Over at Evo there’s a nice story from Stephen Dobie about meeting his automotive hero. In this case it was the iconic and super, super awesome Lancia Delta HF Integrale. It’s a car that I have yearned for as well. Somehow or other Lancia arranged a mish-mash of awkward boxes to create one of the coolest cars of its era.
What they also made was one of the most effective rally weapons ever produced. And in those Martini Racing colours, well, it just doesn’t get any better than that.
So, what is the Lancia actually like to drive. Today, in the 21st century?
According to Dobie, “It’s slow (my Clio long-termer felt like a rocket on the return trip home), it has no brakes (there was a ‘disconcerting’ moment approaching my first roundabout…) and its list of idiosyncrasies is hilariously long. Not being able to read the speedo no matter how I positioned the seat was a highlight.”
But in true hero fashion those idiosyncrasies weren’t enough to deter him from drawing this conclusion, “Yep, it’s flawed, but it’s fantastic. I’ve met my hero, and I love it.”
I’ve been through a similar process recently after the purchase of a 1980 Mk1 Golf GTI. I hold the same opinion as Dobie, too, that my hero in a modern day context makes little sense. But as a driving experience it rewards like no modern car can. So, leave your thoughts in the comments section below, and tell us what is your automotive hero? One that, if it were for sale today, you would consider buying.
[Source: Evo]
