The Lancia Stratos
Legendary Lancia Stratos HF was undoubtedly the most spectacular and most successful rally car of the 70s. Exciting drawn and designed without compromise for rally use, the Stratos wrote not only the history of rallying to hand, with his dramatic appearance on the asphalt and gravel roads of this world, he also perpetuated forever in the hearts of his countless fans. Even today, the Stratos, who is considered the world's most fascinating car rally, during operations in the historic motor racing an avowed fan favorite.
It all began in 1970 at the Turin exhibition stand of the cutter body Bertone. The extreme Stratos study characterized the style masterpiece designed by Marcello Gandini enthusiastic, not just visitors but also attracted the attention of the then boss Cesare Fiorio Lancia sports up. And she was hooked.
A year later, the Stratos had assumed its final form, and the V4 engine from the Lancia Fulvia funds had a significantly stronger V6 engine of the Ferrari Dino make room. The road version of only 1.08 meters high flounder was on a short steel chassis and its aerodynamically sophisticated body was molded from glass fiber plastic. The low weight, ideal weight and excellent dynamics offered the best conditions for a spectacular appearance on the international rally tracks, which were at that time still dominated by Alpine and Porsche. But the practice was initially quite different.
Only when the Lancia factory driver Sandro Munari and the British Formula 1 driver Mike Parkes, the uncompromising driving machine assumed to put a success. And he made a lightning fast: 1973 Sandro Munari won the first triumph for the Stratos HF, 1974, the victory came in more and then more quickly. End of 1976 the Stratos had already achieved the hat trick and scored three World Cup titles in a row.
Even outside of work use the Italian Rennkeil was successful: Bernard Darniche top riders took to the private team of France Chardonnet incredible 33 victories in his blue Lancia Stratos Chardonnet.
After the Fiat group had reduced the budget of Lancia racing in favor of the Fiat 131 Abarth dramatically in 1979 came the final out for the Stratos factory team. From then on, only dedicated private teams went for the win - as in the Rally Monte Carlo 1981 against the works cars. Even today, excited at motor sport events around the world than any other vehicle of the audience as much as the Lancia Stratos.
But who believes that the career would be finished this legend, is wrong:
In November 2010, 40 years after his presentation at the Turin Motor Show, the successor to the uncompromising Rennkeils at the Circuit Paul Ricard is presented to a small circle of international motor sport journalists.
The legend returns.
The initiator
Michael Stoschek, collectors and historic racing cars and drivers of successful entrepreneurs in the automotive supply industry, has met with the development and construction of a modern version of the Stratos a long-cherished dream.
The current New Stratos is a private project by Michael Stoschek, who together with his son Maximilian, the technical conception and design of the OneOff-vehicle which is being built since the fall of 2008 at Pininfarina in Turin, has essentially determined.
Michael Stoschek is one of the most successful and respected business leaders in Germany and grandson of Max Brose, who founded in 1908 in Berlin, a trading company for automotive accessories. Today is the family business Brose with mechatronic components and systems for automobile doors, seats and electrical drives with 16,000 employees in 21 countries, more than € 3 billion. Under Stoschek leadership, the Brose Group, developed the fifth largest automotive supplier in family ownership.
A keen sportsman Stoschek is active collector of historical rally cars and driving them so ambitious that he won three times including the Carrera Panamericana and 2006 FIA World Rally Championship in a Porsche 911 SR, Built in 1971. Among the uses of historic rally cars, rallies and hill climbs in the Stoschek, takes the Lancia Stratos Group 4 a special position. The vehicle has been built up over more than a decade after the specification of the works rally car Corsica 1974 Andruet / Biche in the Marlboro design.
The idea of developing a modern version of the "most fascinating rally cars of all time" came from an acquaintance with Chris Hrabalek, the Michael Stoschek first met in 1986 in Alta Badia in which he had organized World Stratos meeting. Also on the project Fenomenon Stratos, the 2005 presented at the Geneva Motor Show, was the acquisition of trademark rights and was involved Stoschek.
In September 2008, gave Michael and his son Maximilian Stoschek granted the company a contract to build a Pininfarina-OneOff vehicle the technical conception and design of the two-car enthusiasts were largely determined.
The New Stratos
The extraordinary success and the fascination of the Lancia Stratos was not only in its uncompromising construction for use in motorsport founded, but also unique in its design. Were correspondingly high goals for the new Stratos, which will represent at the current high-performance sports car in every way exceptional.
As with the original Stratos was a roll cage into the body of the condensed to a Ferrari 430 Scuderia integrated chassis built sports car. He helps the New Stratos, whose body was made entirely of carbon fiber, excessive rigidity, which is reflected in an extremely precise handling. In combination with a power to weight ratio of 2.25 kg per hp and a weight of nearly 50:50 arise exceptional performance. The first test in Balocco could confirm the high expectations, but the details are still a lot of work to do.
Currently, the New Stratos one of a kind. Whether it is built and by whom an exclusive small series of about 25 other vehicles, is not decided yet.
Further details concerning the technical specification of the New Stratos will be announced in the coming weeks. Well and the results of the current test program are documented in these pages in image reports.
The design
The modern interpretation of a classic product is a designer for a special challenge. So it is difficult to find the right balance between the problem, on the one hand too much to take from the original and the other too far from the initial idea. Michael Stoschek is of the opinion that the more perfect a classic form, the less you should change it in principle, the Ford GT 40 is this a good example.
Particular caution is especially necessary when it is the re-interpretation of a design icon such as the Lancia Stratos. With its futuristic design, the radical Bertone study was already well on their performance in 1970 ahead of its time. Marcella Gandini was already compromises the premise of "form follows function" followed and was thus paved for the further development of the Stratos rally legend way.
For Michael Stoschek was therefore very interesting to see, as enthusiastic as many renowned designers alongside Chris Hrabalek from the idea of a modern Stratos were committed and have helped him to put his ideas into reality.
In 2008 started at Pininfarina, under the designer Jason Castriota, the work on the New Stratos, until it moved to Bertone. In the following year and a half took Luca Borgogno the design scepter and led the design of body and interior in close coordination with Michael Stoschek completed. And with the utmost dedication, for which he is now very grateful to Michael Stoschek.
Source: Lancia
Torino, Italy
http://www.lancia.com
Categories: Car, Concept Car, Earth Moving Equipment, Sports Car, Coupe, Article, Pictures.
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