The Lancia Lybra is a compact executive car

Compact executive car

Compact executive car is a car classification term applied to premium cars smaller than executive cars. In European classification, compact executive cars are part of the D-segment. In North American terms, close equivalents are compact premium car, compact luxury car, entry-level luxury car and...

 produced by Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 Fiat Auto's

Fiat

FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...

 upscale marque Lancia

Lancia

Lancia Automobiles S.p.A. is an Italian automobile manufacturer founded in 1906 by Vincenzo Lancia and which became part of the Fiat Group in 1969. The company has a long history of producing distinctive cars and also has a strong rally heritage. Some modern Lancias are seen as presenting a more...

 between 1999 and 2006. Based on heavily modified Alfa Romeo 156

Alfa Romeo 156

The Alfa Romeo 156 is a compact executive car introduced by Italian automaker Alfa Romeo at the 1997 Frankfurt Motor Show as the replacement for the Alfa Romeo 155...

 floorpan, it replaced the Dedra

Lancia Dedra

The Lancia Dedra is a compact executive car produced by the Italian automaker Lancia from 1989 to 2000. It was initially designed to support, and later to replace, the Prisma that, six years after its launch, was having difficulties to keep in pace with its latest opponents...

 within Lancia's lineup, and was similarly low-profile to its predecessor, rather than as popular as its Alfa sibling. Just like the Dedra, the Lybra is available as both a saloon and estate

Station wagon

A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...

 (billed SW by Lancia)

Name

The model's name can be seen as a reference to the zodiac

Zodiac

In astronomy, the zodiac is a circle of twelve 30° divisions of celestial longitude which are centred upon the ecliptic: the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year...

 sign of Libra

Libra (astrology)

Libra is the seventh astrological sign in the Zodiac, originating from the constellation of Libra. In astrology, Libra is considered a "masculine", positive sign. It is also considered an air sign and is one of four cardinal signs...

 that was derived from the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 word for balancing scale. It signals an end of the previous Lancia naming theme involving the use of Greek letters as model names. The Lybra was built in the Rivalta plant near Turin

Turin

Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

 until 2002 and after that in Mirafiori plant in Turin.

Styling

The Lybra was styled in Centro Stile Lancia, contrary to earlier Lancia models, which were commissioned from external design studios. Its styling is a clear departure from "rectangular" shapes prevalent in 1980s and 1990s Lancias, using heritage-inspired round headlights and other styling touches inspired by Lancias of the 1950s, like the Aurelia

Lancia Aurelia

The Lancia Aurelia is a car that was produced by the Italian manufacturer Lancia. Designed by Vittorio Jano, the Aurelia was launched in 1950 and production lasted until the summer of 1958....

 and Appia

Lancia Appia

The Lancia Appia was a car introduced in 1953 as a replacement for the Ardea and in production for 10 years. The Appia was the last in a long line of Lancia production cars dating back to the Lancia Lambda to use the famous sliding pillar front suspension...

.

On the other hand, it wasn't as edgy as the Lancia Thesis

Lancia Thesis

The Lancia Thesis is an executive car produced by Italian automaker Lancia between 2002 and 2009. It was available with naturally aspirated and turbocharged engines ranging between 2.0 and 3.2 litres, in both straight-5 or V6 configurations. Its appearance was based on the 1999 Lancia Dialogos...

 and later models, and still carried many references to 1990s Lancias, such as the shape of the grille, or the treatment of the upper body section of the wagon (reminiscent of that of the Lancia Kappa SW

Lancia Kappa

The Lancia Kappa is an executive car produced by Italian automaker Lancia. It replaced the Thema as Lancia's flagship model in 1994 and was itself replaced by Lancia Thesis in 2001. It shared its platform with the Alfa Romeo 166 and was available as a saloon, estate or coupé...

). Interestingly, the Lybra's very distinctive taillights were borrowed for the 2001's facelift

Facelift (product)

A facelift is the revival of a product through cosmetic means, for example by changing its appearance while leaving its underlying engineering or design intact....

 given to the Fiat Marea

Fiat Marea

The Fiat Marea is a small family car available as a saloon and an estate , produced by the Italian automaker Fiat. Launched in 1996, the Marea models were essentially different body styles of Fiat's hatchback offerings, the Bravo and Brava. The Marea replaced the earlier Tipo-based Fiat Tempra...

 sedan for the Latin American markets.

Engines

Lancia Lybra is a front-wheel drive

Front-wheel drive

Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...

 car with transversely-mounted

Transverse engine

A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the long axis of the vehicle. Many modern front wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration...

 engines. The Lybra is available with a 5-speed manual

Manual transmission

A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications...

, and the 2.0 L had an option of a 4-speed automatic transmission

Automatic transmission

An automatic transmission is one type of motor vehicle transmission that can automatically change gear ratios as the vehicle moves, freeing the driver from having to shift gears manually...

, called the Comfortronic by Lancia.

Model	Displacement	Power	Torque	Year
1.6 L 16v DOHC	1596 cc	103 PS @ 5750 rpm	145 newton metres (106.9 ft·lbf) @ 4000 rpm	from 2000
1.8 L 16v DOHC	1747 cc	130 PS @ 6300 rpm	156 newton metres (115.1 ft·lbf) @ 3800 rpm	from 2000
2.0 L 20v DOHC	1998 cc	150 PS @ 6500 rpm	181 newton metres (133.5 ft·lbf) @ 3750 rpm	from 2000
1.9 L 8v SOHC JTD	1910 cc	105 PS @ 4000 rpm	255 newton metres (188.1 ft·lbf) @ 2000 rpm	from 2000
1.9 L 8v SOHC JTD	1910 cc	110 PS @ 5500 rpm	191 newton metres (140.9 ft·lbf) @ 5750 rpm	from 2001
1.9 L 8v SOHC JTD	1910 cc	115 PS @ 4000 rpm	275 newton metres (202.8 ft·lbf) @ 2000 rpm	from 2002
2.4 L 10v SOHC JTD	2387 cc	136 PS @ 4000 rpm	304 newton metres (224.2 ft·lbf) @ 2000 rpm	from 2000
2.4 L 10v SOHC JTD	2387 cc	140 PS @ 4000 rpm	304 newton metres (224.2 ft·lbf) @ 2000 rpm	from 2000
2.4 L 10v SOHC JTD	2387 cc	150 PS @ 4000 rpm	308 newton metres (227.2 ft·lbf) @ 1800 rpm	from 2002
2.4 L 20v DOHC	2446 cc	170 PS @ 6000 rpm	226 newton metres (166.7 ft·lbf) @ 3500 rpm	only Lybra Protecta