Supergroups. For every Cream there has also been a Superheavy (if you’ve forgotten the awkward combining of Mick Jagger, Joss Stone, Damian Marley, Dave Stewart and A. R. Rahman don’t remind yourself; this is one case where ignorance is definitely bliss). The same is true in the motoring world, building cars is rarely conducive to a collaborative process. Need we mention the Alfa Romeo Arna here? So, expectations probably weren’t all that high when in the late 1970s Fiat, Lancia and Saab (and, fashionably late to the party in 1982, Alfa Romeo) set about combining forces to jointly develop the Type Four platform.
Most colours were outlawed in the 1980’s
Each manufacturer wished to add a premium saloon to their line-up, but following the 1970’s fuel crisis none had the coffers deep enough to foot the considerable set-up and tooling costs alone. A pre-existing relationship between Lancia and Saab (see the Autobianchi A112, rebadged as a Lancia and sold by Saab, and the collaboration on the Lancia Delta/Saab 600) paved the way.
It sounded like an ideal sympatico relationship. Saab would split the cost of expanding from their overused 99 platform and finally be able to tackle Volvo, their bete-noires, head on in a segment they’d previously struggled to enter. Fiat, on the other hand, would add value to their recent acquisition of Lancia and the Italian partners would perhaps learn something about build-quality - hitherto never before seen as their strong point.
As you’d expect with the firebrand brains of Lancia and Saab holding the pencils, the engineering was quite revolutionary for the time. Picture the scene; you’re a be-flared, bouffanted executive of the late 1970s and you’re in the market for a new motor to show off your success. What can you choose from? Peugeot 604, Ford Granada, Volvo 240 or a Rover SD1? All tried-and-tested, rear-wheel-drive and staunchly traditional, a sea of beige upholstery as far as the eye could see. No wonder, then, that the Type Four’s new front wheel drive layout and unusual innovations raised some eyebrows.
Aesthetically, each of the original three models (more about the 164 below) were penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign. Had Saab been hoping to add a little Italian sensuality to their line-up, the angular styling may have disappointed. But this initial trio are a perfect exercise in the geometric cleanness of the 1980s, and remain distinctive enough to maintain their own character. Although all three are borne of identical beginnings, very few components are actually interchangeable. The windscreen for the Croma slots onto a 9000 and mirrors from a 9000 will fit a Thema, but other than that, there are scant familial hand-me-downs.
Giugiaro’s rulers were pushed hard on the designs
Saab 9000
First out of the starting blocks was the Saab 9000, finally released in 1984. Intended to be the bigger brother to the 900, it is actually a few inches shorter overall despite its longer wheelbase. A testament to the Type Four platform’s clever use of space, it managed to deliver the interior comfort of an executive cruiser without having to expand to barge like proportions.
Without wanting to further the stereotype of our Italian friends enjoying long lunches, it’s interesting that the Saab came to market first, given the lengths to which their engineers felt the need to adapt the platform to meet their standards. Bulking up the architecture to ensure the famed Nordic safety standards did not slip, the 9000 also boasts some unique features in the handling department.
Eschewing the four Macpherson-struts found on both the Croma and Thema, Saab instead packaged the 9000 rear suspension with a beam axle and Panhard rod, while also dialling in some toe-out to the geometry. The result of this is a distinctly rear-wheel-drive feel intended to reduce the risk of low-grip understeer on the icy bends of a Scandi’ winter.
As Italian-car specialists, we certainly wouldn’t consider ourselves any form of authority on the 9000 (although we have had a few over the years), so we’ll skip our usual Buyers’ Guide Test Drive Checklist here. But, it’s worth mentioning that the tyre-devouring 2.3 Turbo Carlsson ranks very highly in our Type Four wheel-spinning thrills league.
This one’s Alfa-red, so we’re allowed to like it, OK?
Lancia Thema
Undoubtedly the self-respecting Mafiosi’s choice of Type Four steed, the Lancia Thema also debuted in 1984 but abandoned the 9000’s eager backend in favour of sheer hedonistic luxury. Its exterior bejewelled with chrome flourishes and, often, diamond-cut alloys, the Thema was by some margin the most expensive of its stablemates and the premium quality is obvious throughout. The ride is drastically smoother than that of the 9000, effortlessly swallowing up bumps and undulations which would worry the fillings of a Saab driver.
That’s not to say that the Thema can’t pick its skirts up when need be. We’ll gloss over the 2.5 Turbodiesel as the misnomer that it always was, but other than this there really isn’t a duff engine in the range. We absolutely adore the revvy 2.0 8v Lampredi twin-cam engine from the first series and although the Thema is a big lump for it to push, it still offers plenty of refinement low-down. The second series’ 16v is a more natural fit and the 16v Turbo shared with the rally-conquering Delta HF integrale turns the Thema into a genuine street sleeper. Performance figures like 0-60mph in 7.2 seconds and a top speed of 148mph put the Thema LS Turbo streets ahead of the contemporary Maserati Quattroporte and sticking defiantly to the rear bumper of a Ferrari 412.
Talking of which, there is of course another Thema to get a Tifosi’s cuore beating faster. The Thema 8.32, home to the epochs-ahead-of-its-time dynamic rear spoiler and, under the bonnet, a Ferrari-308-derived 3.0, 32-valve V8 engine. Yeah, sure, once they catalysed the engine it wasn’t actually much quicker in the real world than the LS Turbo, but it was always infinitely cooler. Optional Poltrona Frau leather interior, forests’ worth of matte finish burr wood, automatic climate control, electric sunroof, an armrest housing an oversized Del-Boy car phone, electric rear seats all set to Maranello’s operatic V8 tune - this is the height of decadence for any Type Four.
Lancia Thema 8.32 - How to symbolise the history of Ferrari on your performance saloon? Yellow pinstripe!
Variations On A Thema
It may be the rarest iteration found on UK roads, but the Thema range actually offers the widest divergence found anywhere in the Type Four family tree.
Furthering its diplomatic status, a stretched Limousine was offered to wealthy customers and Fiat Gruppo executives. Lengthened by 30cm with a section welded into the B-pillars (like an extending table from MFI), only 24 were ever built. The bizarre central windows do make it look like some oddball Top-Gear-special creation, but this is classic Lancia craziness and we wholeheartedly applaud every additional inch.
Although never available in RHD, the Thema was also the only Type Four brethren to be produced in Stationwagon guise (a Saab concept was mooted, but never made it to the dealerships). Coachbuilt in the Pininfarina plant, over 21,000 Thema estates were built during its 8-year lifespan. A one-off 8.32-powered ‘wagon was even built for Fiat boss Carlo Agnelli, the lucky so-and-so.
Another interesting aside to the Thema’s performance credentials is the V6. For the last three years of production, the full-blooded Italian 3.0 V6 12v Busso engine was used but, prior to this, Lancia had opted for the PRV 2.9 V6 assembled by Peugeot, Renault and Volvo. An interesting cross pollination in itself, but lesser known is the fact that this French-Swedish engine also found its way into the legendary Alfa Romeo 155 Ti V6 DTM race car.
Powered by a Thema-engine designed by Peugeot, Renault and Volvo - the ultimate in badge-engineering?
In 1996 Alfa Corse had new induction systems designed that simply wouldn’t fit the narrow 60° V of the 2.5 V6 Busso they’d been using since 1993. A 90° replacement was needed and although the aged Montreal V8 ticked the right trigonometry boxes (paring back the V8 into a V6 was no issue for the Abarth alumni) the cylinders sat too close to be rebored as far as Sergio Limone required.
So, with some typically creative rule interpretations, they filled the homologation papers in with the PRV’s details. Technically, no roadgoing Alfa was ever built using this engine so, to the letter of the law, it shouldn’t ever have been allowed. But as the Thema was, by then, technically an “Alfa-Romeo-Lancia” product, they managed to sneak it in without anyone really noticing.
It was with the PRV under the hood that the 155 Ti developed the most power of its entire run (officially 490bhp, but drivers at the time stated it felt well north of 500bhp behind the wheel) and it started to regain its winning ways after a couple of seasons off the pace. Fiat bosses felt uncomfortable that a French-Swedish engine was winning their laurels, though, so the Montreal story was widely circulated. They even built dummy Montreal-based engines to display at trade shows to keep nosy journalists off the scent!
THEMA Test drive checklist
If you’ve managed to find a Thema for sale in the UK, you’ve already overcome the biggest hurdle. These are an incredibly rare car; just 39 in total were taxed and on the roads at the point of writing this blog. You really can’t afford to be too picky with your requirements when buying a Thema.
Oddly enough, the 8.32 is probably the easiest Thema to find, particularly if you’re willing to spread the net and browse European classifieds. Never built in RHD form, if you’re willing to deal with the paperwork of importing one, it’s probably going to be the easiest route.
Many Themas already in the UK will most likely fall somewhere on the restoration project spectrum. Because most of the engines were used widely in other Fiats, Alfas and Lancias, general service and maintenance items are still readily available. However, be aware that trim and interior parts for these cars are very difficult to source. The Lancia Thema & Dedra Consortium over on Facebook will prove invaluable to any Thema owner.
Fiat Croma
So, if Saab provided the sturdy workhorse able to outlast a nuclear winter and Lancia had the cosa-nostra market sewn up, what niche was left for Fiat? As per usual, Fiat attempted to zone in on the no-frills, cost-conscious family car buyer with their Croma.
Replacing the Argenta as their large family car, it was their first in the segment to boast a front-wheel-drive transverse layout. However, with the Renault Espace introducing the MPV concept to the world a full year before the Croma’s launch, it languished in a traditional family-sized-car’s no-mans-land.
Cheap, cheerful and cool? Two out of three will do
The Croma’s cost-cutting minimalism stretched to every aspect of its build. The interior plastics have none of the Thema’s pretensions for luxury - they creak and squeak and reek of Dash Dandy. Outside, very few trinkets complicate Giugaro’s 3-box design. This economic approach is most telling in its curb weight; tipping the scales 65kg lighter than the Thema and a huge 215kg leaner than the 9000.
Even we here at italicar, as vocal proponents for humble Fiats, can’t claim that the Croma is the definitive example of Colin Chapman’s famous “simplify, and then add lightness” ethos with a straight face, but there is an element of truth to it. Even the entry level models have a more direct drive on offer than even its top-of-the-range Type Four stablemates. The steering is more immediate, the brakes more responsive and those sumptuous Lampredi twin-cam engines breathe freer from within its lighter frame.
Performance was never high up on Fiat’s intentions for the Croma. The 2.0 Turbo i.e. was the oddity rather than the main draw, but if you can find a survivor today it can still offer some entertainment for an enthusiastic driver. The turbo-charged 2.0 8v DOHC produced 153bhp, which was enough to propel the featherweight Croma to 60mph in a touch over 8 seconds. It was also a remarkably smooth power surge, with none of the binary turbo-lag of its contemporaries.
The more bread-and-butter versions available in the UK also share the same legendary Lampredi twin-cam under the bonnet, just in slightly calmer form. Probably the best seller was the CHT, or “Controlled High Turbulence”. A 2.0 8v with a modified head and ducts in the intake system which delivered more or less air depending on the load for increased fuel efficiency - an impressively forward thinking development. Sadly, we never got to see the 2.5 V6 in RHD form so we’ll never know what a Busso-powered Croma feels like. I don’t think many UK buyers, however, missed the 1.6 SOHC or the entire diesel range which also failed to make it across the Channel. Interesting pub quiz fact, though; the Croma was the very first passenger car in the world to be fitted with a direct injection diesel engine.
A Croma By Any Other Name
Always overshadowed by its Type Four brethren, the Croma was never a sales success in the UK, even two facelifts (in 1988 and a more substantial reworking in 1991) failed to pique buyers’ interest. Bruised by the experience, perhaps, Fiat actually offered no direct replacement for the Croma when production finally fizzled out in 1996. The Marea could have been seen as an attempt to fill the gap but it was technically a “small family car”, based on the Bravo/Brava platform. It wasn’t actually until 2005 that they were brave enough to try again with a large family car, and with a flash of searing imagination they named it…the Croma.
Not wishing to enter these treacherous waters alone, it was decided to use GM’s extended-Epsilon platform, sharing it with the Vauxhall Signum, Vectra Estate and Chevrolet Malibu. Not wanting to corner themselves into a redundant corner of the market all over again, the Nuova Croma was a pick’n’mix of elements from both estates and MPV’s. The marketing department coining this new idea the “Comfort Wagon”.
Gluttons for punishment, Fiat’s Croma resurrection
If you think they were already tempting fate a little too much, they even went so far as to recruit Giugiaro for the sketches once more. While you may question the end-result’s aesthetic qualities, it’s clear from his original “8ottoV” concept that Italdesign’s head honcho started out with some big ideas for this big-Fiat. In his own words, the Nuova Croma’s class leading interior space “was crying out to be exalted”. Penned in homage to Fiat’s famously exuberant boss, Gianni Agnelli, Giugiaro stated that had L'Avvocato not passed away in 2003, the 8ottoV was the Croma that his Fiat would have built. Four huge, first-class style seats, upholstered in Poltrona Frau’s finest pastel hides, surround Emirates-level fridges and the bespoke luggage set neatly tucked in the back is separated from the cabin by a noise-absorbing glass screen.
Agnelli admired Giugiaro’s Maserati Buran concept, so the 8ottoV concept mirrored its opulent aesthetic
Sadly the luxurious 8ottoV will now only ever be another “what-if”; the final Croma brought to market in 2005 suffered endless compromises from its glamorous origins. UK sales were even worse than the original Croma - in its first 12 months on sale, just 900 were delivered. Battling for the title of the shortest-lived availability for any car sold in this country, in February 2007 the Nuova Croma suddenly disappeared from our roads.
Elsewhere, things fared little better. A facelift was issued in November 2007 aligning it with the Nuova Bravo but the production line ceased completely in 2010. This was a real shame, in our opinion; a massively undeserved flop. The spacious, comfortable albeit bland looking Croma we ended up with may have lost the champagne flutes from its inception, but the refinement and quality survived. Find one now for bargain-basement money (particularly the lunatic 2.4 20V Multijet with its 200bhp and 295-lb-ft of torque) and you’ll enjoy a unique offering in a dull family car market.
Croma Test Drive Checklist
Much like the Thema, the biggest difficulty in purchasing a Croma in the UK is going to be finding one. Never a big seller and now even rarer than the Thema; there are fewer than 20 first-generation Cromas registered as taxed on the DVLA’s database.
The Croma has a very limited following, so prices will always remain lower than any other Type Four variant. Even for an absolutely immaculate Turbo i.e., you shouldn’t expect to pay more than £5,000.
Electrical gremlins were always the main issue, with warning lights flickering like a Jean-Michel Jarre concert even on brand new vehicles in the showroom.
Rust wasn’t actually one of the Croma’s afflictions - proven by the fact that so many sat at ports waiting to be bought for months on end but rarely corroded!
Alfa Romeo 164
Last to the Type Four party, but by no means least, came Alfa Romeo’s 164 in 1987. Its genesis started in 1981, when the successor to the Alfa 90 and Alfa 6 first began to take shape. These nascent plans started out with a typically Alfa Romeo rear-wheel-drive layout, to be developed entirely in-house.
The Alfa-Male Joins The Pack
As soon as the accountants glanced over the proposals for a new flagship saloon to sail the biscione at its prow, it became clear that the company’s mounting debts simply wouldn’t allow it. In 1982, with their tails firmly between their legs, Alfa bosses Ettore Massacesi and Corrado Innocenti reluctantly signed up to the Type Four collective.
Confusingly, the 164 started out life as “Progetto 156”, a continuation of the RWD 90 and Alfa 6 lineage
However, with the nightmare of the Arna project still fresh in their minds, Alfa were singularly unwilling to toe the party line. The 164’s elegant silhouette came courtesy of not Giugiaro but Pininfarina (who were obviously rather fond of it, producing an almost wholesale facsimile for their later Peugeot 605 design) and to hardwire the famed “Alfa-ness” into its handling, the suspension was designed specifically alongside some unique chassis adaptations.
A lot was riding on this car, with Alfa’s continued existence looking doubtful at best, so it underwent an unusually intensive testing schedule. From 1984 to 1987, development mules were dispatched to the Balocco test track for handling improvements, the Moroccan desert for superhuman ride quality research and each engine was literally run to destruction on the benches of Arese.
A time before test mules had to be camouflaged
But as the snagging list was finally coming to an end, events in the boardroom overtook those in the workshops. Finmeccanica, the government-funded mechanical engineering arm of IRI (Institute for Industrial Reconstruction), had held Alfa’s strained purse strings since 1948 but were seeking to cut its losses and sell up. Although Ford voiced a very keen interest, the deeds were hastily handed over to Agnelli, a shady looking deal that was later subject to an official enquiry. And so, an unholy-trinity of Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Lancia was forged; once staunch rivals with no party particularly happy to suddenly be sleeping with the enemy.
Every attempt was made to keep the 164 distinctive - like the heavy swage lines chiselled into the doors
The launch of the 164 was postponed until the spring of 1987 when Fiat bosses cheekily suggested that “serious build quality” issues needed rectifying. Rumours abounded that, having seen the proto-164 in the metal, they were actually worried about Thema sales being lost to the prestigious newcomer and set about intentionally “cheapening” the interior finishes. Eventually, in 1988, the first Alfa Romeo 164 was sold (although UK Alfisti would have to wait still another year). Bridging a huge sea-change in the marque’s dynasties, the 164 represents both the last model developed by a truly independent Alfa Romeo and the very first model to be sold under the new Fiat umbrella, and all of this on a platform it was never really intended to be dropped onto. Sounds like the makings of a confused hybrid with no character of its own, doesn’t it?
For many, the 164 is the most accomplished of the entire Type Four progeny. Launched in the UK with a choice of either the 2.0 8v TwinSpark or a 3.0 12v version of the Busso; two of Alfa’s greatest achievements in engineering. To ensure the V6 engine slotted neatly into the Type Four’s dimensions, its intake manifolds needed a redesign. Practical necessity gave birth to those iconic chromed tubes, a piece of glorious design that would captivate engine-bay-ogglers for the next two decades.
Conventional wisdom would obviously point to the silky smooth V6 engine as the premier choice, but the facts make it much more of a two-horse race. Without the budget to develop a true 16v, Alfa’s engineers cast their memory back to the 105-series GTA’s successes with an 8v-head but two sparkplugs per cylinder. The T.Spark (as it was badged) was essentially the decades old DOHC “Nord” lump with a new head bolted on alongside a trick Motronic injection system. It also boasted the revolutionary VIVTS (Variable Inlet Valve Timing System) introduced on the Alftetta long before Honda’s meme-spawning VTEC was born. The same unit also powered the 4-cylinder 75 and, today, is still being used in the GTA-R.
In terms of sheer grunt, the T.Spark gives away 45bhp and 55lb-ft of torque over the standard V6, but this is equalled out in numerous other ways. The much heavier bulk over the V6’s front-end means it is far more likely to suffer from torque steer and lose grip when pushed hard. Those arduous tests in the cars early life also revealed that the T. Spark had the superior braking of the two models and was 10% more durable than Busso’s effort. All this isn’t to say that we don’t absolutely love the 164 V6 (this 1991 3.0 Lusso is one of our favourite cars of all time), more that we also love the T.Spark just as much!
The range was mildly facelifted in 1990, bringing in tweaks to iron out the torque steer issues and some minor cosmetic changes to the rear lights and switchwork. A new top-of-the-range model was added, the 3.0 QV (Quadrifoglio Verde), with power pumped up to 197bhp and electronically adjustable suspension. Outside, a bodykit with sideskirts, front and rear spoiler gave it a more purposeful poise and the interior benefitted from some new sports seats. Then, in 1993, the range was entirely revised and renamed the 164 Super. New headlights, new bumpers, a new centre console layout and the evolution of the 3.0 V6 engine with 24-valves and 230bhp (in full-fat QV form) were all included in the refresh.
Again, as with most of the Type Four cars, the home market had a few unique options available to them. While I doubt the 2.5 diesel from V.M Motori did much to enhance the 164’s charms, the other LHD only versions have slightly more appeal. For fans of forced induction, left-hooker 164’s could be had with either the 2.0 Turbo 8v Lampredi from the Thema or the 2.0 V6 Turbo with its blown Busso offering one of the more unique experiences in the range.
Which model could possibly beat it for novelty value? The rarest of 164 iterations; the LHD-only 3.0 24v V6 Q4. Exact production numbers are hard to get hold of, but it’s widely accepted that just 1200 Q4’s were ever sold. With 230bhp mated to a 4-wheel-drive system, 6-speed gearbox and all that torque being cleverly distributed thanks to the Motronic engine management. Home to some of the nicest wheels ever designed, this is the ultimate in 164-collectibles.
164 Q4 - the definitive Q-Car?
Alfa Romeo 164 Test Drive Check List
Early cars (pre-1990) are more prone to rust, so check under the plastic lining of the wheel arches, bottom of the A-pillars (the windscreen drains often get blocked, leading to more serious issues), underneath the sideskirts and (if fitted) around the sunroof seals.
Although the T.Spark engines are all chain driven, each V6 variant will need a new belt every 32k-miles or 3 years. Almost all of the 164 V6’s will have the hydraulic tensioner - check for leaks from this, as this can be terminal, spraying copious amounts of lubrication onto the cambelt.
The adaptive suspension on the QV and Q4 models (some standard Super models also included this as an option) is problematic with many electrical gremlins and extortionately expensive to put right.
The interior electrics are typically problematic, but in particular the climate control system is a weak-point. Start it up and ensure that you can change the direction of the blowers and the temperature - replacing blown motors is a nightmare of a job that usually requires the entire dash to be removed.
Summary
So, the obvious question is, which of the Type Fours is best? The problem with answering that, however, comes in defining the context. What do you want from a car? Although they all share an identical ancestry, each of the cars is so vastly different, performing distinct functions it’s impossible to choose a definitive “champion”. A 164 12v V6 is probably the one we’d take if we were careering around the Nordschleife, the Thema would be the ideal long-distance mile muncher, a Croma Turbo i.e could form an inexpensive B-road hooning mobile and a 9000 is going to see you through endless harsh winters without ever letting you down.
We’d gladly take a Pepsi-challenge test on identifying each version, even on the shortest of blindfolded test drives. In a world where the term badge-engineered is shorthand for a half-arsed hodge-podge of ideas, the Type Four collective proves that, just sometimes, pooling resources and working together can bring out the best of each participant.