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Race & Rally Parts
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1983 Lancia 037 Group B EVO 2 EMINENCE TO-Y75887 - SOLD
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Description:
The Lancia 037 was the first true queen of Group B, with a perfect combination of clean lines and technical elegance
It was the result of collaboration between the genius of racing mechanics, Abarth, and the prince of haute couture in the automobile field, Pininfarina. Flash back.1982. After several months’ negotiation with the manufacturers, the International Automobile Federation revolutionized its Sporting Code: its "Appendix J" dedicated to the classifications, definitions and specifications of competition cars, also called "the green pages" (being the color of the paper they are printed on) put an end to the former Groups 1-8 in Categories A and B, replacing them with categories which were identified by letters.
As regards rallying, a few lines written into the regulations in Article 256 were the starting point for a veritable automobile legend: the Group B legend. From 1982 to 1986, five seasons of extremes and fury, with machines and men at fever pitch. Five seasons and five world crowns which remain to this day the most prestigious ever awarded.
The technical revolution in Group B
The Group B regulations were the result of pressure from manufacturers who had long been demanding more freedom. Previously, to receive the official stamp of approval, the cars had to be based on production models manufactured in at least 1,000 units between January 1st and December 31st. This obstacle disappeared with Group B: initially, two hundred units per year were sufficient and thereafter manufacturers could develop a new model each year, of which they were only required to produce twenty units.
The racing departments of the major manufacturers who had negotiated the new regulations took full advantage of this new opening and dreamt up the most fantastic rallying machines in the history of motor sport - genuine four-wheeled prototypes. The rules were wide open.
Abarth and Pininfarina: 2 midwives for the birth of the Lancia 037
Project No. SE 037 was assigned to the ingegnere Sergio Limone, who set up a team of engineers from Lancia and Abarth (which had been acquired by the Fiat Group in 1971). They opted for the concept of a two-wheel drive car. And to make up for the loss in road-holding capabilities (the championship took place mainly on dirt, gravel and snow), Limone optimized the car’s overall architecture: mid-mounted engine - with compressor supercharging added at a late stage - and a low centre of gravity (the car is only 1.24 meters high). For its part, Pininfarina did a beautiful job in managing to mask these technical constraints by creating a body line which was both fluid and aggressive and which was never spoilt by any subsequent aerodynamic extension or technical change.
Named simply the “Lancia 037”, the car was unveiled on April 21st, 1982, at the opening of the Salone di Torino dell'AutomobileI, by Cesare Fiorio, the ingegnere Claudio Lombardi (the Technical Director), the ingegnere Sergio Limone and whole of Lancia’s top brass.
The Lancia 037 crowned winner of the 1983 World Rally Championship
The 037 was immediately entered for the rallies still to be raced in the 1982 world championship. It showed its competitive qualities right from the start. When the 1983 season began, the Martini Racing team, the official representative of the Lancia works in the world championship, logically held out high hopes. They were met in full.
While the 1982 world championship had simply been a warm-up year for the Group B cars, at the end of which Audi finished first ahead of Opel, the 1983 season was the theatre of a fantastic duel between the Lancia and the Audi drivers. After twelve months and ten championship races, Lancia beat its German rival by five wins to four. The Lancia 037 was awarded the 1983 World Rally Championship Constructors' title. It was the first and last time in the Group B era that a two-wheel drive car won the title. Thereafter, the crown went each year to AWDs. But what did it matter, Lancia had proved its point in sumptuous style.
The Lancia 037 EMINENCE TOY75887
This particular Lancia 037 has been developed by VOLTA for the 1983 season and was sponsored by Eminence.
In period racing history known:
Feb 18-20 1983 - Costa Brava (E)
Jean-Louis Clarr (French)/Patricia Trivero, no.5, Volta/Eminence, pull out after missing service, SS6
Jun 24-26 1983 - 24 hrs d'Ypres (B)
Andrea Zanussi/Paolo Spolon, no.2, Volta/Eminence, retired SS8 engine
Sep 19-23 1983 - 42e Tour de France Automobile (F)
Bernard Darniche/Alain Mahe, no.1, Volta Chardonnet/Eminence, 3rd place
Sept. 20-21 1985 (I) - Coppa Liburna
Aghini/Lampugnale, 4th overall
March 14-16 1986 (S) - Criterium Jurassien
Roger Krattiger/Reto Meier, 2nd place
June 7-8 1986 (S) - Rally of Lugano
Krattiger - Meier, 1st overall
August 28-30 1986 (S) - Rallye Baden-Württemberg
Krattiger - Meier, 1st overall
November 28 th 1989: Sold by Mr Michel Berney (Swiss) to Mr Bruno Gurnari
August 21st 1998: bought by the current owner from VOLTA.
Since then it has been kept for 19 years by the current owner.
This particular LANCIA 037 Group B #133 offers a great opportunity to buy a genuine car from the famous Group B period.
Price upon request
