If there's one European brand that has been in an identity crisis for many years, that is Lancia – and the Fiat Group's decision to drop a few Chrysler models including the 300 sedan and the Town & Country minivan into the Italian firm's range only made things worse.

One time the proud maker of sporty models with a pinch of luxury like the gorgeous Lancia Fulvia Coupe with its innovative narrow-angle V4 engine and let's not forget, also the holder of 10 world rally championships, Lancia is now struggling to find its place in today's automotive world.

Platform sharing is nothing new in the automotive world. Everyone does it as it enables companies to reduce development costs across the board. For example, if it weren’t for the VW Touareg, Porsche probably wouldn’t have the means to develop the model that effectively made it a cash cow: the Cayenne.

And truth to be said, most of the times, your average buyer doesn't know what's hiding under the sheetmetal nor if the vehicle in question is identical in many ways to a model bearing a different badge, because what he or she sees and feels are indeed different.

The trouble starts when carmakers engage in blatant badge engineering, simply placing a different grille and a new logo on the steering wheel and calling it something else.

And that's where the problem lies for Fiat and Chrysler. The automotive alliance recently revealed a trio of Lancia models in Europe: the Thema sedan, Flavia Cabrio and the Voyager MPV, which are nothing more than rebadged versions of the Chrysler 300, 200 Convertible and Town & Country respectively.

The Ford Ranger's five-star rating in the Euro NCAP crash test was a surprise in the sense that it was the first time a pickup truck ever achieved such a high score not only for passenger but also for pedestrian protection as well.

The independent European safety organization also released the results for 11 more new models that were tested along with the Ranger. With the emphasis given these days on safety, the five-star rating awarded in all but one of the models was to be expected.

On Wednesday, Lancia made its new Thema sedan available in the European market.

The Italian firm's first full-size saloon model after the ill-fated Thesis was discontinued in 2009, is one of two models to emerge from the alliance between Lancia and Chrysler, the other one being the Town & Country-based Voyager MPV.

The Thema is in essence a Chrysler 300 wearing Lancia badges and as such, it was an easy and cheap solution for the Fiat Group to expand Lancia's range upwards without sinking valuable resources into the brand that was once famous for its achievements in the World Rally scene.

If anything else, and with a few exceptions such as the Ypsilon supermini, the aging Musa and the Delta compact hatchback, Lancia's range is beginning to look eerily similar to that of the Chrysler brand.

At this week's 64th International Auto Show in Frankfurt, the Italian company displayed its entire lineup including the Thema sedan, Flavia Cabrio and the Voyager MPV, which are rebadged versions of the Chrysler 300, 200 Convertible and Town & Country respectively.

The Fiat Group may have forced Lancia to give up on the art of…making cars, but the Italian company is trying to compensate by mastering the art of…promotion.

The Italian firm's new flagship model, the Chrysler 300-sourced Thema, is making a special appearance at the 68th Venice International Film Festival, of which Lancia is the main sponsor for the seventh year running.

After its international public debut at the Geneva Salon last spring, the new Lanica Thema will be making one more appearance at the 64th International Motor Show in Frankfurt next month before it goes on sale across Europe in October.

Lancia's contribution to the transformation of the Chrysler 300 to the Thema is restricted to the Italian brand's badges, plus the higher quality materials and different trim options for the interior.