This rather plain, but nonetheless charming sedan is a 1953 Lancia Appia Series II which I photographed at the 2006 Concorso Italiano. Any Lancia is interesting because, from its very beginnings in 1908, the Italian manufacturer featured advanced engineering concepts, including the first series production car with a V-6 engine, the Aurelia, and the first mass-produced automobile with a 5-speed manual transmission, the Ardea. In 1953 the Ardea was replaced by the Appia, which featured a twin-cam V-4 engine of 1098 c.c's. The Appia was Lancia's bread-and-butter model, helping support the company's involvement in motorsport, which produced class wins in the Targa Florio, the Carrera Panamericana, the Liege-Rome-Liege and the Mille Miglia. Our photo car benefited from performance modifications by the great Carlo Abarth, and must surely be fun to drive.