This Group 5 rally racer won the WRC championship in the silhouette category for two years running for 1980 and 1981. It was a bleeding-edge technological showpiece that ran a carbonfiber chassis and part-kevlar bodywork.
Great to meet this stunner at the Amelia Island Concours 2017, where it actually lives locally in the stunning collection of John Campion.
We had the pleasure of seeing its home garage before the concours and almost had to sit down from excitement. So much Martini Racing and so many authentic Lancia race-winners!
The Beta Monte Carlo turbo’s most dramatic angle and aero needs came from the back: its giant intake scoops ahead of the rear wheels could swallow a watermellon. And its ducted venturi tunnels behind the axle also serve as a vent for the flame-shooting turbo four. This 1.45-liter unit cranked out a whopping 450HP thanks to a KKK turbocharger the size of the engine block itself. Dry-sump lubrication and DOHC with primitive VVT help this beauty crank out 330 ponies per liter of specific output.
Favorite design detail? Must be the chainmail mesh covering the intakes at the base points of the rear wing.
1980 Lancia BETA Monte Carlo Turbo
Tom Burkart is the founder and managing editor of Car-Revs-Daily.com, an innovative and rapidly-expanding automotive news magazine.
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