The Lancia Delta HF Integrale is one of the last truly iconic mainstream Italian performance cars. It holds that status because of its immense success in the world of rallying, which it dominated for six years straight after its debut. Road-going Integrales were also highly-appreciated in their day, and now they are highly sought-after modern classics.
In the video that you will find after the virtual jump, EVO Mag’s Harry Metcalfe shows off his very own recently-purchased example, which looks to be in mint condition. It’s a late 1995 model, one of the last Integrales to have ever been made, and features the more powerful 16v engine, which also gets a modest increase in power up to around 240 hp.
The car, being designed to cope with harsh rally conditions, has a clever all-wheel drive system, huge wheel travel for a small hatchback and direct precise steering. Also, having one of the first two-liter turbo engines, it does suffer from a bit of turbo lag which for some it may detract from the experience of driving, by dulling down the throttle response, while for others, the challenge of keeping the engine on boost is just one more reason to have one.
By Andrei Nedelea
VIDEO