Post
autor: Nat » 18 sie 2010, 9:55
To była katastrofa PRowska firmy FIAT. Zresztą, kto kuma po angielsku - niech sobie poczyta (źródło - brytyjska wikipedia)
The Beta was very well received by the motoring press and public when launched.[6] The various models were praised for their performance and their good handling and roadholding. They were widely regarded as a "driver's car" with plenty of character. The Beta was competitively priced in export markets due to a weak Italian currency at that time, and managed to become the highest ever selling Lancia model up to that point.
Unfortunately a combination of poor quality steel,[citation needed] poor rust prevention techniques (typical of almost all automobile manufacturers in the 1970s), and inadequate water drainage channels[citation needed] led to the Beta gaining a reputation for being rust-prone, particularly the 1st Series vehicles (built from 1972?75). A widely circulated rumor states that the cars used Russian steel supplied to Fiat in return for building the Lada factory,[7] however these claims have never been verified and the steel problems are more likely due to the prolonged strikes that plagued Italy at that time than the metal's origin.
The corrosion problems could be structural; for instance where the subframe carrying the engine and gearbox was bolted to the underside of the car. The box section to which the rear of the subframe was mounted could corrode badly causing the subframe to become loose. Although tales of subframes dropping out of vehicles were simply not true, a vehicle with a loose subframe would fail a technical inspection. In actuality, the problem affected almost exclusively 1st Series saloon models and not the Coupé, HPE, Spider or Montecarlo versions.
In the UK (Lancia's largest export market at the time[citation needed]) the company listened to the complaints from its dealers and customers and commenced a campaign to buy back vehicles affected by the subframe problem. Some of these vehicles were 6 years old or older and belonged to 2nd or 3rd owners. Customers were invited to present their cars to a Lancia dealer for an inspection. If their vehicle was affected by the subframe problem, the customer was offered a part exchange deal to buy another Lancia or Fiat car. The cars that failed the inspection were scrapped. Sadly for Lancia, on 9 April 1980 the Daily Mirror and certain TV programmes such as That's Life! got wind of what Lancia was already doing to help its customers and embarked on a campaign to exaggerate the issue and humiliate the manufacturer. There were false claims that the problem persisted in later cars by showing photographs of scrapped 1st Series saloons, referring to them as being newer than five and six years old. Other contemporary manufacturers (British, French, Japanese and German) whose cars also suffered from corrosion were not treated as harshly. This was possibly because Lancia was seen as a luxury car brand at that time and consequently expectations were high.[8][9][10] Ironically, Lancia had already introduced one year previously a 6-year anti-corrosion warranty - an automotive first in the UK. Whilst later Betas (2nd Series cars) had reinforced subframe mounting points and post-1979 cars were better protected from the elements, these issues damaged the whole marque's sales success on most export markets. However, thanks to its strong driver appeal, the Beta still enjoys a dedicated following today. Surviving examples make an interesting classic car choice for the enthusiast.
Pozdrawiam
Nat

+ Phedra JTD + Lybra SW 2,0 na emigracji i DS20
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