Lancia Stratos

1974 Lancia Stratos HF Group 4

File:LANCIA STRATOS 1974 33.jpg

Lancia Stratos 1974

The Lancia Stratos was an automobile made by Italian car manufacturer Lancia.

The Stratos was a very succesful rally racing car during the 1970s and 1980s. It started a new era in rally racing as it was the first car designed from scratch for this kind of competition.

The bodyworks were designed by Bertone and were loosely based on a concept car first shown at the Turin Motor Show in 1971. The Stratos had a distinctive crescent-shaped wrap-around windshield providing maximum forward visibility with almost no rear visibility (which was unnecessary for rallying anyway). The body was wedge-shaped, and unusually short and wide, providing maximum traction.

The engine was a mid-mounted 190 bhp (140 kW) 2418 cc Dino Ferrari V6. For racing, this engine was tuned up to 280hp and even further with a turbocharger. However, turbocharged versions were not as reliable as their naturally aspirated counterparts.

Lancia did extensive testing with the Stratos and raced the car in several events where Group 5 prototypes were allowed during the 1972 and 1973 seasons. The 400 cars required for homologation in Group 4 were launched in 1973 and the car was homologated for the 1974 World Championship.

The car won the 1974, 1975 and 1976 championships.

With only 492 ever made, the Stratos is very rare to this day. The car was featured in the cartoon The Transformers as the Autobot Wheeljack.

Fenomenon Stratos

At the Geneva Auto Show of 2005, a British design firm known as Fenomenon debuted a retromodern concept version of the Stratos. No production plans have been announced.

External link

• http://www.stratossupersite.com/ Stratos fan site