Keith Martin was not joking... he honestly didn't know the difference. Here is 1882 and her garage mate. Notice the different air filter box... the car has the competition cross-ram intake manifold and larger Webers, as well as larger valves and a larger-bore exhaust manifold. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I only get to see/drive my Stratos on weekends and now that I'm looking at all these photos I can't wait for Saturday. It really is such a special car! The sound, the rawness, the immediacy! I drove my 997.2 gt3 rs last weekend and while much faster, compared to the Stratos, it felt big and soft, the controls remote and dumbed down. Not nearly as exciting...
Actually, there were 2 of them, purchased by the commie government for Andrzej Jaroszewicz (not the best driver in Poland but happened to be the son of the Prime Minister). He wrecked promptly one of them and surviving drivetrain and other parts were transplanted into Polonez sedan to make it a race/rally car (Stratopolonez). Second car disappeared in 1979, some say it was stolen, some say it was made to disappear to prevent the embarrassment of certain people in government (rise of Solidarity Union, drastic changes in government). Supposedly now it is taken apart and sitting in a barn somewhere on the Coast. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Not to defend Keith Martin, but there are several companies making Stratos replicas in the UK, maybe that's what he meant? I'm sure he knows what the car is.
Indeed, "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." Speaking of Poland and wrecking rally cars, Kubica is pretty good at it as well. Although he is very talented.
Love Kubica! His passion for rally racing ended up costing him a super promissing F1 career and millions of dollars. Gotta respect that!
You can spend your time going round and round in circuit going nowhere perfecting the same 20 corners over and over and over or you can spend your time rallyracing where you do thousands of different corners with only once chance to nail them -sideways - mastering multiple racing surfaces (tarmac, gravel, snow, ice - sometimes a combination thereof all on the same stage) with excitement of jumps, watercrossings, wildlife and cattle in road, no cushy pansy runoffs and in scenic countyside. I too prefer the later.
To me, rallying is the only true and real racing, demanding a real talent and skill. Tried it and really wanted to succeed but found out that I just wasn't talented enough. (was a navigator instead in 1979/80/81 factory team P.FIAT)
...and it's never the same as the terrain constantly evolves and you have to adjust in real time. It's also the one mainstream form of motor racing where the element of danger still remains very present. The real deal! I wish I had the talent...
Started in F125 Acropolis (2.0 l engine from F132 upgraded to about 180HP), followed by 131 Abarth and ended in Ritmo 125TC.
Chassis 1948 coming up for Auction at Gooing in Scottsdale. Anyone know the history? Image Unavailable, Please Login
Well, Barchetta's site has Stratos SN 829ARO0011948 painted like this: https://barchetta.mediacenter.pro/?i=2396100&rd=1964537&fd=2105692 Gooding has the VIN as ARO001948. I think the Barchetta car SN is odd in that I've never heard of a Stratos SN with 5 last digits. So I'll bet it's Phillip Toledano's car that he got from Germany. Phil is in New York. From an old FerrariChat thread, when Phil was looking for a Stratos and found one: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/other-italian/313197-looking-buy-lancia-stratos.html The FerrariChat gentleman, "Stratos," is arguably one of the most knowledgeable Stratos people on the planet. He concludes with this about that the car in question, likely 001948: "The car you're looking at has been on sale for over 6 years. I would start asking myself questions on this fact alone. It didn't sell at auction in Monaco in 2006 and had a high bid of 90K€. I also think it may have had a front crash you need to carefully check geometry. Used to be light blue, has several non original parts and is missing others which are particularly hard to find. If you intend to go through a full restoration go for it if the price is adequate."
few more pics Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
The intimate cabin photo above reminded me that passenger sits so close to the driver that I frequently would bop the passenger's leg when shifting into 4th or 5th gear.
I drove my Stratos yesterday to relieve some stress. Took it through some twisties and some sweeping country roads. It's just such an engaging car to drive. The baritone symphony behind your head really sings as you open throttle and the RPMs exceed 4,000. The steering response is immediate and direct. I actually find it quite easy to drive if you maintain discipline on when to brake, turn, and throttle. I can't think of another car that is quite like it in any way. An unbelievable blend of Lancia, Ferrari, and Bertone (Gandini) that created the ultimate rally weapon. Needless to say the stress was gone.
