One to Buy: Wing-less 1975 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale
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Although the likes of Pininfarina, Zagato and Ital Design came up with some memorable creations during the late 1960s and mid 1970s, it was Bertone that emerged as king of the wedge era.
In addition to an array of striking concepts, Bertone proved uniquely capable of applying its spectacular hard-line design language to genuine production cars that looked as though they had rolled straight off a show stand.
Alongside the Lamborghini Countach, arguably Bertone’s most famous icon that made it to the street was the epic Lancia Stratos. However, whereas the Countach served its time as a purebred road car, the Stratos was created as perhaps the most unlikely rally weapon ever conceived.
Unsurprisingly, having been conceptualised with the sole intention of dominating motor sport’s roughest, toughest discipline, the Stratos went on to win three straight World Manufacturers’ Championships between 1974 and ‘76.
Although production ostensibly took place between July 1973 and July 1974, a good number of Stratos weren’t fully finished until well into 1975. Owing to the car’s formidable turn of speed, many were subsequently converted to Group 4 trim by their owners and rallied hard for many years.
One car to have escaped the rigours of the special stages was chassis chassis 001916 currently on offer at the Girardo & Co. showroom in Oxfordshire.
Completed in January 1975 and configured in Rosso Stratos with beige seats and red carpet, 001916 was one of the few Stratos not to have been fitted with the aggressive spoiler pack homologated in November 1974.
Delivered new to a Swiss customer with whom it remained until 1988, chassis 001916 then returned to Italy and in 2006 moved to the UK. A five owner car from new, it looks to be in superb condition throughout and is said to have been fastidiously maintained by its most recent custodian who has owned it since 2008.
