Delta Force Lancia’s iconic Integrale hot hatch has been given a thoroughly modern – and rather expensive – makeover.
AUTOMOBILI AMOS DELTA FUTURISTA by ANTONY INGRAM
Think the Lancia Delta Integrale is already perfect – rust and reliability issues a side? You probably aren’t alone. But you’ve also not accounted for the recent trend in reimagining classic vehicles, updating them with modern build quality standards, trim materials and engineering improvements. Latest to enter the fray is Automobili Amos, whose Delta Futurista aims to improve one of Italy’s greatest driver’s cars by reworking almost every aspect while retaining the character and feel of the original.
In the words of company founder Eugenio Amos, the Delta Futurista is ‘my romantic vision in a world that is too a septic, too fast, that runs like the wind, superficial and intangible’, and a car that is ‘pure, analogic, raw and essential’. Amos has ‘cut away the fat’, supposedly leaving only what matters. Or, if you like, it’s an Integrale with Singeresque over tones. Its mooted € 300k (£266k) price tag makes it several times the price of a tidy Evo 2, though, so buyers will have to share Eugenio’s vision to justify the outlay.
1 BODY AND STRUCTURE
Yep, that’s a three- door Integrale you’re looking at, albeit one whose flares are even more prominent than usual and whose remaning doors are standard-size, resulting in slightly unusual rear-heavy proportions. The rest is further removed from standard: the front and rear bumpers (the latter with a diffuser), bonnet, tailgate, front facia, front wings, sills and spoiler are all carbonfibre.
Elsewhere the body work is steel, while elements such a s the bonnet vents, front grille and side vents are metal rather than plastic. The headlights are commercially sourced, while the tail lights are custom-made. The structure itself remains the original steel, but the carbon content ha s helped shed around 90kg from the standard car – ‘around 1250kg’ is quoted.
2 DRIVETRAIN
Once among the quickest of cars down a sodden B-road (even if your name wasn’t M Biasion or J Kankkunen), the last couple of decades of technic al progress mean even the average hot super-mini makes a standard Integrale look a little undernourished these days. Extra power was therefore a given, but at around 330bhp – up from the 182-212bhp of the original Integrales – there’s not so much that it’ll be unusable. Changes include a tuning kit by Autotecnic a, a motorsport ECU, an upgraded wiring loom and improvements to the intercooler and oil cooler, a s well a s a Group A radiator. Both the induction and exhaust systems are new, too. Meanwhile the four-wheel- drive transmission, differentials and driveshafts have all been upgraded.
3 INTERIOR
Inspiration for the cabin came from the Delta S4 Stradale, with Alcantara stretched over virtually every surface. The front seats are Recaros, while the retro three-spoke wheel sports buttons for the indicators and high-beam – a neat rally-inspired touch.
The centre console and dashboard panel are carbonfibre, the latter home to a bank of custom-made switches, including one conspicuously coloured red and with a rocketship graphic on it; its purpose had not been revealed a s we went to press. A large, LCD gearchange indicator a gain hints at the car’s rallying heritage, while the standard-looking gauges are actually new and are marked with the Automobili Amos logo. Blissfully absent is any form of infotainment system, though there is keyless entry.
4 CHASSIS
Pretty much ever y thing underneath the Futurista has been either upgraded or replaced. Much of the undercarriage is aluminium, including the front upper and lower control arms and uprights, as well as the mounting s for the front and rear anti-roll bars (the bars themselves are steel). The wheels are aluminium, too, and at 18 inches look massive even under the new arches (the Evolution 2’s wheels were two inches smaller in diameter). Tyres, at least on this first show car, are Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R 225/40 ZR18s. Brake discs, calipers and pads are new. Notable is the inclusion of electronic ally controlled dampers, but details on the specifics have not yet been announced, though hopefully they’ll take the edge off those larger wheels…
SPECIFICATION
Engine In-line 4-cyl, 1995cc, turbo
Max Power 330bhp
Max Torque 299lb ft
Weight c1250k
Power-to-weight c268bhp/ton
0-62mph 4.0sec
Top speed 155MPH
Basic price c€300,000
On sale in UK 2020
‘EXTRA POWER WAS A GIVEN, BUT AT 330BHP THERE’S NOT SO MUCH THAT IT’LL BE UNUSABLE’
