1994 Lancia Delta Integrale Evolution II Giallo Edition – Auction Car of the Week
October 1, 2023
We adore the Lancia Delta. That should be apparent to any of our regular readers and we’ve featured a couple of them in the mag already this year; a HF Delta as a previous Auction Car of the Week and a HF 1.6 Turbo plucked from our pages for a recent Project Profile. Both are excellent cars in their own right but neither can hold a candle to today’s offering. Rarer than steak tartare and arguably the best iteration of this rally-bred legend (unless you’re a little unhinged and fancy the utter lunacy of the S4), the example we have here, available via our auctions platform, is the Evolution II Giallo special edition. Behold!
The Delta HF 4WD had already been used for rallying, and used incredibly successfully, but the first Delta to proudly wear the Integrale badge was the much improved ‘8v’ which came, unsurprisingly, with an eight-valve, 2.0-litre engine complete with a Garrett T3 turbocharger pushing out over 180bhp, 20 more than the previous HF.
Improvements would continue through the years and next up was the 16v and this is where things get interesting for the Integrale. Fitted with a new 16-valve version of the tried and tested 2.0-litre Fiat twin-cam the 16v bumped power to 200bhp. Developed specifically for competition the car would go on to win numerous rally titles, including both the drivers’ and manufacturers’ championships at the 1991 World Rally Championship and rightly cementing the car’s reputation as a bona fide racing legend.
We don’t think the term ‘quit while you’re ahead’ has ever been more applicable than when used to describe Lancia and the Delta’s illustrious rallying career. Lancia had certainly gone big but after that most successful of ’91 seasons the Italian firm took its ball and promptly went home, officially retiring from competition. That’s like The Beatles quitting after Sgt. Pepper’s, or Messi calling it a day after winning the Champion’s League with Barcelona in ’09. Whatever the case, it was a bold move but you have to respect it. Isn’t it better to burn out than fade away?
What came next for the Delta Integrale were two Evolution models, or ‘Evoluzione’. These were heavily revised versions of the previous HF cars with more muscular bodies and beefier engines. On top of these Lancia produced a number of limited edition model runs based on the Evoluzione, one of which was the Giallo model, just like the one we have here.
A variant of the Evo II cars, so producing 210bhp from that turbocharged Lampredi Four-pot, the Giallo cars were produced in limited numbers; 220 to be precise. These cars came resplendent in bright yellow paintwork and featured bespoke interiors that embraced the yellow theme, although a little less in your face than the exterior. Our car has been subject to extensive renovations this year after some time in dry storage, including full rust treatment and a window out respray meaning this car is now as good as it gets and that includes the well-preserved special edition interior.
The recommissioning work extends to the mechanicals, too and the car comes with full service history, including work by renowned UK Delta specialists Prestocar. On top of a full service, everything has had the fine tooth comb treatment, from the fuel and cooling systems to the electrics, and as such this Delta runs impeccably.
Evolution II Deltas are rare but the special edition Giallo model is in another league. Fully recommissioned and ready to roll, this stunning, late model car presents a wonderful opportunity to own one of Lancias, nay, the automotive world in general’s true greats. Head on over to the listing for the full rundown and get bidding. You won’t regret it.
