Random Capture: Lancia 037 In Action

Once upon a time, one of the most respected names in Rally competition was Lancia. These days, Lancia's presence in rallying is roughly comparable to the US's presence in Cuba.  Regardless, Lancia made some absolutely epic rally cars back in the day, and one of the most successful was the mid-engined 037.

This particular photo of the 037 in action was taken by Pietro Zoccola, and came to my computer via Flickr - my favorite place to find good photographs.  It was taken during the 6° Revival Rally Club meeting on 8/11/2008 in San Francisco.  Very nice panning work makes for an ultra-clear action shot, which is hard to capture.

The 037 was loosely based on the Beta Monte Carlo mid-engined road car, although it featured a longitudinally-mounted engine rather than a transverse setup (much like the difference between the Ferrari 308 road car and the 288 GTO pseudo-race car).  Power came from a 2.0L 16v supercharged I4 - Lancia picked a supercharger over a turbo for better throttle response - and it produced 265bhp in early carbureted form, although later with the addition of fuel injection, water/methanol injection and a bump in displacement to 2.1L power rose to 325bhp.

The 037 was designed for Group B competition, but it's competitive life was relatively short-lived - with the advent of 4WD thanks to Audi, the RWD 037 quickly became old-hat, and was subsequently replaced by the twin-charged Delta S4 rally car.  The rest, as they say, is history.