The Heroes Of Racing No.6---The Lancia Stratos----One Of History's Most Beautiful, And Successful Rally Cars. And It's A Lancia. Do I Need Another Reason?

Firstly, yes, I’m sorry I’ve left you hanging with nothing to read since that Evora post, yes, I’ll try to make it up to you guys, but come on, let me have some rest too. This isn’t terribly easy, after all. I’m human like you, and I need my off-days too….

So, I’ve finally started writing the ‘Heroes Of Racing’ Series again, and well, we’re covering the Lancia Stratos. You probably already know the Stratos, with three Championship wins to its name, and numerous other victories to go along with those Championships, looks to die for, and an engine note good enough to make everyone weak at the knees.

Anyway, on with the car.

Some background information: Back in the ‘60’s, Fiat was a Huge Italian Conglomerate(Thought they only made cars? Nope. Buses, Industrial Equipment, owning Toll highways(No, seriously), an International Construction company(Holy crap, they’re rich!), and a paint manufacturer, among others) flush with cash.
And after an organizational restructuring and Autobianchi’s acquisition, they were outselling Volkswagen. Their growth was so explosive that in 1968 Newsweek magazine called them the “most dynamic automaker in Europe.”

So, they did what anyone does when they’re flush with cash, which is go on a spending spree, ending up buying more prestigious brands like Ferrari, and Lancia.

And then there was Bertone. Now, Bertone had no previous business with Lancia, as they were traditionally linked with Pininfarina, but, Nuccio Bertone wanted to come into conversation with them, knowing that Lancia was looking for a replacement to their aging Fulvia Coupe, so, what do you think he did to convince them? Say ‘Hi….(Insert Corporate Speak Here)’? No. What he actually did was use the running gear of his friend’s Fulvia Coupe(Which, upon further investigation, was apparently about to be scrapped?), and then tasked Marcello Gandini with designing a running show-piece around it to show them. He called it the ‘Stratos Zero’*. Great idea, no? Downside? One less Fulvia as a Fulvia, and a probably broken friendship. When Nuccio Bertone himself appeared at the Lancia factory gates and passed under the barrier, all the workers were applauding. After that, a deal was done, and Lancia and Bertone began developing a rally car based on the ideas of Gandini, who’d later go on to design the Lamborghini Miura and Countach, both the complete opposite of each other in terms of looks and design.

*Writer’s Note: Apparently, the car would later be part of the 1988 Michael Jackson film, ‘Moonwalker’. I-I, just…Why?

Lancia presented the Bertone-designed Lancia Stratos HF prototype at the 1971 Turin Motor Show, a year after the announcement of the Stratos Zero concept car. The prototype Stratos HF (Chassis 1240) was fluorescent red in colour and featured a distinctive crescent-shaped-wrap-around windshield providing maximum forward visibility with, well, the kind of rear visibility I’d expect if someone gave you a blindfold with a strip cut out down the middle: You can sort of see out, but nowhere near enough for practicality’s sake. The prototype had three different engines in its early development life: the Lancia Fulvia engine, then the Lancia Beta engine and finally for the 1971 public announcement, the mid-mounted Dino Ferrari V6 producing 190 hp.

The use of the Dino V6 was planned right from the beginning of the project, but Enzo Ferrari was reluctant to sign off the use of this engine in a car he saw as a competitor to his own Dino 246, which used the same engine, having Fiat delaying the supply of the engines. After the production of the Dino had ended he agreed on delivering the engines for the Stratos, and Lancia then suddenly received 500 units. Imagine what the workers must have felt like as a number of Red Trucks with a distinctive logo on the sides(At least, that’s what I’d assume it’d be like), loaded up with 500 engines, suddenly strolled through the gates, unscheduled.

The final car was developed alongside Sandro Munari(Then-Lancia’s Main Rally Driver), Cesare Florio(Team Manager) and Mikes Parkes (Racer and engineer), the cockpit was basically designed around Sandro, whom it fit pretty much like a tailored suit. So, if you’re any height over 5”8, or if you’re—Ahem—‘Generously Proportioned’—-Climbing into it will probably be like climbing into a Bowling Ball, i.e: Near-Impossible to do without shaming yourself.

The car eventually stood 1110 mm tall, 1750 mm wide, 3710 mm long, and had a wheelbase of 2180 mm.

Lancia did extensive testing with the Stratos and raced the car in several racing events where Group 5 prototypes were allowed during the 1972 and 1973 seasons. Production of the 500 cars required for homologation in Group 4 commenced in 1973 and the Stratos was homologated for the 1974 World Rally Championship season. The Ferrari Dino V6 engine was phased out in 1974, but 500 engines among the last built were delivered to Lancia. Production ended in 1975 when it was thought that only 492 were made (for the 1976 season, the Group 4 production requirement was reduced to 400 in 24 months). Manufacturing of the car was by Bertone in Turin, with final assembly by Lancia at the Chivasso plant.Powered by the Dino 2.4 L V6 engine that was also fitted to the rallying versions, but in a lower state of tune, it resulted in a power output of 190 hp(Rally cars had around 280 bhp), giving the road car a 0–60 time of 6.8 seconds, and a top speed of 144 mph. The car was sold as the Lancia Stratos HF Stradale.

The Stratos, depending on configuration, would weigh between 900 to 950 kilos. Power output for the engine in Rallying trim was around 275-280 bhp in the 12-Valve version, and around 320 bhp in the 24-valve variant. That said, in ‘78, 24-Valve heads were banned from competition due to a change in FIA rules. But even with this Perceived deficit in power, the Stratos was still the car to beat…..If it hadn’t broken down because of Premature Transmission Failure(Of which there were many), or if it hadn’t suffered an Accident. And also, despite the fact that the Stratos was intended as a Rallying Supercar and not so much a Circuit Racer, two Group 5 Racers were made with 560 bhp, thanks to a KKK Turbo.

The car won the ‘74, ‘75, and ‘76 Championship Titles in the hands of Sandro Munari and Björn Waldegård, and might have gone on to win more if internal politics within the Fiat Group placed rallying responsibility on the Fiat 131 Abarths. As well as victories on the 1975, 1976 and 1977 Monte Carlo Rally, all courtesy of Munari, the Stratos won the event with the privateer Chardonnet Team as late as 1979.

But even Without support from Fiat, and despite new regulations that restricted engine power, the car would remain a serious competitor and proved able to beat works cars on several occasions when entered by an experienced private team with a talented driver. The last victory of the Stratos was in 1981, at the Tour de Corse Automobile, another World Rally Championship event, with a victory by longtime Stratos privateer Bernard Darniche.

Now, remember the two Group 5 ‘Silhouette’ cars Lancia built for closed circuit endurance racing? Well, These cars failed against the Porsche 935s on closed tracks but proved successful in hybrid events. While they failed in the Tour de France Automobile, one of these cars won the 1976 Giro d’Italia Automobilistico, an Italian counterpart of the Tour de France Automobile. One of the cars was destroyed in Zeltweg, when it caught fire due to overheating problems. The last surviving car would win the Giro d’Italia event again before it was shipped to Japan to compete in the Fuji Speedway-based Formula Silhouette series, which was never raced. The car would then be sold and reside in the Matsuda Collection before then being sold to the renowned collector of Stratos’, Christian Hrabalek, a car designer and the founder of Fenomenon Ltd, who has the largest Lancia Stratos Collection in the world, 11 authentic Stratos’, including the fluorescent red 1971 factory prototype and the 1977 Safari Rally car. His interest in the car led to the development of the Fenomenon Stratos in 2005. The Stratos also gained limited success in 24 Hours of Le Mans, with a car, driven by Christine Dacremont and Lella Lombardi, finishing 20th in 1976.

Another unique Group 5 car is the Lancia Stratos HF of Austrian Rallycross driver Andy Bentza. The car was first driven by his Memphis team mate Franz Wurz, father of Formula One pilot Alexander Wurz. In 1976 Wurz claimed the first ever European Rallycross title recognised by the FIA with the car, by then still featuring the 2.4-litre engine with first a 12 and later a 24-valve head. For the ERC series of 1977 Wurz was entrusted with an experimental 24 valve engine by Mike Parkes, equipped with a ‘Special‘ crankshaft to bring the engine capacity up to just under 3000 cc. For 1978 Bentza took the Stratos over from Wurz, sold his own 2.4 L 12V Stratos to compatriot Reneé Vontsina, and won the GT Division title of the ERC. The one and only 3.0 litre Stratos worldwide was raced by Bentza till the end of 1983. After keeping the car for another 30 years Bentza has sold the Stratos to Alexander Wurz. It was fully restored over a period of almost two years and revealed to the public in May 2016, converted back to its 1976 rallycross specification with Memphis livery.

As you know, the Stratos would go on to inspire numerous concept cars and kit cars, from ListerBell Automotive’s STR, Napiersport AKA SuperStratos’ Corse, and HawkCars’s HF2000/3000 series, all of which can be gotten with a variety of engines. The HawkCars HF3000 appeared on TG once…And I quite remember it breaking. A few times. The especially memorable one being during the Stig’s first try at driving it around the Test Track. After they mended it, it spun out. Twice. And claimed the record of The Slowest Lap Around The Track, previously held by the DB5, with a 1.48.2 for the HF3000, and the DB5 with a 1.46.2. Even with Stig at the helm.

There was also the Fenomenon Stratos back in ‘05, with a 419 bhp V8, showcased at the Geneva Auto Show, by the British Design Firm of, you guessed it, Fenomenon, who had the rights to the name. And the car was designed by Christian Hrablec, the same guy with ‘The Largest Collection Of Stratos’ In The World’, and following another exhibition at Frankfurt, developed by Prodrive.

There was also, back in 2010, the New Stratos. Following the stalled Fenomenon project, one interested backer funded a one-off model. Commissioned by Michael Stoschek (a keen rally driver and chairman of Brose Group) and his son, Maximilian, the New Stratos was announced in 2010 based on the overall design and concept of the original seventies Stratos and was designed and developed by Pininfarina.

The car made use of a Ferrari F430 Scuderia as a donor car, using the chassis (shortened by 200 mm) resulting in a wheelbase of 2,400 mm) and much of the mechanical elements including the 4.3 L V8 engine, tuned up to 540 hp and 383 lb-ft of Torque.
The New Stratos weighs 1,247 kg and is claimed to accelerate to 62 mph in 3.3 seconds and on to a top speed close to 200 mph. While shorter than its donor car, the New Stratos is a little larger than the original Stratos, with a length of 4,181 mm, a width of 1971 mm and standing 1240 mm tall.
There were reports that given sufficient interest a small production run of up to 25 cars could be possible. However, Ferrari did not consent to this plan. The company even forbade its suppliers from supporting the project.
Bastards.

And here’s a selection of pictures about the kit cars and the concepts: HF3000 to New Stratos. Everything’s been arranged in order of how I covered them, so don’t worry.

So, to conclude then. The Stratos was the world’s Second(Thanks to Adam Midghall on this one, the Alpine A110 was the first) purpose-built Rallying Supercar, a trait which only the Ford RS200 would later have(and the Alpine before it). It was beautiful to look at, had an intoxicating engine note, and, more importantly, A Success, where the RS200, well…Wasn’t. It(Stratos, not RS200) would win the World Championship Three times, In A Row, and even after that, still remained competitive, even going on to inspire numerous concepts and kit cars. Sadly, the kit cars aren’t the best…And the Concepts…..Never made it to production, not least thanks to the chaps at Maranello. As a result, this car has never had a proper successor. Also not Least because of the fact that Lancia’s basically dead for now.

And on THAT Bombshell, you’ve just finished my article on the Lancia Stratos, the world’s Second(Alpine A110 took the spot for the first) purpose-built Rallying Supercar, with that trait only being later shared with the RS200, some 10 years later, one of history’s most beautiful rally cars, and one of the world’s most successful rally cars. If you really want one, well, carandclassic.co.uk says…..And I swear on my life that I’m not joking…Requires more than 400 000 pounds. So, if you need one, you’d better be some Really Rich guy, like Elon Musk, I’d imagine. Or if you’re poor like me, go buy one of those aforementioned kit cars. Oh, and if you’re reading this, Adam Midghall(Or should I ask for Dylan Smit? I don’t know..), and if you know about it, do tell us in the comments below about that Group 5 Turbo. I really want to know more than what I do with it.
Anyway, feel free to leave advice, overlooked details(I want to know more, okay?Is that Such a crime?), and suggestions down below, and I hope you enjoyed it.

See you at the next one.