Thursday 16th November 2017
Dallara launches 855kg road car
Prolific motorsport manufacturer creates the Stradale - a dramatic and decidedly upmarket rival to the Lotus 3-Eleven
Dallara, the famed Italian manufacturer of racing chassis, has finally put its name
to a production car in honour of its founder, Gian Paolo Dallara - who turned 81 today. Named the Stradale, the flyweight track special is offered as a carbon-bodied roadster, but can be turned into a coupe by the addition of optional windscreen, roof and doors. It's powered by a mid-mounted 400hp 2.3-litre Ford Ecoboost engine - chosen for its tuning flexibility - and is based on a carbon fibre tub.
If that all sounds like a somewhat familiar recipe considering the extravagant €155,000 starting price (before taxes), then rest assured that it's all very much about who's doing the cooking. Dallara isn't just famous as a prolific manufacturer within motorsport, it has also regularly farmed its consulting expertise out to car makers - not least Bugatti when it needed help with the carbon fibre architecture of the Veyron. It also built the X-Bow in partnership with KTM.
In fact it is the frequent shuffling of its resources which has evidently kept the Stradale in development for two decades. Word of mouth though - and the allure of the Dallara badge - has apparently been sufficient to already sell out the first year's worth of production, with the first examples due to be delivered to buyers this week. The firm plans to make around 600 cars in the next five years - all to be sold direct from the factory.
In its most basic format, the car gets only a slender aero screen - and the kind of look which befits its 855kg dry weight. A removable windscreen and the carbon fibre frame to locate it are €16,600; a targa frame roof, €7,700. And if you'd like the see-through canopy 'doors', which hinge from the top, that'll be an additional €7,300. Throw in the optional rear wing to complement the conspicuous diffusers and an almost completely flat floor, and the 'coupe' version of the Stradale will reportedly generate up to 820kg of downforce.
Also on the options list are separate reservoir adjustable dampers and an oil pressure accumulator intended to help the four-cylinder engine cope with up to 2g of cornering load. Dallara eventually expects to offer a single-clutch automated gearbox, but for now the car gets a six-speed manual. Electronic stability control is provided, although naturally there's no power assistance to interfere with the steering's clarity.
Fully loaded - i.e. built to keep the rain off - the Stradale will set you back over £200K once Italy's 22 per cent VAT has been accounted for. The good news is that right-hand drive has been factored in at the design stage; the bad news is that Dallara doesn't intend on building any just yet. Either way, it's a mighty fine birthday present for the gaffer - and a fitting gift for a man who managed to work for both Enzo Ferrari and Ferruccio Lamborghini before founding the company which bears his name.
