New Lancia Gamma revealed: icon returns as a rebadged Peugeot 3008
Lancia has revived the name from its unconventional executive coupe, and there’s going to be a hot HF variant, too
The Lancia Gamma is back, although not as fans of the quirky Italian marque will remember. Rather than an elegant two-door coupe, the brand’s flagship model has been reborn as a high-riding coupe-SUV that looks like it could be a rebadged version of the Peugeot 3008.
The original Gamma was unveiled in 1976 and offered either as a two-door coupe or an outlandish four-door fastback saloon, also called the ‘Berlina’ which means ‘sedan’ in Italian. Both versions were designed by Pininfarina.
The new model, on the other hand, has adopted the very trendy form of a coupe-SUV, much like the Ford Capri did during its recent rebirth. However, that’s because the Lancia appears to be based on the Peugeot 3008, which has the same rakish profile. The two are almost exactly the same size as well, with the Lancia measuring 4.67 metres long, 1.89 metres wide and 1.66 metres tall.
The new Gamma has a smooth, rounded front with a three-strake daytime running light that Lancia calls ‘the calice’ and we first saw on the brand’s latest Ypsilon supermini. The main headlight units are embedded lower down in the bumper, while the ‘mouth’ incorporates what appears to be a set of active aero shutters that should help improve efficiency.
Along the sides, there’s more body surfacing than on the 3008, which features more angular bodywork. The front door handles are flush, while the rear ones are concealed within the triangular C-pillar. That may be a nod to the Gamma Berlina from the seventies, but the Peugeot has a very similar design.
Meanwhile at the rear, there’s a similar slender light arrangement to the one up front, a steeply raked windscreen, twin-fin spoiler and large Lancia lettering across the tailgate.
Inside, the new Gamma is more eccentric than its Peugeot, Vauxhall, Citroen and DS cousins, with its most distinctive features being the tiny, leather-lined ‘coffee table’ in the dashboard, which is also the wireless charging pad for the driver’s smartphone. There are two large screens, as you’d expect, what appear to be touch-sensitive buttons on the steering wheel rather than physical ones, and a two-tone white-and-blue colour scheme.
Lancia Gamma platform, range and performance
Underneath, the new Lancia Gamma is be based on the same STLA M ‘multi-energy’ platform as the Peugeot 3008, Citroen C5 Aircross, Vauxhall Grandland and DS No8 – all of which are available to order or to lease through the Auto Express Buy A Car Service.
The Italian company has confirmed it will be available with a choice of hybrid and pure-electric powertrains like its siblings, with the base model offering 143bhp from its turbocharged 1.2-litre petrol engine and hybrid system. Meanwhile, the EV versions will offer up to around 460 miles of range, plus there will be a 370bhp all-wheel-drive version that should be good for 0-62mph in about six seconds.
We’ve also been told there’s going to be a hot version called the Gamma HF Integrale – in a nod to the legendary Delta HF Integrale rally star from the eighties and nineties. However, no further details about this top-of-the-line version have been announced yet.
The new Lancia Gamma will be built in Italy, at parent company Stellantis’ factory in Melfi, alongside the new Delta that is coming in 2028 and will see another iconic name from the brand’s past revived. Sadly, there are still no signs of Lancia returning to the UK market, so we’ll have to admire its new creations from afar.
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