The Delta Integrale is the most successful rally car of the Group A era and, unusually, a genuine road car rather than a homologation curiosity. Between 1987 and 1992 the Delta took six consecutive World Rally Championship constructors' titles and 46 WRC victories — a record no manufacturer has matched since. What makes it remarkable is how little separates the showroom car from the works one: permanent four-wheel drive, a turbocharged two-litre four, and bodywork that grew wider with each homologation step until the Evoluzione's blistered arches. It is a fast, tactile, slightly fragile car that rewards owners who read the service history before the spec sheet.
Model Histories
Lancia1987–1994 Reasonably documented
Delta (HF Integrale (1987–1994))
47,787 built · Five-door hatchback
Where sources differ
Total Delta HF four-wheel-drive family production 1986–1994 was 47,787 cars, including 7,665 Delta HF 4WD, 5,619 Evoluzione and 4,223 Evoluzione II.
Supercars.net gives 47,787 for the family. evo states "nigh on 45,000 Integrales", which does not reconcile with 47,787 less the 7,665 Delta HF 4WD cars. The variant-level figures are consistent across sources; the grand total depends on which cars are counted as Integrales.
Power rose from 185 bhp (8V) through 200 bhp (16V) and 210 bhp (Evoluzione) to 215 bhp (Evoluzione II).
evo quotes 182/197/207/212 bhp for the same four variants — consistently about 3 bhp below the figures elsewhere, which most likely reflects a different measurement standard rather than a factual disagreement.
How rare is it?
With about 47,787 built, the Lancia Delta is rarer than a 240Z (~160k) yet more common than a DeLorean (~9k).
250 GTO
McLaren F1
F40
DeLorean
240Z
Mustang '65–'68
Beetle
48k
Approximate total production placed on a log scale against well-known reference cars, for scale only. Figures and any disputes are detailed in the production notes and sources.
Production by variant
How the Deltarun breaks down — and which variants are the scarce ones. Approximate figures from this model’s cited sources.
Integrale 16V (1989–1991)~12,860 · 27%
Delta HF 4WD (1986–1987)~7,665 · 16%
Evoluzione (1991–1993)~5,619 · 12%
Evoluzione II (1993–1994)~4,223 · 8.8%
Rarest of the bunch: the Evoluzione II (1993–1994) — only about 4,223 built, roughly 1 in every 11 Deltas. If provenance and rarity drive your buy, this is the one to hunt.
Variants shown ≈ 64% of the ~47,787 built. Figures approximate; see Sources below.
History
From Delta to Delta HF 4WD
The unlikely starting point was a Giugiaro-styled family hatchback launched in 1979. Lancia's competition department needed a four-wheel-drive Group A car after the Group B ban, and the Delta's boxy shell turned out to be an ideal package for a transverse engine and a driven rear axle. The Delta HF 4WD arrived for 1986 with 165 bhp and won the 1987 championship in its first full season.
The Integrale proper
Homologation drove the shape. The 8V Integrale of 1987 added wider arches, larger brakes and 185 bhp. The 1989 16V brought a four-valve head, a more responsive Garrett T3 turbo and a torque split biased rearward at 47/53 — a meaningful change in how the car behaves on the throttle. The bonnet bulge that identifies a 16V exists because the taller engine would not fit under the old panel.
Evoluzione and the end
The Evoluzione of 1991 was the last works car, with a widened track, blistered arches and an adjustable rear wing. Lancia withdrew its factory team after 1992 but kept selling the car, and the Evoluzione II of 1993 was a road-car swansong: catalysed, 215 bhp, Recaro seats and a long run of special editions with names like Bianca, Club Italia and Dealers Collection. Production ended in 1994.
The record
Six constructors' championships and four drivers' titles — two for Juha Kankkunen and two for Miki Biasion — across 46 WRC wins. In 1987 the car won nine of the season's 13 rounds.
Common Problems
Rust in the structural areas listed above is the defining problem and the most expensive to put right properly. Cambelt failure destroys engines and the service interval is time-based, not just mileage-based. Turbo seals fail and are often masked by a recent oil change. Suspension bushes and top mounts wear quickly and transform the way the car drives when tired. Electrical gremlins in the dashboard and window mechanisms are near-universal. Parts supply for Evoluzione-specific body panels and trim is difficult and getting worse.
What to Look For
Corrosion is the first, second and third thing to check: suspension turrets, door bottoms, wings, windscreen pillars and the rear roof section, and be aware that a repaint can hide a great deal. Establish when the cambelt was last done — the interval is roughly every three years or 24,000 to 36,000 miles regardless of use, and the engine is an interference design. Check for turbo shaft play and blue smoke on overrun. Confirm the four-wheel-drive system engages without noise and that the viscous coupling has not seized. Original interiors are increasingly rare and Recaro bolsters wear badly. Finally, match the car to its claimed variant: arches, bonnet bulge and wing tell you what you are actually looking at, and misdescribed cars are common.
Market Notes
The Integrale market separated sharply over the last decade. Usable 8V and 16V cars with honest histories still trade around the £25,000 mark, while the very best Evoluzione and Evo II examples — low mileage, documented, ideally one of the named special editions — now command six figures. The spread within a single variant is enormous and driven almost entirely by corrosion history and documentation rather than mileage. A cheap Integrale is almost always a car that will cost more than a expensive one.
Sources
- Lancia Delta Integrale (1987–1994) – history, review and specs — evo · journalism
- Lancia Delta HF – Ultimate Guide & Research Hub — Supercars.net · journalism
- Lancia Delta HF Integrale 16v Guide — Supercar Nostalgia · journalism
Synthesized from the sources above and cross-checked. We cite and link out; we don’t republish other databases verbatim.
Nerd Notes
What owners know that the sources don't. Every note is read and checked before it appears here.
Key Specs
| power | 185 bhp (8V) rising to 215 bhp (Evo II) |
| engine | 1,995cc turbocharged inline-four, 8v then 16v |
| layout | Front transverse engine, permanent four-wheel drive |
| suspension | MacPherson struts front and rear |
| homologation | Group A, FIA |
| torque split | 56/44 front/rear on early cars, 47/53 from the 16V |
| transmission | Five-speed manual |
| differentials | Epicyclic centre with Ferguson viscous coupling, Torsen rear |
Notable Variants
Delta HF 4WD (1986–1987)
7,665 built. 165 bhp, or 150 bhp with a catalyst. Not an Integrale, but the homologation basis for everything that followed.
Integrale 8V (1987–1989)
185 bhp, wider arches, bigger brakes. The Group A homologation car that took the 1987 and 1988 titles.
Integrale 16V (1989–1991)
Roughly 12,860 built. New four-valve head and a more responsive Garrett T3, with the torque split moved to 47/53. Identified by the bulge in the bonnet.
Evoluzione (1991–1993)
5,619 built. Widened track, blistered arches, adjustable rear wing. The last works rally car.
Evoluzione II (1993–1994)
4,223 built. Catalysed 16-valve, 215 bhp, Recaro interior. The Katalysator version is sometimes wrongly called an Evoluzione III.
Value Trajectory
Values climbed steeply through the 2010s as the Group A generation reached collector age, then bifurcated: exceptional documented Evo II cars pulled away sharply while ordinary 8V and 16V cars plateaued. The market now pays a large premium for originality and provenance — a numbered special edition with its books can be worth several times a mechanically identical standard car. Rising restoration costs, driven by the difficulty of doing rust repair correctly on a unitary shell, continue to widen the gap between the best cars and the rest.
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