Italian rally driver Luca Betti has a history of participating in the European Rally Championship, heading the Kimera Racing Team, and founding a restoration shop named Kimera Automobili in 2020 to work with old Lancia vehicles. Apparently, the time has come for the company to produce its own car.
It should come as no surprise that the street-legal Kimera EV037 draws inspiration from the Lancia 037, a mid-engined Groupe B vehicle. Kimera has been mostly buying, restoring and selling Lancia cars lately, especially ones between 40 and 50 years old, so that makes the 037 a worthy candidate for continuation.
Lancia had originally intended to assemble no fewer than 200 road-legal 037 cars, but ended up making between 207 and 217 (sources vary) units in total, which includes racecars. The production took place from 1982 to 1984.
The ride came powered by a two-liter turbocharged mill rated at 205 PS (202 hp / 151 kW) and 225 Nm (166 lb-ft). This enabled it to hit 100 km/h (62 mph) in 5.8 seconds and ultimately go beyond 220 km/h (136.7 mph).
The modern replica will weigh in at around 950 kilograms (2,095 pounds) and feature composite details, LED lighting and a 2.0-liter engine rated at 550 PS (542 hp / 404 kW) thanks to a mechanical supercharger and a turbocharger. Buyers will be available to choose between a manual and a sequential gearbox to drive the rear wheels.
The full premiere will be held on May 22, 2021. The production run is expected to be limited to 37 units priced from €500,000. Later on, the company wants to piece together a dozen of Integrale AWD versions.