Graham Robson can certainly be considered an expert when it comes to rally cars. After all, he was responsible for the Triumph brand's motorsport program in the sixties and had the Spitfire transformed into a competitive rally car. He has been a writer since the seventies and has never lost sight of rallying.
So when he was asked for a list of the most important rally cars of the sixties to nineties, he didn't have to think too long and named the Ford Escort Mk1, the Escort RS 1800, the Lancia Stratos and the Fiat 131 Abarth alongside the Austin-Healey 100-Six/3000, Mini Cooper and Subaru Impreza. And he has dedicated a small illustrated book to each of these, along with other rally icons, on behalf of Veloce Publishing.
Instead of presenting them individually, we recommend all four in one go. However, we want to take a closer look at the Fiat 131 Abarth.
Making the (almost) impossible possible
Actually, the Fiat Group already had a very competitive car when they decided to counter the Ford Escort with a new opponent. Instead of the Lancia Stratos, the Fiat 131 Abarth was developed in order to have a car that the public would immediately recognize and that had something to do with their everyday vehicle.
In order to have a chance in racing, many modifications and a production run of 400 cars were necessary. The bodies were built at Bertone in 1975/196, 50 of which were reserved for the works team. It is clear that they were optimized for the lowest possible weight and high stability, as Robson also describes. The rigid axle at the rear gave way to independent suspension and the company also ensured that it had the best possible conditions for rallying.
The Fiat 131 Abarth fulfilled its mission, won the 1977, 1978 and 1980 one-make rally championship and brought drivers such as Marku Alén and Walter Röhrl many successes.
Technically sound
Robson does not stop at superficial descriptions. Where available, he shows photos and specification drawings from the period. Almost 60 pages are devoted to the technology, followed by a meticulous documentation of the rally entries up to 1981, when the 131 was in turn replaced by a thoroughbred Ralllye car, the 037 Rally from Lancia.
In addition to a brief summary of the victories at the end of the book, the chassis numbers of the works cars are also mentioned. And there is even a short index of keywords, bravo!
In the same style
The works on the Ford Escort Mk1, Escort RS 1800 and Lancia Stratos are written in a similar style to the Fiat 131 Abarth book. Even the number of pages (128) is the same, while the number of selected illustrations varies between 100 and 131, including the proportion of color photos.
Cheap
Each of the four books costs £ 15.99 or USD 25.00 from the publisher (at amazon.de it is EUR 17.55, there is also a Kindle version for EUR 14.99) and one should certainly not expect an oversized format or perfect printing. Obviously, savings had to be made on both. The books are designed as booklets and measure 195 x 210 mm. It is particularly noticeable with the large color pictures that compromises had to be made here. This is actually a pity, but the excellently written text (in English) compensates for these weaknesses.
For rally fans, these books are a real treasure trove of information.
Bibliographical details
- Title: Fiat 131 Abarth
- Author: Graham Robson
- Language: English
- Publisher: Veloce Publishing
- Edition: 1st edition 2008
- Format: Softcover, 195 x 210 mm
- Size: 128 pages, 100 color and black & white images
- ISBN: 978-1-787111-11-0
- Price: £ 15.99, EUR 15.99
- Buy/order: Online at amazon.co.uk, online at Veloce Publishing ( plus postage) or in relevant bookshops
Different specifications
- Title: Ford Escort Mk1
- ISBN: 978-1-787111-07-3
- Price: EUR 17.00 at amazon.de
- Title: Ford Escort RS 1800
- ISBN: 978-1-787111-09-7
- Price: EUR 17.97 at amazon.de
- Title: Lancia Stratos
- ISBN: 978-1-787111-08-0
- Price EUR 18.99 at amazon.de
