All Lancia Rally Models at RM Sotheby’s Essen Auction

Updated 13/04/2019: Sale prices have been added.

It is not often that every Lancia rally model that dominated the sport comes up for sale in one place, yet that is precisely what will happen at RM Sotheby’s forthcoming auction in Essen, Germany.

Taking place on 11 and 12 April, the sale will feature more than 200 cars, mostly of European origin. German vehicles make up more than half of the catalogue.

What makes this group of Italian rally legends particularly notable is that it includes every Lancia that shaped - and dominated - rallying from the late 1960s onwards.

Lancia Fulvia Coupé Rallye 1.6 HF ‘Fanalone’, 1970

This is not the only Fulvia in the auction catalogue. There is also a Fulvia previously owned by Prince Rainier III of Monaco, along with a competition-prepared Rallye 1.3 HF that has already contested several historic rallies.

Little information has been released about this particular Fulvia Coupé Rallye 1.6 HF “Fanalone”. Supplied new in Italy, it has had only four owners since and has never been restored. It is one of 1,258 examples built between 1969 and 1970, representing an evolution of the 1.3 HF with a new, larger 1.6-litre V4 producing 117 hp.

Estimated sale price: €60,000 to €70,000.

Sold for: €69,000.

Lancia Stratos HF Stradale by Bertone, 1975

The radical, iconic Stratos succeeded the Fulvia. Rather than adapting a production car for competition, Lancia first developed a rally car and altered it as little as possible to make it road legal.

Nevertheless, 500 road-going examples needed to be produced for homologation. In the end, the best estimates suggest that just 492 were built.

This Lancia Stratos HF Stradale is one of them, carrying chassis number 829AR0 001832. Lancia records confirm that it retains its Azzurro paintwork, “Sereno” carpets and Alcantara-trimmed seats. It was registered in February 1975 to Guido Bignardi, who kept it for 30 years before selling it to Carlo Pungetti in 2005. Pungetti retained it until 2015, when he sold it to the current owner.

Never restored, this Lancia Stratos is regarded as one of the best-preserved original examples, with just 11,800 km recorded on its odometer.

Estimated sale price: €480,000 to €520,000.

Sold for: €545,000.

Lancia 037 Rally Stradale, 1982

Lancia’s first Group B contender arrived in 1982. Homologation once again required 200 road cars to be built, although 217 examples of the 037 Rally Stradale were ultimately made, using the Beta Montecarlo as a partial basis.

This Lancia 037 Rally Stradale is chassis no. 0022. Although it was built in 1982 - the production year for every 037 Stradale - it was not registered until May 1984, when it was registered to Francesco Pio Bignardi, a well-known personality in Italian rallying.

Carlo Pungetti acquired the car in 2005 but never registered it, instead storing it with the rest of his collection. He sold it in 2015 to its current German owner. Lancia 037 Rally Stradale chassis no. 0022 has never been restored and has covered only 3,500 km, making it one of the lowest-mileage examples known.

Estimated sale price: €350,000 to €400,000.

Sold for: €770,000.

Lancia Delta S4 Stradale, 1985

If the 037 Rallye was the final rear-wheel-drive car to win a WRC championship, its successor could only be described as a true monster. With four-wheel drive and an engine combining supercharging and turbocharging, the Lancia Delta S4 delivered brute force, producing more than 500 hp.

Its road-going counterpart, the Lancia Delta S4 Stradale, was far more “reserved” at 250 hp, though no less spectacular. Lancia built the mandatory 200 examples, but had difficulty selling them all; some did not find buyers until the end of the 1990s - considering their value today, that was quite a missed bargain.

This example has covered only 2,196 km. Records show that it was first delivered in Italy, later found owners in France and Germany, and eventually returned to Italy.

Estimated sale price: €450,000 to €550,000.

Sold for: €1,040,000.

Lancia Delta HF Integrale Evoluzione ‘Martini 5’, 1992

Lancia’s final rallying chapter came with the Delta HF Integrale, built to Group A regulations after the excesses - and tragedy - of Group B. Few cars dominated as comprehensively as the Lancia Delta: it remains the most successful car in WRC history, having won six consecutive championships from 1987 to 1992.

Lancia officially withdrew in 1992. To mark its fifth consecutive victory in 1991, it created a numbered special series of 400 “Deltona” cars: the Martini 5, finished in the iconic Martini Racing colours.

The Lancia Delta HF Integrale Evoluzione ‘Martini 5’ offered at auction is no. 111. Built in February 1992, it was registered in September that year by Alvaro Nanni. He owned it for 20 years before selling it to Giannantonio Bussinello, after which it changed hands twice more.

It remains in original condition. In 2015, it received maintenance work that included replacement of the timing belt and a turbocharger rebuild.

Estimated sale price: €120,000 to €140,000.

Sold for: €120,000.