Rallying is a fascinating sport. With dangerous roads that include an innumerable number of turns and jumps, sports cars built as if they could tackle anything coming their way, and the sheer bravery of the drivers and in some cases even the audience that stays real close to the actual track to spectate the sport of rallying with the best view possible, there is nothing quite like it out there.
Back in the early ‘80s, Lancia easily had a number of titles to its name and had built a reputation for itself. Audi was slowly trying to make its way to the top. All-wheel drive was unheard of in the rally races as it was illegal, and Audi wanted to do something about it.
This led the world to witness perhaps the greatest rivalry in rally sport between Audi and Lancia. Let's get to the bottom of this exciting rivalry which revolutionized rally racing.
Audi’s Rise in Rally
Back in 1977, Audi started developing a 4x4 vehicle for the German military. Soon, Audi wondered if they could implement this 4x4 drivetrain in their family cars. As expected, Audi went on to try and have this drivetrain implemented in their rally cars. But there was a problem, according to the 1979 FIA motor racing rule book, 4WD cars would not be admitted in rallying.
So, during the meeting of a sports governing body in Paris, Audi dispatched a man that successfully convinced them of removing that rule out. Back in the days, 4WD was found in lorries and similar commercial vehicles, not in coupes and sedans so the people at the meeting didn’t bat an eye and catered to Audi’s request. Enter ‘Group B’, also known as the golden era of rallying, from 1982, Audi developed the first 4WD car for rallying, the ‘Quattro’(many consider the Quattro as the most important car in rallying history). With a huge advantage in grip and traction on any surface, Audi went on a winning streak wherever they went, ultimately winning the 1982 world championship.
How does Lancia stack up against Audi?
In 1983, everyone who participated in the WRC(World Rally Championship) realized that to keep up with Audi’s dominant Quattro, they had to develop their cars with a similar 4WD as well. They all ended up spending a majority of their resources with some degree of success but ultimately falling short of Audi’s engineering department backed by the giant Volkswagen. And then there was Lancia, a team made up of Italians with a budget of a local football team. Instead of spending all of their budgets on developing a new drivetrain, Lancia came up with the ‘Rally 037’, a lightweight, mid-engined RWD car with a 2.1-liter inline-four engine that made 305 HP at 8,000 RPM. On one hand, Audi had VW backing them, a proven car, a team of motivated drivers, and Rolan Gumpert, an expert, hands-on mechanic as their boss. Meanwhile, Lancia had a fraction of their budget, a less grippy car, their team boss was Cesare Fiorio, a playboy and a powerboat racer, and their driver was Walter Röhrl, a rally driver who did not want to win the world championship.
What Exactly Happened On The Tracks?
The first round of the championship was in Monte Carlo. The rally stage was full of snow and in such slippery conditions, a mid-engine car with rear-wheel traction is not an ideal situation. While Audi prepared for it by fettling the cars to suit the needs of the road, Lancia went on to buy a lot of salt! Before it was their turn to race, Lancia would sprinkle salt on the dangerous turns with snow so by the time the car would get there, all the snow was gone. As a result, Lancia won 1st and 2nd place, defying everyone’s expectation of Audi winning.
The next event of the year was in Sweden, and there was so much snow that no matter how much salt Lancia tried to sprinkle over it, it would not be enough. Hence, Lancia did not show up at all, and Audi enjoyed 1st and 2nd place victory. The same story with the next rounds in Portugal and East Africa, Audi was on a roll. The next stage was in Corsica, where the stages were on dry tarmac, so Lancia showed up with four cars instead of two or three and won easily, Audi didn't even get 5th place due to mechanical failures. Next up was Greece, a stage famously known for sending the toughest cars to the repair shop. Miraculously, the German-built Audi's couldn't make it to the finish line but the Lightweight, Italian-made Lancia's held up and won the stage!
The Rally 037 was the star of the stage! After that, it was the turn of New Zealand and Argentina with tight competition between the two teams and with very close victories for both. After that, they all moved to Finland, the sheer number of elevations and slopes in the stage resulted in Lancia's main driver Walter Röhrl not showing up there! “If I liked flying, I would’ve been a pilot,” said Röhrl. Audi took an easy win over there.
Lancia Could Still Clutch the Championship
There were three more rounds left in the championship, so it was technically possible for Lancia to still win. Moreover, the last three rounds were held in Italy, so they knew they had to win as they would be doing so in their home country. The first of the stages was in San Remo. But there was an issue. The stage was so dusty, that it affected the vision and would hinder the drivers to give a good performance. Lancia tried to resolve it by faking some technical issues during the start time and let the dust settle before going. It worked just a couple of times. So, with everything out of the window, if Lancia wanted to win, it would all come down to the skill of the driver. And boy, did Walter Röhrl hit the mark. Giving a career-best performance, Walter drove the Lancia with such precision and skill, as if Röhrl and the 037 were one. It was an absolute pleasure for the spectators to watch him drive in those three stages. With both the driver and the car in perfect unison, Röhrl won Lancia 33 out of 58 stages that year, Lancia scored 1st, 2nd, and 3rd position in Italy and as a result, they won the world championship.
Looking Back At It Now
It is arguably a true David vs Goliath story in real life and here, David had beaten the 4WD Goliath. In the history of Rallying, no other two-wheel-drive car has beaten a four-wheel-drive car. The Lancia holds the record as its 037 remains the only car ever to do so. Even though they had technology against them, and a giant backing the research of Audi, Lancia was short on time and funds to develop something of their own.
Lancia did have one trick in its hat, experience. They had been in the rally sport for far longer, and have won the world championship 4 times with cars like the Stratos and Fulvia. Lancia had a lot going against them, yet the underdog came out on top and made history.