Pierugo Gobbato, a talented engineer turned executive who was known for constantly striving to push the boundaries of engine technical development, best-known as ‘father of the Stratos’ during half a decade in charge of Lancia, has died in Turin at the age of 90. The Stratos opened up a glorious new chapter that would lead on to the 037, Delta S4 and Delta Integrale, and three decades of stunning rally success at the very highest level that returned the marque to its rightful position of global admiration, cementing rally competition excellence into its DNA. As well as being a commercial success, the Beta Coupe also formed an integral part of Lancia's rally efforts during Gobbato's stint heading the Turinese marque. The amazing Lancia Stratos is the car that Gobbato will be forever synonymous with, an extreme road and rally car that transformed the image of the venerable marque, restoring its venerated status. Gobbato’s tenure at Lancia oversaw the successful launch of the acclaimed Beta family. Developed from a clean sheet of paper in less than three years and kicking off with the launch of the Berlina model at the Turin Show in November 1972, the Beta range would eventually grow to encompass Coupe, HPE, Spider and Montecarlo variants. "At the Turin Show, late 1970, Nuccio Bertone introduced a new car that was called Stratos," recalled Gobbato. "At first sight, I realized that we had found exactly what we needed. In the first version Bertone had fitted a Fulvia engine and the car was clearly underpowered. Bertone himself had driven the car to the Lancia main factory and it was not easy for us to remove him from the cockpit. It was equally difficult for me to reach the driver's seat."

Pierugo Gobbato, a talented engineer turned executive who was known for constantly striving to push the boundaries of engine technical development, best-known as ‘father of the Stratos’ during half a decade in charge of Lancia, has died in Turin at the age of 90. Gobbato enjoyed a long and influential career right at the heart of the Italian automotive industry during its heyday which took in spells with the Fiat Group and the then-independent Ferrari.

Born in Florence on June 18, 1918, Gobbato first made a name for himself in the post-war years during a decade-long stint at ‘Motori Marini Carraro’ in Milan, where he helped push forward the development of ‘Diesel Veloci’ (high-speed diesel engines), developing units that were considered revolutionary for the era. Moving on, in 1955, he took up a position with another important Italian marine engine company, Grandi Motori Marini, and continued his groundbreaking development work.

This depth of cutting-edge diesel engine knowledge took him onto SPA in Turin which produced trucks, buses and tractors, before progressing to the Fiat Group’s similar division where he was immersed in its agricultural machine sector. At the end of 1961 he returned to his first home, Motori Marini Carraro, where he oversaw its controversial union with OM.

A change of course saw Gobbato becoming the General Manager of Maranello sports car maker Ferrari, from 1965 until 1967, where he quickly became an influential player in the inner circle. In 1969 he was one of the facilitators of the sale of 50 percent of Ferrari to the Fiat Group, Gobbato using his close links with both Enzo Ferrari and Gianni Agnelli to help broker the deal.

Probably the period Gobbato is best remembered for though is his stint in charge of Lancia where he is respected by enthusiasts the world over for driving the fabulous Stratos project to fruition. In fact his association with the Lancia marque had started many years before. Twice times as a youngster he contested the Mille Miglia at the wheel of a Lancia: after piloting a Fiat 508CS Balilla Sport in the 1937 edition of the famed Italian road race, he switched to an Aprilia the following year (shared with Enrico Nardi), and contesting the race again in 1952 in an Aurelia B21. From Ferrari, he had switched to the Fiat Group, taking up an administrative role in the service division, and when the takeover of Lancia by Fiat was concluded in October 1969, the patronage of Gianni Agnelli saw him handed the General Manager’s role.

It was a big task, with Lancia lacking direction and having fallen away from its historical cutting-edge technical position. Sales were also plummeting, which left Gobbato with the mammoth undertaking of reviving the company and planning for its future. “In 1969, Fiat purchased Lancia and I started my work in the newly-acquired company,” he recalled. “The situation was dramatic. Low sales, sound but old-fashioned cars, no plans for the future, both in car and in truck departments. I realised at once that the best thing to do was to use what was really working: the racing department.  At the time they were contesting in the rallies with good results, using specially prepared Fulvias. Other car manufacturers however were working on new models and the hopes for the future were low.”

And so, casting his eyes around the decrepit company for any bright spots to build on, he found its only ‘extravagance’ in the competition department, HF Squadra Corse, headed by the experienced Cesare Fiorio. In 1972, and with the Stratos project already gaining momentum, Sandro Munari pulled off a startling and unexpected victory on the Rallye Monte Carlo with the by-then ageing Fulvia, and this had the effect of galvanising support within the company for the rally programme, strengthening Fiorio’s hand. As a result, after numerous talks with Fiorio, Gobbato saw excellence on the rally stages as the logical way forward. It was an astute decision that saw an era of unparalleled success in rallying ushered in, with the frenzy of winning going hand-in-hand with Lancia’s revival.

The amazing Lancia Stratos is the car that Gobbato will be forever synonymous with, an extreme road and rally car that transformed the image of the venerable marque, restoring its venerated status. At a conference in Milan in March 2000, Gobbato recalled the project: “At the Turin Show, late 1970, Nuccio Bertone introduced a new car that was called Stratos. At first sight, I realised that we had found exactly what we needed. In the first version, Bertone had fitted a Fulvia engine and the car was clearly underpowered. [Nuccio] Bertone himself had driven the car to the Lancia main factory and it was not easy for us to remove him from the cockpit. It was equally difficult for me to reach the driver’s seat. While the final version was presented in various car shows in other countries, we were working on the car in order to make it more suited for practical use. The car was difficult mainly for the driving position and the small ground clearance.

“The Stratos story is not as straightforward as one might think; we had a lot of troubles,” Gobbato continued. “The car was born to be a prototype, to race and win. When the International Automobile Federation rules were changed and required a minimum of 500 cars to be manufactured in order to race in rallies, our problems started.

"We had thought to build maybe nine or ten cars. Now the situation had become very difficult. And not everybody in Fiat was enthusiastic about the program. At the time Lancias arrived first and Fiats second, but they spent the money. Pressure was made in order to cancel the whole program. Ferrari himself told me that he had great difficulties in giving the 500 engines we needed.

“I understood that pressures had been applied on him. Nuccio Bertone was a great support and assured me that his plant was ready to build the 500 cars. Then, again, I asked Enzo Ferrari for the engines, but he told me that he wasn’t able to produce the number required. Then I asked for speaking with Avvocato Gianni Agnelli. I was sure that he liked the idea of racing with those cars; I met him on November 7, 1972. I told him of the difficulties we had met and that I did not understand why it was now impossible to get the engines. I asked him if I could solve the problem in another way. Agnelli was surprised and asked: ‘What do you mean?’

“At the time Fiat had an agreement with Citroën and Lancia was studying a two-litre car in co-operation with the French company. Working together was very difficult, however, and I felt that the cooperation was nearing the end. Citroen had purchased Maserati some time before; they had a 3000cc engine, which they used in the Merak, that could be put in the Stratos. I was afraid that ‘l’Avvocato’ was thinking to fire me, convinced that I was mad, but instead he told me to try this way. So I went to Modena and met Mr Malleret, Managing Director of Citroën-Maserati, in order to tell him about our idea of using their engine. He was interested, but told me that had to talk with the head office in France.

“At the end of November the cooperation between Fiat and Citroën came to an end. I was worried, but some days later Mr Malleret called me, saying that Citroën-Maserati was ready to supply the engines but a request made by Avvocato Agnelli was needed. I spoke again to Mr Agnelli, and some days later Maserati informed me that they were ready to supply not only the 3000cc engine, but even the 4200, if we liked. In January 1973, I met Mr Malleret again and we were ready to start the operation. Quickly Ferrari was informed (he always knew what was going on inside Maserati) and was upset. He called me and said that his factory was ready to supply the engines. I replied that I was going in a different direction, but he told me: ‘Oh, no, we were only joking!’

“From that moment on, Fiat had a different attitude towards our program. Actually, had things not changed in this way, we would have used Maserati engines. We started building the cars, which were homologated (as Grand Touring, Group 4) in October 1974. The inspectors of the Automobile Federation counted the 500 cars that were parked in our Chivasso factory.”

In true Italian style, the Stratos was immediately out pounding the rally tracks, laying the basis for a rally heritage which would latterly include the 037 Rally, Delta S4 and Delta integrale – three decades of stunning rally success at the very highest level that returned the marque to its rightful position of global admiration, cementing competition excellence into its DNA. “During 1972 we worked on the settings and the final tuning of the car,” Gobbato noted. “The car handled and ran well but the rear suspension was not completely developed. The problems we had to cope with weren’t easy to solve: the car was largely unpredictable in his behaviour on the road. This problem was also detected by Munari, who had to retire in the first race, the Tour de Corse, run in November 1972.

“The same handling problems, caused by the rear suspension (that, as requested by Fiorio, allowed [adjustment of] the rear ground clearance according to road conditions) were evident in the second race, the Costa del Sol Rally. Finally we solved the problem with the help of Mr Camuffo and his team. In order to reduce manufacturing costs, the hub carriers were made in pressed steel sheet; in operation they warped and the same happened to the lower arms brackets of the rear suspension. The rubber bushings were too flexible and caused modifications of the wheel camber. Soon these defects were eliminated, but it hadn’t been easy to understand the points at fault.

“The early design of the chassis was carried on with the help of Mr Di Virgilio, who later went back to road cars design; his role was taken by Francesco Faleo, a specialist in the field. At first, we thought to use double wishbone suspension on all four wheels. The adoption of the Dino engine, transversally mounted, made this impossible, and we then used transverse lower wishbones and telescopic struts. 

“After the teething troubles were sorted out, the car was ready and fully competitive.  Munari and Mannucci won the first race, the Firestone Rally, in 1973. In [the] Targa Florio the car had to race against Ferrari’s 312 P, Alfa Romeo’s 33 TT 12, Porsche’s Carrera RS and other very powerful and fast racers. The Stratos was second overall, while the race was won by Müller and Kinnunen in a Porsche Carrera. Ferraris and Alfa Romeos had to withdraw. Our drivers were Munari and Andruet. When the driver seat brackets broke, the seat was blocked in the full rear position. Munari was tall (while Andruet was tiny), so Munari had to drive for nine out of eleven laps. In 1974, 1975 and 1976, [the] Stratos completely dominated the Rally World Championship.”

In the midst of this, Gobbato’s tenure at Lancia oversaw the successful launch of the acclaimed Beta family. Developed from a clean sheet of paper in less than three years and kicking off with the launch of the Berlina model at the Turin Show in November 1972, the Beta range would eventually grow to encompass Coupe, HPE, Spider and Montecarlo variants. At a difficult time for the industry generally, owing to the global economic problems of the era and particularly the oil crisis, Gobbato’s steady hand and the qualities of Lancia’s new midsize car revived the manufacturer’s fortunes, with the model helping to drive a sales turnaround and paving the way for the launch of the range-topping Gamma, which would emerge just prior to the end of Gobbato’s reign.