This Lancia collector is ready for Florida car show

Chris Woodyard, USA Today 6:17 p.m. EDT March 14, 2015

One of the first big, classic car events is happening in Amelia Island, Fla., this weekend, and one automotive brand that doesn't exactly fly off the tongue of most Americans will be getting a lot of attention.

It's Lancia, the Italian performance and styling brand known for its racing history.

One Jacksonville collector, John Campion, will be showing several of them, including some big rally winners, as part of the Concours d'Elegance on Sunday.

He says the group includes:

• A 1969 Lancia Fulvia that won the Daily Mirror RAC (Royal Automobile Club) Rally in the final round of the 1972 International Championship for Manufacturers, ancestor of the World Rally Championship.
• A 1975 Lancia Stratos that had big rally wins between 1976 and 1979. Restored in 2011 by noted Stratos expert Aldo Zanone in Gaglianico, Italy.
• A 1985 Campion's 037 that scored a victorious farewell for the breed winning the 792-mile, 69th Targa Florio rally driven by Dario Cerrato. First registered in November 1983, it competed in more than 20 European rally races, with multiple top three finishes, including a first-place finish in the 1985 Rally Ci`a di of Mantova Italian championship race.
• A 1988 Lancia Delta Integrale that has multiple Martini Racing wins with Miki Biasion at the wheel, including 1988 Portugal Rally and 1988 Olympus/USA. Campion says his love of Lancias and road racing stretches back to his days growing up in Ireland. He came to America working as a roadie for top rock bands, developed business interests and started collecting. Today, he estimates the four cars are worth $3.5 million.

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