Race for glory, a recently released film that tells the duel between Lancia and Audi in the 1983 WRC, tells of a time when the Italian brand was glorious. One of the pieces that made him immortal in the world of rallying. It tells of a past that all fans have in mind and that for too long now they have longed to see return in some way.
At the launch of the HF (High Fidelity) brand already present on cars that have won titles in the past, Lancia's CEO, Luca Napolitano, responded to the question about a possible return of the Italian company to racing as follows: “We're working on it” , further igniting the imagination of enthusiasts. A way of not saying yes directly, but not saying no either, thus avoiding precluding viable roads without announcing any real commitment to bring Lancia back into the world of rallies.
What is the possibility of seeing Lancia return to rallies?
We want to reiterate a premise that we have already made some time ago when talking about Lancia's “Return… no”: taking a base from an already existing car and placing a bodywork from a different model on top of it, we do not consider it to be a real return to racing . And this applies to any company or brand intending to carry out such an operation.
It is and would be an intelligent operation to use such a system to enhance and advertise a new car to be launched on the market for a question of costs and opportunities.
Having already a base – the 208 Rally4 – functioning, reliable and tested, it is natural to think of exploiting it by creating only a bodywork with the appearance of the car you want to promote, in this case it could be the new Y.
This solution would impose minimal preparation costs, i.e. those for the bodywork, without having to think about research and development – because it would be used in a possible single-brand store – tests, possible modifications. A perfect situation that would lead to minimal expense, but also maximum yield.
Rally2: utopia for costs, timing and materials
Making a Rally2 available on the market today is a very complex process – more tortuous than you might think – and long.
It is necessary, two years before the rally in which you want to debut the car, to start asking for the necessary authorizations from the Rally Commission, therefore all the bureaucracy necessary to activate the route. And this first step already leads us to realize what the timing for the realization of such a complex project could be.
A concrete example comes to our aid, even if in this case we are talking about a WRC car. Volkswagen Motorsport made its debut at the 2013 Rallye Monte-Carlo, but presented its program and project at the Rally Italia Sardegna 2 years earlier, in 2011.
Going into the matter of Lancia, if it wanted to use the base of the Citroen C3 Rally2, the lack of the engine must be considered because it was already out of production. The increasingly high level of costs and competitiveness with the presence of Skoda (mainly) and Toyota's entry into the category with the GR Yaris Rally2 must be considered.
Another factor not to be forgotten is the current lack of a team. If you want to create a Rally2 it must be organized and, to date, there is not the necessary structure to meet the needs that are imposed in the preparation of a type of car of this kind. We must not forget the budget that Stellantis wants to put into the possible project: it is not at all certain that this will be substantial or intended specifically to return to the world of racing with a car of a certain type like the Rally2.
In short, the film that has just been released is an important way for Lancia to advertise and market, as is the idea of exploiting its legendary history in rallies to once again attract interest in a brand that has been dormant for too long now. There are rumors, but then there is a need to deal with reality. And the current one tells a story far from Lancia's return to rallying with great fanfare.
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