatic transmission called 'Comfortronic', with manual operation.

2.0 16V Turbo

2.0 20V Turbo

  • 1998 cc, turbocharged straight-5, DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder, at 6,000 rpm and of torque at 2,750 rpm
  • superseded the 4-cylinder turbo in 1998
  • 5-speed manual transmission only

2.4 TDs/JTD

''manual is 5-speed, automatic/comfortronic is 4-speed''

Concept cars and specials

Lancia Kayak

The Lancia Kayak or Bertone Kayak, is a 4-seater coupé concept car built by Italian coachbuilder Bertone, based on the Lancia Kappa mechanicals, and unveiled at the 1995 Geneva Motor Show. It was designed by Luciano D'Ambrosio.

Kappa Limousine

A one-off Kappa Limousine, with an extended middle section and wheelbase, was built for Gianni Agnelli. Its concept was very similar to the Thema Limousine from 1987. The car was finished in dark blue with a matte-black roof.