Kimera Evo38 set to launch as rally weapon inspired by Lancia 037

Italian motorsport firm Kimera Automobili is preparing to launch the Evo38 - the latest iteration of its significantly modernised and updated take on the Lancia 037 Stradale.

Set to be unveiled on 22 February before appearing at the Geneva motor show, it will have wide-reaching dynamic revisions to make it even more potent than its predecessor, the Evo37, including the introduction of four-wheel drive.

Said by the brand to be "the Group B [car] that everyone would have wanted and that never came to be", the road-legal rally racer will be shown at Geneva sporting the iconic Team Martini Racing livery and is expected to feature a slight evolution in design from its predecessor. 

Official preview images show a silhouette similar to both the Evo37 from 2021 and the legendary 037 Stradale. It gets circular daytime-running lights reminiscent of the Delta S4, two red grille openings, a large bumper-width rear spoiler, and aero-optimised front and rear wings.

The brand said the Evo38 will "take up the philosophy and spirit of a legendary team that had brought Italian technical excellence to the world, which wanted once again to surpass its limits, and progressively to improve its creation."

The preceding Evo37 was powered by a 2.1-litre twin-turbocharged four-pot, producing 500bhp, 369lb ft and a claimed 0-62mph time of 3.0sec. Power was sent to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox. 

Official performance figures for the Evo38 have yet to be released. However, we expect it to deliver even more impressive numbers than the Evo37, thanks in part to the introduction of four-wheel drive.

Inside, the Evo38 is expected to feature exposed carbonfibre and Alcantara upholstery, as on the previous car, with additional nods to its rallying heritage such as a hydraulic handbrake, an analogue instrument cluster and four-point racing harnesses. 

Pricing is not yet known, but the previous car was estimated to be around £406,000 and sold out within months of orders opening. So it is reasonable to assume that the Evo38 will be around the same sort of money.