40 spring – Although it did not maintain the fame of the car from which it was derived, it was born from the same happy pencil. Designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro Publication launch It was unveiled by the Turin house in December 1982. Exactly forty years have passed, and it is certainly worth reliving its history. This is an additional reason in a moment of great enthusiasm for Lancia, which is starting to take its first steps towards writing its future (over here to know more).
CLOSE WITH “CULKY” CHARM – The highly successful style remains one of the main keys to the success of Delta, a two-volume “elegant” medium that seemed to be made for the good-natured lovers and ladies of Turin. The same cannot be said of its older cousin Publication launchwhich while retaining an appendixelegance From the car from which it mechanically derived (stylistically, it was light years ahead of many competitors at the time such as the Opel Kadett, Ford Orion, Rover 200 or Volkswagen Jetta), it has never managed to exude that charm with the same power that, in Sometimes only racing successes infuse it into a car (with the Delta, from 1987 to 1992, Lancia won six consecutive constructors’ titles in the World Rally Championship).
It’s not just a three-box delta – without going into accuracy, many today are still convinced that Publication launch It is nothing more than a “tail” delta. Well, it really isn’t. starting from Motors Petrol 78 hp 1.3 and 85 hp 1.5 (which, at launch, were joined by the more than 105 hp 1.6 derived from Fiat), the mechanics are of course common, but many of them – apart from the obvious “plus” of the third volume on the body – are differences between the two models. Any examples? The steering wheel is of a specific design, as in Waved, in which the headlight activation button is located; From unpublished form she is also seats, upholstered in a somewhat refined fabric. Details that, in a certain way, are more clearly accentuated, compared to the Delta and Trevi, including the Prisma at the time it entered the range of the Turin house, the elegant legacy of the great Lancias of the past.
The first diesel shaft – No matter elegance and style, the Publication launch You can be proud of an important priority. In 1984, in fact, the model became the first in the history of the Turin-based company to be equipped with diesel engine: a “quiet” 65 hp 1.9 four-cylinder engine mounted under the hood, already widely used in other models of the Fiat group. A year later, the range was completed with another diesel engine, but this time brighter thanks to the adoption of a turbocharger with intercooler: the version 1.9 turbodiesel The S can count on an output of 80 hp, which is enough to push it to the 170 km/h threshold (the 1.5, for comparison, stops at 165 km/h).
New look, unchanged elegance – In the 1986in order to Publication launchIt’s time for lightrefreshed“ to appearance. The grille has been slightly raised, the headlights are new, and the design of the hood and front bumper has also changed, now featuring a wider grille and more pronounced spoiler. As far as the mechanics are concerned, carburetor-fed petrol engines are equipped with a cut-off device that cuts off the flow of gasoline when the accelerator is released; The closeness of the wheels, and the relative inclination between the springs and shock absorbers, are also varied.
group top – always in 1986 debut there 4×4 versionCall “four wheel driveAnd starting the following year, the “Integrale”, like its cousin Delta, was preparing to rewrite the history of rallies forever. What distinguishes it from other models are the identification plates and the body adorned with two-tone paint (three combinations: light and medium gray, light and dark burgundy At the top of the equipment and performance range is the all-wheel drive version of the Publication launch It is powered by a 116-horsepower 2.0 injection engine, which allows it to exceed 180 km / h by leaps and bounds. Scheme Permanent four-wheel driveDeveloped in collaboration with Austrian Steyr-Puch, it consists of three differentials, with the central one self-locking coupled to a Ferguson viscous horn and the rear one that can be locked manually by pressing a button on the dash.
