New Stratos gets rallied, needs more dirt

When we first got word that someone was taking the time to resurrect the legendary Lancia Stratos, our minds immediately leapt to visions of the lethal little wedge meticulously dissecting the meandering ribbons of a rally stage. Apparently, that was exactly what was on Michael Stoschek's mind when he had the newest Stratos interpretation commissioned.

Stoschek recently entered his reimagined Lancia in the 2011 Sachsenrallye in Zwickau, Germany, and spent the better part of the competition caning his creation around the course. What exactly does a 532-horsepower, Ferrari-sourced 4.3-liter V8 sound like when spun in anger? Like the wailing of the gods.

We dig the fact that Stoschek is putting his darling child to work in the best way possible. At, 2,750 pounds, the Stratos looks to be a rocket on all accounts, and watching the machine careen through public streets flips all the right switches. But we aren't easily satisfied. We won't have a canary-eating grin on our lips until we see this thing tearing it up on a gravel stage. Hit the jump to watch the video for yourself.

Michael Stoschek und Dieter Hawranke, Sachsenrallye 2011 from New Stratos on Vimeo.