Year after year restomodding is becoming very popular, driven by the desire of building an own artistic reinterpretation of icons from the past and remember the golden years.

The EVO37 is one of the recently unveiled creations, which also aims to support the ‘Make Lancia Great Again’ movement. The car was born from an idea of Kimera Automobili, an Italian company founded by rally driver Luca Betti, with the aim of restore and manage Lancia rally cars (but also the street legal ones) from private owners and rally drivers.

The motto behind the EVO37 is ‘Autentica Evoluzione’ (Authentic Evolution) which immediately makes it clear how the project has been carried out trying to reflect as much as possible with the elements that distinguished the original RWD Group B beast.

Starting from involving the most important part of the original working group from the very beginning: engineers Sergio Limone, who approved the overhaul of the chassis and the setting of the car, Claudio Lombardi, exceptional engine technician (former Lancia and Ferrari F1 racing department), Vittorio Roberti and Franco Innocenti for the part related to the new construction process and the use of materials.

The car will also be tested by two-time World Rally champion Miki Biasion. Like the original rally cars, each EVO37 will use a Lancia Beta Montecarlo as a starting point. Only the central monocoque is kept to which, as in the early 80s, two (of course revised) tubular structures were welded, one front and the other rear, in which the mechanical parts were housed.

However on the EVO37 the tubular sections become load-bearing and the central cell becomes the “shell” of the new rollbar. The suspensions have been redesigned but maintaining the scheme of the original one. The engine remains with a central-longitudinal configuration, as well as rear-wheel drive.

For the engine Claudio Lombardi has comprehensively re-engineered the inline 4-cylinder with the help of Italtecnica to include the latest technology and retaining only the original monoblock used in Group B 037s. The result is a electronically-managed 2.1-litre 4-cylinder engine linked to a supercharger with the addition of a modern turbocharger setup that was inspired by the Delta S4. Thanks to this twincharged setup the max output resulted in over 500hp and 550 Nm of torque.

The 4-cylinder is linked to a 6-speed manual transmission and the curb weight of the EVO27 is around 950 kgs. The materials used for this restomod include carbon and kevlar, titanium, steel and aluminum machined from solid. Watch the factory development prototype being driven on the roads during the 2021 Passione Engadina event in the Swiss Alps!