Driven: Lancia Delta Multijet Oro (2010)   Hello, petrolheads! I’m back to an Italian playgroung again, this time with the Lancia Delta, perhaps one of the most controversial family hatchbacks on sale today. The current Delta is, for many, an unknown car, almost like the Lancia brand itself these days. A few may still recall the phenomenal Delta Integrale from the eighties, but from there on, Lancia almost vanished in time. Being integrated in the Fiat Group, a long time ago it was decided that Lancia should be more focused on comfort and luxury, while Alfa Romeo would keep its focus on sportiness. The second generation, launched in 1993, was the first real product of this strategy, but here is the thing: for a car to be “Premium”, it cannot be flawed in key areas, such as design, reliability, comfort or performance. An Audi A3, essentially an overpriced Volkswagen Golf, works because the Golf has good underpinnings. Being based on the Fiat Tipo, a mediocre design even when n...

Hello car enthusiasts! Today I will... discuss, let’s say, Convertible stuff. More specifically, I will try to make a couple of considerations regarding roof arrangements, as there are two dominant approaches these days: the trendy, practical folding steel roof and the classic fabric top. Which is best? The classic convertibles and roadsters are visually recognized mainly because of the predominant black fabric roofs. It’s the cheapest, lightest, less complicated solution to cover the heads of open-air driving lovers. As time passed by, their remarkable evolution went from a simple layer of fabric and a couple of steel tubes (pretty much like my Smart Roadster’s…), later with a plastic screen at the back for improved rear visibility and a gutter over the doors. Electric motors were introduced for added comfort, back in the Sixties (remember the movie ‘Bandits’, from 2001?), after multi-layer fabric tops making their appearances, perhaps the biggest and more relevant evolution in their ...