In the rearview mirror: With rear-wheel drive against all-wheel competition

The San Remo Rally in October 1983 marked a memorable date for the Lancia brand and the entire world championship. The Finns Markku Alén/Ilkka Kivimäki won in the Rally 037 ahead of their German teammates Walter Röhrl/Christian Geistdörfer and the Italians Attilio Bettega/Maurizio Perissinot. With this triple victory at the Italian WRC round, Lancia secured the constructors' title early.

"Winning the San Remo Rally exactly 40 years ago is a historic moment in rallying and made the Lancia Rally 037 unforgettable. It is no coincidence that this race car is one of nine models from our history that will inspire the design of Lancia's future production cars," commented Luca Napolitano, CEO of the Lancia brand.

Röhrl/Geistdörfer had contributed to the Constructors' World Championship title with three wins (Monte-Carlo, Greece, New Zealand) and Alén/Kivimäki with two (Corsica-France, San Remo-Italy). For Lancia, it was the fifth title overall after three Constructors' Championships from 1974 to 1976 with the Lancia Stratos and the 1977 FIA Cup for Drivers win by Italian Sandro Munari.

For the Lancia works team Martini Racing, the great success 40 years ago came unexpectedly. Had nevertheless the Lancia Rally 037 only a transition model to the Lancia Delta S4 should have, which should have four-wheel drive. Lancia's entry in the 1983 season was to have been the last World Rally Championship participation for a vehicle without four-wheel drive.

Lancia presented the production version of the Rally 037 at the 1982 Turin Motor Show. The four-cylinder engine positioned behind the two-seat cockpit was force-fed by a mechanically driven supercharger. As standard, 151 kW (205 hp) were thus available. Altogether Lancia produced exactly the 200 vehicles, which were prescribed for the racing permission (Homologation) in the so-called group B.

The Coupé developed by the racing department Abarth as altogether 37th project - hence the model designation 037 - was a racing car without compromises. The Rally 037 was based on the Lancia Beta Montecarlo large-scale production model, a compact mid-engine coupé with a sporty character. The body of the Rally 037 was made entirely of fiberglass-reinforced plastic. The two hoods over front and rear could be taken off completely for the service. A large rear spoiler was an expression of the sophisticated aerodynamics.

With the interplay between clean lines and radical details that were also found on the previous Lancia Stratos model, the Lancia Rally 037 is one of nine brand icons that will serve as inspiration for future Lancia production vehicles. A first example of this strategy is the Lancia Pu+Ra HPE concept car, an electrically powered show car expressing the brand's vision in design, comfort, sustainability, electrification and technology. (aum)