The #Lancia #Stratos is a #motorsport #legend, a coveted collectors' item, and a design icon that, five decades on, keeps inspiring many automobile designers. Not bad for a car that, in the period, Lancia didn't really want to make and that customers didn't want to buy.
Buckle up, as this is the story of the legendary Lancia Stratos...
Despite the lack of resources, Lancia's racing department managed to gain considerable success across Europe rallying the Fulvia Coupé, and since morale at Lancia was low and sales even lower, Gobbato saw Fiorio's activities as beneficial for Lancia's image and overall standing.
But the Fulvia's days as a rally winner were numbered against the ever more powerful and specialized cars fielded by the competition. Lancia needed something new, and that's what Gobbato and Fiorio saw in Bertone's Stratos, despite the fact it was rather useless as a rally car in its original form.
Although the Stratos we all know and love, developed between 1971 and '72 around the Ferrari 2.4 liters "Dino" V6, shares only the name with the show prototype that started it all, it certainly was no less revolutionary in both concept and execution.
The first car to have been developed from the ground up to win rallies, the Stratos had a very short wheelbase for maximum agility, a razor-sharp front end, and an extraordinarily curved windshield that wrapped around the tight passenger compartment, maximizing visibility even when driving sideways.
My automotive books:
Lancia Gamma Berlina & Coupé 1976 - 1984
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TN45L8Q
Six Appeal - The Story Of The Alfa 6
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1793931046
Alfa Romeo Giulietta - The Story 1977 - 1985
ENGLISH: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1983393746
ITALIAN: https://www.amazon.it/dp/B098GVJ7RK
Alfa Romeo Arna - The Full Story 1980 - 1987 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1656632500