Lancia Stradale rally cars amongst the highlights of the RM Sotheby’s Essen Techno-Classica Show car sale in Germany in April 2019.
More than two hundred cars will be on offer at the RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 classic car auction. Some of the highlights include Lancia Stradale cars produced for homologation during the golden age of rallying: a 1985 Lancia Delta S4 Stradale, a 1984 Lancia 037 Stradale and a 1975 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale.
See also: Top Results at the RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 Sale.
RM Sotheby’s Essen Car Auction 2019
RM Sotheby’s first-ever Essen, Germany sale, is scheduled for 11 – 12 April 2019 during the Techno-Classica Essen Show. Plans are for Essen to join Paris, Monaco, Villa Erba, and London as regular RM Sotheby’s classic car auction venues in Europe.
Over 200 automobile lots will be offered with the only million-dollar-plus car a magnificent 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Cabriolet A by Sindelfingen, estimate €2,000,000 to €2,400,000.
The sale will also include a large number of Youngtimers (mostly BMWs and Mercedes Benz cars from the 1990s) that RM Sotheby’s is selling from a private collection in various auctions including Essen and Amelia Island. Several cars from this collection sold at remarkably high prices during the Paris Retromobile Week 2019 sale.
Lancia Rally Cars at RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 Sale
Several Lancia cars from the golden age of rally sport will be on offer at the RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 classic car auction:
The 1985 Lancia Delta S4 Stradale is among the highly desirable featured cars set for Essen. Manufactured as a Group B rally car, the Delta S4 was made by Lancia with the intention of replacing the outgoing 037, raced by Lancia in the early 1980s. The Delta S4 lived up to the reputation of its predecessor with a number of Group B wins, while the rally class homologation requirements led Lancia to build 200 road-going versions of the car, paving the way for the Stradale version, literally translated from Italian as ‘road going’. The Delta S4 on offer in Essen is a highly original example of the legendary Italian rally car, showing less than 2,200 km from new and complete with original owner’s manuals and toolkit (Est. €450.000 – €550.000).
The 1975 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale is one of only 492 produced as a mid-engine, rear-wheel drive race and rally car. Lancia dominated the World Rally Championship with the futuristic looking Stratos HF Stradale, finishing every season in first place from 1974 to 1976, and winning subsequent races until the car was retired in the early-1980s. Presented in unrestored, original condition, it was originally delivered to Guido Bignardi in Sicily. A member of a prominent Italian rallying family, the car remained with him for three decades before passing through just one more owner ahead of the consignor (Est. €480.000 – €520.000).
The 1984 Lancia 037 Stradale is another stunning and purposeful rally legend built to comply with homologation standards of ‘80s rally sport. Also delivered new to a member of the Bignardi family, the 037 was kept by its first owner until 2005 before being purchased by its third and current owner in 2015. Presented in exceptionally well-preserved condition and showing just 3,500 km from new (Est. €350.000 – €400.000).
A 1974 Lancia Fulvia (Est. €20.000 – €30.000) and 1970 Lancia Fulvia Rallye 1.6 HF ‘Fanalone’ (Est. €60.000 – €70.000) complete the Lancia motorsport line-up.
Maarten ten Holder, Head of Europe & Chief Auctioneer for RM Sotheby’s, comments: “These road-going Lancia rally cars have become iconic within the collector car community. The Essen sale is a great opportunity for an enthusiast or collector to acquire a part of motorsport history, and these cars are not commonplace within the market. Each car is offered in fantastic condition and buyers can look forward to enjoying the incredible driving experience they offer. The Essen sale has been curated with a diverse selection of cars on offer, many of which are highly sought-after within the German market, and we are looking forward to our first ever sale on German soil.”
Rounding off the rally theme is another iconic car of the 1980s, a 1985 Renault 5 Turbo 2 offered from the Youngtimer Collection in Essen. (A similar car will be on sale at the RM Sotheby’s Fort Lauderdale sale end March 2019.) As a perfect introduction to rallying’s 1980s heyday, the Renault 5 Turbo was born of Renault’s desire to emulate the winning recipe of the Stratos, and in so-doing gave the humble Renault 5 a new lease on life by moving its engine to behind the driver and switching to rear-wheel drive. This example was first registered in Germany but has gone on to owners in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Switzerland (Est: €80.000 – €90.000). The Renault is featured amongst 85 cars presented from the single-owner Youngtimer Collection at Essen.