This 1974 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale is the 44th of 492 factory-built examples homologated for World Rally Championship Group 4 competition. This particular car has had just two owners from new, and stayed in Italy for nearly 40 years before being brought the the US. It now shows 71,008 kilometers (~44k miles), and is a matching-numbers example that retains its original engine, transmission, chassis, and Bertone body as verified by marque expert Thomas Popper of the Lancia Stratos Owners Club. Power comes from a mid-mounted 2.4-liter Dino V6 delivering power to the rear wheels via a 5-speed manual gearbox. The selling dealer acquired this Stratos in Europe and completed comprehensive mechanical servicing in 2017 as detailed below to make it a turnkey driver. The car is now being offered with a clean Texas title and copies of its original title work documenting owner history, original insurance and registration slips, importation paperwork, the original owner’s manual, Lancia Stratos 1972-1985 book by R.M. Clarke, as well as copies of every owner’s/user’s/parts/technical data booklet available.
Body number 214 was completed at Bertone’s Grugliasco facility on June 25, 1974, painted Rosso Arancio Rally (color code 2-464-171) with red carpets, “Havana” seats, and a black dashboard, door panels, and seat backs. Final assembly was completed on July 1, 1974 with an invoice date of July 9, 1974. The car was first registered on July 8, 1977 with number plate TO R05675, and was driven about 20k kms over the next three years. It was then acquired by its second owner on June 18, 1980, and on May 25, 1981 it was registered with a new number plate, Roma Y70304, which it still retains in reproduction form today. The second owner added about 50k kilometers until 1984, when the car was stored and seldom driven.
The Stratos was homologated for the 1974 WRC season and proved hugely successful, going on to win the World Rally Championship in 1974, 1975, and 1976. The seller states that years ago this Stratos received an exterior repaint in correct Rosso Arancio Rally as it appears today. All Securit glass is claimed to be original including the windshield, which displays a period Automobile Club d’Italia decal as highlighted in the photo gallery below. There is a crack in the top left-hand portion of the windshield.
The vehicle retains its original Bertone/Scocca “214” body number stampings and tags on the trunk lid and wall, along both lower door hinges, on the left-front chassis, along the right-front chassis, and on the nearby supplemental Lancia plaque. All are pictured in the gallery below.
While under the seller’s care, the factory coilover suspension was rebuilt and restored by Italian Car Parts, the brakes were fitted with rebuilt calipers, new lines, and discs by Karp’s, and an adjustable sway bar linkage was installed. A new set of period-correct Michelin XWX tires have also been fitted. The Stratos road car has a curb weight of approximately 2,161 pounds.
Inside, this Stratos reportedly retains a high-level of originality aside from recovered seat bolsters. The seats are still fitted with their original “Havana” inserts, while the red carpets appear to be in good condition throughout. As shown in the photo gallery, the front compartment contains an original spare tire assembly, windshield washer pouch, and auxiliaries.
All features, lighting, and instrumentation are said to be in good working order. The odometer currently displays 71,008 kilometers (~44k miles), which is said to be correct based on included documentation and known history from new.
All Stratos road cars are powered by a Ferrari-derived 2.4-liter Dino V6, which was quoted at around 190 horsepower when new. The seller notes that the engine bay retains Stratos-specific components including the airbox, gas caps, and more. Servicing earlier this year included rebuilding the carburetors, all new fluids, filters, ignition system consumables, new coolant and oil hoses, and a new breather reservoir. Prior to this auction, a compression check was completed, and the seller quotes 180-200 psi in all six cylinders. Pictures of the results are included in the photo gallery.
This Stratos is fitted with engine #829A*000*001146* and transmission # 001163, both of which have been independently verified as original to the chassis.
The car was displayed at this year’s Concorso Italiano during Monterey Week where it won a class award. The seller emphasizes that this is a well-sorted Stratos that can be driven on an event or rally right now with confidence.
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