Luca Napolitano celebrates Lancia’s 115-year history, with the third and final episode of the docufilm “Elegance on the move”

• In episode 3 of the docuseries on 115 years of #lancia history, entitled “Dust and Stars”, #lucanapolitano, Chief Executive of #lancia, talks about the strong bond between the brand and the world of rallying on the one hand, and with the world of cinema, the arts and communications on the other.
• The guests for this installment are Sergio Limone, Head of Design and Testing for the HF #lancia Racing Team, and Marco Testa, President & CEO of Armando Testa.
• This brings to an end our journey through time, from 1906 to the present day, to discover a brand that always remained in people’s hearts, for its glorious past of beautiful, innovative cars with a timeless design, symbols of Italian excellence around the world. The brand is now stepping forward to play a major role in the premium car market.
• Episode 3 of the docufilm can be viewed here. 

Now on air is the third and final chapter in the “Elegance on the move” docufilm, in which #lucanapolitano, #lancia CEO, celebrates 115 years of the of history of #lancia brand, talking with some of the big names of its past and present. Entitled “Dust and Stars”, this episode tells the story of Lancia’s role in motorsport and in the world of cinema and communications, fields united by their shared ability to excite and feature in the dreams of thousands of enthusiasts around the world. To celebrate the occasion, #lucanapolitano met up with two special guests:  Sergio Limone, Head of Design and Testing for the HF #lancia Racing Team, and Marco Testa, President & CEO of Armando Testa.      

“This third and final episode of the documentary #film on the brand’s 115-year history starts off in the world of rallying, where it all began, then moves on to review the great successes #lancia achieved. These victories have given #lancia the most wins of any brand in rally competitions, with the #lancia Delta having won more awards in this field than any other car ever. But there is also another chapter in our history, the one that speaks of the great love felt for #lancia by millions of fans and enthusiasts all over the world: in cinema, the arts and communications in general,” stated #lucanapolitano. In these fields, its cars have also come to epitomise the Italian culture of beauty and a job well done.     
“A legend that remains current to this day, one we will be celebrating all together on November 27th, to say happy birthday to #lancia and its never-ending and enchanting Italian elegance.” 

Lancia in Rallying

When talking about rallying, one cannot go without mentioning #lancia and the love felt for it all over the world thanks to it winning more rally competitions than any other manufacturer.
An extraordinary haul of awards that has taken #lancia to the Mount Olympus of motorsport: fifteen World Rally Championships, three Constructors’ and Endurance World Championships, one Mille Miglia, twice winning the Targa Florio and once the Carrera Panamericana. The memory then shifts immediately to the 1970s and ’80s, when legendary models – such as the Stratos, 037 and Delta – dominated rallying for over 20 years. 

“Without #lancia, rallying could never possibly have been the sport picked by millions of fans and could never have taken over quite so many column inches,” said Sergio Limone, Head of Design and Testing for the HF #lancia Racing Team. “Lancia didn’t only dominate the world of competitions in technical terms, it also did so from a sporting perspective. Innovative cars, but also innovative solutions in terms of race management: the #lancia Racing Team was the first ever to change tyres during a special stage, to optimise tyre wear according to the type of surface they were used on. Another first. That's why #lancia is so well-loved all over the world.” 

The Heads of #lancia immediately took note of this kind of competition, which highlight the brilliance and road holding of these mass-production cars. It should be noted that Lancia’s sporting exploits go way back in time, to the founder’s passion for competition and his wins in various races in the 1908-1909 season. Once he started the company, he gave up competing and devoted all his resources to designing road cars. Between the 1920s and ’40s, #lancia cars owned by private customers would win various speed races, followed in 1951 by the Turin automaker’s official return to racing – decided on by Gianni #lancia, the founder’s son and a motorsport enthusiast himself. A year later, the Scuderia #lancia team was established, with its emblem a little elephant at a gallop. In 1954 to '55, the #lancia D50 single-seater played a major role in Formula 1, ending its sporting exploits and marking Lancia’s withdrawal from racing. Later – in the 1960s, the Italian brand made an official return to competing in rallies and the #lancia Racing Team was reborn, with the little red elephant as its emblem and the initials HF (‘High Fidelity’). 

1974 saw the official debut of the #lancia Stratos HF, the first car in the world to be designed specifically for rallying, its sole mission to be unbeatable on any terrain: on tarmac, gravel, snow or race circuit. Conceived without compromise, the Stratos HF therefore took on the Ferrari Dino 2.4-litre V6 – agreed to by none other than Enzo Ferrari himself. Only 500 models of this car were ever built, as required for type approval in Group 4. Its power and determination made it unrivalled; it won three consecutive World Championships (1974, ’75 and ’76) and was retired from competitive racing in 1978. 

In 1983, another win came in the World Rally Championship, with the Rally 037. Sergio Limone: “The era of four-wheel drive had already begun, but the 037 – with its rear-wheel drive – was still the car to beat, even on dirt tracks, and was the only car that could compete with the Audi Quattro. The 037 was technically superior, so much so it made the Audi team suspicious. During the Sanremo Rally, they sent their own technician to one of our service points. The technician came by helicopter to check that the #lancia hadn’t been fitted with front-wheel drive on top. Actually, it hadn’t been. Another #lancia record: the 037 was the last two-wheel drive car to win a World Championship.”

Further information in the press release to download