Lancia’s current range of one solitary ugly car is probably the most pathetic of any car manufacturer alive today. But it wasn’t always like that.
Back in the 1990s Lancia was still, er… troubled, but nevertheless capable of absolute magic, and this was one of their most magical moments.
The Lancia Delta HF Integrale was the final evolution of a humble (and rather good) hatchback that started life way back in the late 1970s, eventually becoming a turbocharged all-wheel-drive rally homologation special.
The HF Integrale is now a seriously sought after car, which Eurobricks member Pingubricks has recreated beautifully in Model Team form. There are opening doors (no mean feat considering the wide-arch bodywork), an opening hood under which sits a detailed engine, and a realistic interior too.
An impressive suite of further imagery can be found at the rather underused Eurobricks ‘Scale Modelling’ forum; click the link to jump to see more of Pingu’s brilliant brick-built homage to one of Lancia’s finest moments.
The most remarkable Italian car manufacturer is not Ferrari. Lancia’s story is one of incredible technical innovation, fantastic racing cars, an appalling corrosion scandal, and now – effectively – their death at the hands of a parent company that really should try harder.
However even during Lancia’s painful decline they still produced the best cars in the world. This is one of them, the amazing Delta HF Integrale.
Based on Lancia’s 1980 ‘European Car of the Year’-winning family hatchback, the HF Integrale added turbocharging and all-wheel-drive, and in doing so became the most successful rally car in history. By the time it was retired the HF Integrale had won six consecutive Constructors World Championships (a record that is still unbeaten), fuelling the sales of over forty thousand road-going versions.
These two incredible recreations of the HF Integrale are the work of newcomer Zeta Racing, and they are – without doubt – some of the best Technic Supercars that we have ever published.
Each is spectacularly detailed both inside and out, merging both Technic and System parts to create an almost unbelievable level of realism. Stunning period-correct decals add to the authenticity, yet the exteriors – astonishing though they are – aren’t the most impressive aspect of Zeta Racing’s builds. For that you need to look underneath…
Hidden within each build is some of the most brilliant Technic engineering we’ve seen, with both Deltas qualifying for ‘Technic Supercar’ status, with working steering, gearboxes, highly detailed transversely-mounted inline 4-cylinder engines, and working suspension. But the functionally does not stop there.
Each model is also fully remote controlled thanks to LEGO Power Functions motors, operating the drive, steering, gears, and – if we’ve interpreted the images correctly – equipping Zeta’s creations with working brakes too.
It seems that in Zeta Racing we may have found our favourite new builder of 2020, and if you agree you can take a look at both his white and black Lancia Delta HF Integrales via the links, where you can also add yourself to his current ‘follower’ count of one (which is only us at present).
Zeta Racing has also uploaded several other astonishing Technic Supercars alongside these two incredible HF Integales, mostly of the Italian hatchback variety, which we’ll be publishing here over the coming days. Check back here for more soon, including some you may never have heard of…
It’s time for something rather special here at The Lego Car Blog; this is Bricksonwheels’ phenomenal Lancia Martini Historic Rally Team, formed of a a ’92 Lancia Delta Integrale Evo, an ’85 Lancia 037, and – proving Martini’s racing livery can make literally anything cool – a Fiat Ducato van, complete with tools, spares, and equipment. And each is amongst the finest examples of Lego model-making that you will ever see.
With expertly recreated liveries courtesy of fellow previous bloggee JaapTechnic, Bricksonwheel‘s creations are near perfect replicas of the stars of Lancia’s greatest era. And a Fiat van, but that’s a near perfect replica too.
Each model is built from around 2,000 pieces and includes fully detailed suspension, engine and interior, with every aspect constructed with mind-bending attention to detail.
There’s much more to see at Bricksonwheels’ Lancia Martini Historic Rally Team album on Flickr by clicking the link above, you can see the Delta Integrale’s individual appearance here at TLCB last year by clicking these words, and you can read Bricksonwheels’ interview as part of the Master Mocer Series by clicking here to learn how he creates amazing models like these.
This is the last Lancia World Rally Car, and therefore it may as well be the last Lancia, because embarrassments like this, this and this really don’t count. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Lancia’s owners, should probably just let the brand die (although to be fair they’re doing a damn good job of trying to kill it), however there was a time when Lancia were on top of the world.
This isn’t actually a car from that time, as the brand was in decline even in the early 1990s, but they could still really build a rally car. This glorious creation is a near-perfect replica of the mighty Lancia Delta HF Intergrale EVO, the car that gave Lancia their sixth (and final) consecutive World Rally Championship in 1992 – a record still unbeaten today – and which wore one of the greatest racing liveries of all time courtesy of Martini.
Built in Tour de Corse specification where the Delta Integrale EVO won in the hands of Didier Auriol, this amazing model is the work of Master MOCer Dennis Glaasker aka Bricksonwheels, who spent four months and 1,700 LEGO pieces to create this astonishing replica of Lancia’s final championship winning car.
With a fully detailed interior (complete with roll cage) behind the four opening doors and hatchback, a beautifully replicated engine bay underneath the opening hood, and some of the finest custom decals we’ve ever seen applied to a Lego model, Dennis’ Lancia Delta HF Integrale EVO is one of the most realistic rally cars that this site has featured yet.
A huge gallery of imagery is available to view at Bricksonwheels’ photostream, including some ingenious ‘x-ray’ style cutaways revealing the details within, and you can do just that by clicking here. Join us in amazement at the link.
Lancia now make the sum total of one car. One. And it’s not even very good. The writing appears to be on the wall for the once-great marque, so let’s not dwell on what the brand has become (thanks Fiat…), but instead on one of their very greatest hits, the mighty Delta Integrale 16v.
The Giugiaro-designed Delta was a good car when it launched in 1979, and ten years later it became a great one. Fitted with all-wheel-drive and a two-litre turbo-charged engine, the Delta Integrale produced 200bhp and could hit 60mph in under 6 seconds. It would take Volkswagen another decade to reach those figures with the Golf.
This top-notch Model Team replica of one of the world’s very best cars comes from TLCB regular Senator Chinchilla and you can see more of his Lancia Delta Integrale 16v at his photostream via the link above.
Lancia might be almost dead now, reduced to making Chrysler knock-offs (but uglier) for the domestic Italian market, but the company was once one of the most advanced car manufacturers in the world.
The Lancia back-catalogue is amongst the most impressive of any car maker, which makes their current situation even sadder. So rather than dwelling on the present we’re going to take a trip back to one of Lancia’s greatest hits, the incredible Delta HF Intergrale.
Based on the humble Delta hatchback, the HF Intergrale became one of the most formidable rally cars of all time, and because the rules of the time stated that WRC cars must have a road-going equivalent it meant that a lucky few were able to buy their very own version of the championship-winning rally car.
It’s the production-version that Daniel Helms has chosen to build in Lego form, and a brilliant job he’s done too. His recreation of the Italian icon was suggested to us by a reader and you can see the full gallery of his Delta HF Integrale on MOCpages by clicking the link above.
