Lancia to resurrect HF? I know, Ypsilon HF Integrale WRC!

Wait. Wait just one minute. These things can make or break your day, if you’re into cars, particularly certain brands and models. And two-letter special editions. Imagine, for a moment, the revival of the famous HF insignia. If you are a rally fan, you know your ways around brands and models, and you will know instantly what the HF is all about. Paired with Lancia Delta and completed with the surname Integrale, HF was and still is a building block of legends. And now, it seems, Fiat plans to resurrect it.

They will not put it on the current Delta, because current Delta is miles away from its sporty and racy ancestors. She’s like a wild kid who grew up, got a job as a secretary in a fancy office and now pretends to be a member of the high society just because she wears fancy clothes. No, current Delta is not very HF-y.

But Ypsilon is. At least that’s what Fiat thinks, according to Quattroroute. The small B segment car would receive a very nice treatment, from the 1.4 liter Abarth tuned turbocharged engine rocking out 160 HP to the uprated suspension, Brembo brakes, more direct steering and a 6-speed manual gearbox. Does that sound nice? It sure does. For a brand which once ruled the world and now relies of selling prepackaged Chryslers, anything that involves Abarth is a very good news.

What’s even better, imagine this for a moment. B segment car, turbocharged engine, Lancia, HF… bit by bit, step by step, and we could end up with Lancia rejoining the World Rally Championship. With the Ypsilon WRC. What? They can steal the four wheel drive system from Punto, even though two cars do not share platforms anymore. Perhaps this step into the WRC domain could happen with next generation Ypsilon, whenever they decide to launch it. I admit, I’m daydreaming a bit here, but if WRC does indeed grow big next year, and if Toyota finally decide to stop being silly and start being awesome again, we can hope the Italians would have to do the same.

Until then, the fate of HF revival is in the hands of the Fiat bosses. Quattroroute reports that they should make up their minds in the next couple of months. Dear bosses, bring HF back and then do the next logical thing – join the WRC.