Lancia Stratos
First purpose-built rally car, three-time World Rally Champion.
The Lancia Stratos HF (Tipo 829) is a mid-engined sports car built by the Italian manufacturer Lancia, purpose-designed for rallying. It dominated the World Rally Championship, taking the title in 1974, 1975, and 1976, and also won the 1974 Targa Florio, the Tour de France Automobile five times, and the Giro d'Italia automobilistico three times.
Lancia had previously worked with Pininfarina, not Bertone. Bertone wanted to start a relationship with Lancia and knew the company needed a replacement for the aging Fulvia in rallying. Bertone built a running model using a friend’s Fulvia Coupé running gear. He drove the resulting Stratos Zero under the barrier at the Lancia factory gates, greeted by applause from workers. This led to an agreement to develop a new rally car based on ideas from Bertone’s designer Marcello Gandini, who had already designed the Lamborghini Miura and was working on the Countach.
The Bertone-designed Lancia Stratos HF prototype appeared at the 1971 Turin Motor Show, a year after the Stratos Zero concept. This prototype, chassis 1240, was fluorescent red with a crescent-shaped wrap-around windshield that gave excellent forward visibility but almost none to the rear. Early development used three different engines: the Lancia Fulvia unit, the Lancia Beta unit, and finally, for the 1971 launch, a mid-mounted Ferrari Dino V6 producing 190 hp in road trim. The Dino engine was planned from the start, but Enzo Ferrari initially resisted, seeing the Stratos as a competitor to his own Dino. After Dino production ended, Ferrari agreed to supply the engines, and Lancia received 500 units.
The final design shares features with Gandini’s Miura: dual clamshell hoods (the front opening forward over a spare wheel, the rear hinging rearward with stepped black louvres above the engine and a trunk behind), and door-glass bottoms that curve upward, giving the frameless doors an upward-swept section. However, the Stratos body is unmistakably short and wide, with a wedge shape so extreme that the nose drops below the front wheel well crests, and a semi-elliptical greenhouse when viewed from above.
The Stratos was a successful rally car in the 1970s and early 1980s, starting a new era as the first car designed from scratch for competition.
Quick Facts
- Manufacturer
- Lancia
- Assembly
- Italy: Turin
- Production
- 1973–1978 / ca. 492 produced
- Designer
- Marcello Gandini at Bertone
- Class
- Sports car / Rally car
- Layout
- Transverse mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
- Chassis
- Steel space-frame structure with integral roll-cage. Fiberglass body
- Engine
- Lancia 2418 cc Tipo 829A.000 V6 24v
- Powerout
- Stradale: 190 hp
- Transmission
- 5-speed manual
- Wheelbase
- 2180 mm
- Length
- 3710 mm
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Lancia had traditionally worked with Pininfarina and had not used Bertone before. Bertone, wanting to create an opportunity for a relationship with Lancia, designed an eye-catching model using the running gear of a Fulvia Coupé. Bertone personally appeared at the Lancia factory gates with the Stratos Zero, passing under the barrier to applause from workers. Lancia and Bertone then agreed to develop a new rally car based on ideas from Bertone's designer Marcello Gandini, who had already designed the Lamborghini Miura. The prototype was presented at the 1971 Turin Motor Show, fluorescent red with a crescent-shaped wrap-around windshield. It used three different engines during development, finally settling on the mid-mounted Dino Ferrari V6 producing 190 hp in road trim. Enzo Ferrari was initially reluctant to supply the engine but agreed after Dino production ended, delivering 500 units. The final design shared features with the Miura, including dual clamshell hoods and upward-swept door glass, but had a short, wide wedge shape with a semi-elliptical greenhouse. The car was sold as the Lancia Stratos HF Stradale.
Reader's Guide
The Stratos started a new era in rallying as the first car designed from scratch for competition. The project was led by Lancia team manager Cesare Fiorio, British racer/engineer Mike Parkes, and factory driver Sandro Munari, with Marcello Gandini designing the bodywork. Extensive testing began in 1972, and after producing the required 500 cars for Group 4 homologation, the Stratos was homologated for the 1974 World Rally Championship season. It won the championship in 1974, 1975, and 1976, driven by Sandro Munari and Björn Waldegård, and also won the Monte Carlo Rally in 1975, 1976, and 1977. Internal politics within the Fiat group shifted rallying responsibility to the Fiat 131 Abarths, but the Stratos remained competitive, winning the Tour de Corse in 1981 as a privateer entry. The car also achieved success in other events, winning the Targa Florio in 1974, the Tour de France Automobile five times, and the Giro d'Italia automobilistico three times. Two Group 5 turbocharged silhouette cars were built for closed-track endurance racing but failed against the Porsche 935s, though they succeeded in hybrid events. The Stratos also finished 20th overall and 2nd in GTP class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1976.
Did You Know?
- The Stratos was the first car designed from scratch for rally competition.
- Enzo Ferrari initially refused to supply the Dino V6 engine, but agreed after Dino production ended.
- The car won the World Rally Championship in 1974, 1975, and 1976.
- A unique 3.0-liter Stratos was built for rallycross driver Andy Bentza.
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