Mopar68
Nov 15, 2005, 11:10 PM
Nobody thinks of Lancia anymore. Everyone seems to be caught up in those other Italian companies. Maserati, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo. I'll have none of that. No, I'm Lancia all the way. They have a great racing history, even if it's pretty much over looked. Any body remember the Lancia Stratos rally car? Without a doubt, it was the most beautiful rally car of all time. How bout the S4 or Beta Monte Carlo? They dominated the group B class after the shock of the Audi Quattros. What about the Lancia LC2? The amazingly gorgeous group C car was had a 800hp Ferrari engine and was bliteringly quick.
But what about the most successful car in Lancia history? What about the car that made Lancia the most successful company in WRC history? What about the best hot hatch ever made?
http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/8554/1024deltahfintegraleevoiigiall.th.jpg (http://img402.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1024deltahfintegraleevoiigi all.jpg)
Ladies and gentleman, say hello to the 6 time WRC world champion Lancia Delta Integrale series. Here's a little history before I rave about how cool this car is:
http://img60.imageshack.us/img60/8237/8v7fs.th.jpg (http://img60.imageshack.us/my.php?image=8v7fs.jpg)
That yellow car in the first picture is a Delta Integrale 16v Evolution II. It was one of the last of the series, and is regarded as the best. This second red car was one of the first of the series, and uses an 8v inline-4 engine.
-In 1986, the Delta 4WD was introduced. Besides the addition of 4WD and a turbocharged engine, it looked just like the regular Delta. The power output from the 2 liter 8v turbo was 165hp and 150hp in it's "green" version (having the catalytic converter and emissions stuff). Not too bad for 1986
-Next we have the Integrale 8v and 16v, introduced in 1987. These featured new suspension settings, wider wheel arches and a decent increase in power. The 16v engine produced a very healthy 200hp, while the 8v produced 185hp. Lancia didn't make a "green" version of the 16v, so the 8v "green" produced about 178hp, which was great in my opinion.
-The Delta greatly improved in 1991 when Lancia introduced the Evoluzione model. It featured a wider track and arches, different suspension mount points, more suspension travel and even more power. 210hp in the 16v models. However, Lancia still didn't make a 16v "green" version, but the new 8v produced 185hp, which again, is still healthy, even for todays standards.
So, after that, Lancia made the Evo two, which was basically the same, except with slightly modified engine management and a smaller turbo. Output was boosted by 5hp in the 16v version, but it produced a significantly more user friendly car. However, it was noticeably slower and less fun.
So now you know the basic history. It was also amazing in WRC, as mentioned a little bit before. It had 46 wins, and 6 championships under it's belt. As a race car, it was rock solid, and more simple than the Escort Cosworth RS race cars. It was more realiable, and was supposed to be very powerful.
But why do I love it? Well, from what I've read, it's supposed to be one of the best handling cars in the world. The steering response is spot on, and you can feel every bump through your fingertips. However, you can still drive it with a pinky. The actual cornering physics are typical 4WD turbocharged car. If you brake too late, it'll snap at you, and the car produces understeer when entering a corner and oversteer when exiting. This is due to the power shift between the front and rear wheels.
The engine, in my opinion, is the best turbocharged inline-4 in existance. It's supposed to be rather realiable. I mean, it's an Italian car, so it's not going to be a freaking civic. But it's still good. The 8v engines, suprisingly enough, were supposed to be the most fun to drive. This was to do the larger turbo and higher boost pressure. It produced more engine response in the higher rev ranges, where the engine was kept in hard driving. The 16v is more manageable, but not as "savage" as some owners put it.
You've also got the looks. I think it's a timeless design. It'll never grow old. It's the best looking hatchback ever, and I think you'd be nuts not to agree. It's bold and brash, but at the same time sane and pretty plain.
Plus, you got the price. There are plenty of these around, cause 47,787 were produced. They're easy to find in Europe (as far as I know), and they're probably pretty cheap to maintain. And what about performance? Well, in it's Evo II form, it'll do 0-60 in about 5.5 seconds, and the Evo I might be quicker. He'll, it'd keep up with some of the Ferrari's of the day for a mere fraction of the cost.
But you have to keep in mind that this car is infact Italian, so you're going to get some problems. They've had electrical problems, such as the wipers not working in the wet, even if they do in the dry. The engines, no matter how great I thought they were, are a little fragile. Gearboxes wore out faster than normal, but not insanely fast. Rust, of course, was a bit of a problem, but again, not horrible.
Overall, it's the best hatchback ever made, if not the best Italian car ever made. It was around for eight years, which says alot for the time.
So I beg you all, please discuss. Do you agree? Have you learned anything? Am I full of bull?
Most of all, I'd like to prove my opinion invalid. The Delta Integrale series is the best Italian car ever, and the best Hatchback ever. Is there anything wrong with that?
But what about the most successful car in Lancia history? What about the car that made Lancia the most successful company in WRC history? What about the best hot hatch ever made?
http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/8554/1024deltahfintegraleevoiigiall.th.jpg (http://img402.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1024deltahfintegraleevoiigi all.jpg)
Ladies and gentleman, say hello to the 6 time WRC world champion Lancia Delta Integrale series. Here's a little history before I rave about how cool this car is:
http://img60.imageshack.us/img60/8237/8v7fs.th.jpg (http://img60.imageshack.us/my.php?image=8v7fs.jpg)
That yellow car in the first picture is a Delta Integrale 16v Evolution II. It was one of the last of the series, and is regarded as the best. This second red car was one of the first of the series, and uses an 8v inline-4 engine.
-In 1986, the Delta 4WD was introduced. Besides the addition of 4WD and a turbocharged engine, it looked just like the regular Delta. The power output from the 2 liter 8v turbo was 165hp and 150hp in it's "green" version (having the catalytic converter and emissions stuff). Not too bad for 1986
-Next we have the Integrale 8v and 16v, introduced in 1987. These featured new suspension settings, wider wheel arches and a decent increase in power. The 16v engine produced a very healthy 200hp, while the 8v produced 185hp. Lancia didn't make a "green" version of the 16v, so the 8v "green" produced about 178hp, which was great in my opinion.
-The Delta greatly improved in 1991 when Lancia introduced the Evoluzione model. It featured a wider track and arches, different suspension mount points, more suspension travel and even more power. 210hp in the 16v models. However, Lancia still didn't make a 16v "green" version, but the new 8v produced 185hp, which again, is still healthy, even for todays standards.
So, after that, Lancia made the Evo two, which was basically the same, except with slightly modified engine management and a smaller turbo. Output was boosted by 5hp in the 16v version, but it produced a significantly more user friendly car. However, it was noticeably slower and less fun.
So now you know the basic history. It was also amazing in WRC, as mentioned a little bit before. It had 46 wins, and 6 championships under it's belt. As a race car, it was rock solid, and more simple than the Escort Cosworth RS race cars. It was more realiable, and was supposed to be very powerful.
But why do I love it? Well, from what I've read, it's supposed to be one of the best handling cars in the world. The steering response is spot on, and you can feel every bump through your fingertips. However, you can still drive it with a pinky. The actual cornering physics are typical 4WD turbocharged car. If you brake too late, it'll snap at you, and the car produces understeer when entering a corner and oversteer when exiting. This is due to the power shift between the front and rear wheels.
The engine, in my opinion, is the best turbocharged inline-4 in existance. It's supposed to be rather realiable. I mean, it's an Italian car, so it's not going to be a freaking civic. But it's still good. The 8v engines, suprisingly enough, were supposed to be the most fun to drive. This was to do the larger turbo and higher boost pressure. It produced more engine response in the higher rev ranges, where the engine was kept in hard driving. The 16v is more manageable, but not as "savage" as some owners put it.
You've also got the looks. I think it's a timeless design. It'll never grow old. It's the best looking hatchback ever, and I think you'd be nuts not to agree. It's bold and brash, but at the same time sane and pretty plain.
Plus, you got the price. There are plenty of these around, cause 47,787 were produced. They're easy to find in Europe (as far as I know), and they're probably pretty cheap to maintain. And what about performance? Well, in it's Evo II form, it'll do 0-60 in about 5.5 seconds, and the Evo I might be quicker. He'll, it'd keep up with some of the Ferrari's of the day for a mere fraction of the cost.
But you have to keep in mind that this car is infact Italian, so you're going to get some problems. They've had electrical problems, such as the wipers not working in the wet, even if they do in the dry. The engines, no matter how great I thought they were, are a little fragile. Gearboxes wore out faster than normal, but not insanely fast. Rust, of course, was a bit of a problem, but again, not horrible.
Overall, it's the best hatchback ever made, if not the best Italian car ever made. It was around for eight years, which says alot for the time.
So I beg you all, please discuss. Do you agree? Have you learned anything? Am I full of bull?
Most of all, I'd like to prove my opinion invalid. The Delta Integrale series is the best Italian car ever, and the best Hatchback ever. Is there anything wrong with that?