ULTIMATE LANCIA INTEGRALE
Of the limited-edition versions of the Lancia Delta Integrale, the Club Italia is one of the most sought-after – but the Viola is the ultimate, according to Werner Blaettel
Driving the Delta Evo 3 that never was
There’s not much that hasn’t already been said about the Lancia Delta HF Integrale. Every bona fide petrolhead knows that this compact family hatchback, designed by Giugiaro, won the World Rally Championship six times, back-to-back, between 1987 and 1992, raising the Italian marque to an uncontested number one ranking among rallying’s elite.
With a total of 44,296 built, the Integrale evolved through four separate stages. Its success story began by chance in one of rallying’s darkest years, 1986. A string of serious crashes, some fatal, prompted the FIA to call an urgent halt, cancelling Group B and its 500bhp supercars. When it became clear that cars would be allowed to compete under Group A regulations the following year, Lancia was the first to respond, by submitting a homologation model based on its innocentlooking Delta hatchback.
At its debut in Monaco, the Delta HF 4WD delivered as expected, with Miki Biasion piloting it to victory on its very first World Championship run, the 1987 Monte Carlo Rally. Biasion went on to win again when the HF Integrale made its debut in Portugal in 1988, then once more in 1989, at the San Remo Rally, with the Integrale 16V. The story culminated with the Monte Carlo Rally in 1992, when Didier Auriol took the Delta Evoluzione, by then even wider and fitted with an adjustable rear spoiler, to an emphatic win and the top spot on the podium on its maiden outing in the World Rally Championship.
And so, fired up by bringing the fifth rally constructors’ title in succession home to Italy, the Torinese carmaker launched a limited-edition model, the Delta HF Martini 5. This was the first of what would be 12 special editions in total, with production numbers ranging from eight to 400, and concluding with the aptly titled Edizione Finale, which marked the end of the line for the giant-killing legend.
The owner of the two Deltas you see in these pictures is clearly a connoisseur, because they are two of the rarest specimens. While the deep blue Club Italia is a limited edition, one of only 15 built, the Viola is unique.
Lancia had begun working on the Delta HF Integrale Evoluzione in 1991. Mechanically, it was as per the 16V, though with a 10bhp boost to 207bhp, but it was distinguished externally by new, single-pressing wings with bigger wheelarches (to accommodate a much wider track), a new bonnet, bumpers, sideskirts, smaller-diameter paired headlamps, modified rear doors and a rear spoiler.
On the suggestion of former rally navigator and horologist Gino Macaluso, Lancia produced a special series of just 15 cars for members of the exclusive Club Italia, founded in 1985 and limited to only 60 members, among them car designers, industry magnates and representatives of Italian culture, all united by a passion for cars. The cars were numbered in series from 01 through 16, skipping 13 – a little superstition couldn’t hurt, after all. Both Mauro Forghieri and Clay Regazzoni were members and owners.
The ‘Club Italia’ specials were painted in Blu lord, Lancia’s classic, aristocratic shade of blue. Its distinctive badges and markings were not fitted for delivery but placed in the boot so that each new owner could choose whether to apply them. And when ordering their vehicles, the fortunate 15 could opt for a power upgrade via
a pre-delivery detour to Turin’s Corso Marche, where Abarth, the works motorsport division, made modifications.
There the engine management was tweaked, the cylinder head and gasket were modified, and a red-topped boost control knob fitted next to the gearlever: turn it to the right for a shot in the arm! The stepless controller acts on the turbocharger’s control valve, increasing air flow for higher compression and boosting the turbo from the standard 1.0 bar of pressure to around 1.2. This makes for an extra 25-30bhp that can be unleashed on demand, while maintaining that quiet air of Club Italia understatement.
The Evoluzione was assembled at the main plant in Turin, whereas its 1993 successor, the Evo 2, was built by storied coachbuilder Maggiora under contract from Fiat Lancia at the former Lancia factory in Chivasso. Timed sequential multipoint fuel injection and a new turbocharger increased power to 212bhp, while outside there were distinctive new wheels, rain gutter mouldings and sleeker wiper arms.
Because the original Delta generation was coming to an end – it had been in production since 1979, and the next generation appeared in 1993 – the Evo 2 was assembled largely by hand, with between 12 and 15 cars rolling off the line per day. Bruno Maggiora himself saw the end in sight for the special Integrales his company was building, and in 1994, in an effort to convince Fiat management in nearby Turin that it would be wrong to kill off the iconic car, he presented the Viola.
Essentially a prototype, the Viola’s most obvious visual difference is its lavish multi-coat paintwork in a shade of violet, mixed at Bruno Maggiora’s suggestion by the paint specialist PPG. When the Viola was launched in an exclusive comparison review in the summer issue of Italy’s TuttoRally magazine, it was running on 17in Tecnomagnesio wheels; the power had been boosted to an ample 237bhp by a new engine control unit from Magneti Marelli and Weber; and, thanks to an optimised power curve, the car delivered its maximum torque of 234lb ft across a broad 2500-6000rpm rev range.
The front axle had a new, exceptionally light and compact viscous-coupled differential made by Birfield in South Tyrol, which slightly reduced the Integrale’s tendency to understeer, and the dampers were upgraded. The Viola was half-a-second faster than the regular Evo 2 in the 0-62mph sprint, and was 6mph faster flat-out. When it went head-to-head with the standard Delta Evo 2 on Lancia’s former test track at the Maggiora factory, test driver Paolo Olivero was impressed by its extra power and improved handling.
But as much as Bruno Maggiora believed in what he had built, it wasn’t enough to convince Paolo Cantarella and his fellow decisionmakers in Turin – not least because Lancia was by then chasing buyers of more luxurious cars, rather than hardcore rally replicas.
I first saw the Viola in 1996, at an official Fiat/Lancia-organised event in the Italian Alps where Maggiora employees put the prototype through its paces to showcase its special handling qualities. Three years later, I had the chance to tour the Maggiora factory in Chivasso, which was then making the Fiat
‘As much as Bruno Maggiora believed in what he had built, it wasn’t enough to convince Lancia’
Barchetta and the Lancia Kappa Coupé, so I was surprised to see wire pallet cages containing Delta Evo 2 body parts. Outside were a white armoured Lancia Kappa built for the King of Tonga (complete with hidden machine guns!), a green Fiat Barchetta Coupé – and the Viola Delta, covered in a fine layer of dust. The Viola made its way to Germany in 2005, and has been in its current owner’s possession since 2015.
In 2000, Club Italia no.06’s original owner, Giuseppe Veronesi, put the car up for sale at the Brooks auction in Geneva, where it was bought by a Lancia enthusiast from southern Germany, who showed it for the first time at a Lancia meet in Austria in 2001. The Club Italia and the Viola became stablemates in 2018.
Anyone who has ever driven an Integrale knows what can be done with a compact, analogue car that offers great traction and a turbocharged engine – and these two icons are staggering on a narrow country road. The Club Italia is better than every Evo 1 and the Viola is even better than every Evo 2. And in each case, they perfect the driving characteristics of the models on which they are based. This Club
Italia includes the variable boost control, which ensures significantly greater driving pleasure.
Bruno Maggiora took an even more radical approach with the Viola. Even today, 26 years after it was presented, it is a huge pleasure to start Lampredi’s masterpiece engine and hear that typical Integrale sound. The short gearshift and bone-hard clutch tell the driver that this is something special, something challenging, while the optimised suspension and differential give the driver the feeling of perfect power distribution, clearly geared towards the rear axle, although the Viola has the same 47:53 split as the Evo 2. Despite only a slight increase in power, this purple metallic rally hero is easy to control and direct in every situation.
For every Integrale fan it is the ultimate. It’s just a shame that Bruno Maggiora didn’t manage to persuade Lancia to let him produce it as the Evo 3.
‘These two cars perfect the driving characteristics of the models on which they are based’