Some have dubbed it the “most extraordinary concept car ever”. The Lancia Stratos Zero remains one of the greatest concept cars, with design ramifications that are so vast that it deserves a book for itself. Not only did it influence almost every Lamborghini since the Countach LP500, and give birth indirectly to the greatest rally weapon, the similarly named Lancia Stratos HF Rally, but its impact was far and wide at every level of design, automotive or otherwise. The use of LEDs, sequential indicators and flat digital screens – all commonplace today – were first suggested in this time machine. Even more astounding was the fact that the Stratos Zero was a drivable device unlike many other flights of fancy from then (or, for that matter, today).

No doubt the Stratos Zero is as impractical as most automotive concepts, but at the same time: how many concept cars are there that look even more sensational today than they did half a century ago?

Yes, a few may be named, but did they work? What lovechild, what bloodline did they leave behind? What ideas did they suggest that we could see today in everyday cars? Which other concept starred both in cinemas and art museums?

• ISBN: 978-1-956309-20-1
• Page count: 336
• Images and Illustrations: 463
• Page size: 219 x 304mm

Often, very often indeed, when it comes to exceptionally beautiful, surprising, and design-defining vehicles, two names appear: Marcello Gandini and Giorgetto Giugiaro. It simply seems that these two Italians were able to incorporate an extra touch of elegance and refinement into their designs. But when it comes to that little bit of madness, Marcello Gandini often had the edge: Miura, Countach, Stratos, Carabo - all magnificent masterpieces. The predecessor of the Lancia Stratos - with the beautiful name Lancia Stratos Zero - was even more radical.

An object not even a meter high, lying on the ground, and you're always afraid of tripping over it or stepping on it. The most radical wedge of them all, accessible only via a glass plate that opens wide upwards, beneath which lies a kind of mattress on which one must lie before being driven along – as if in a coffin. Built on the basis of a wrecked Lancia Fulvia HF 1600 rally car, the 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine, producing 115 hp or 86 kW, roared behind the reclining occupants – the Zero is a mere 84.6 centimeters high!

Of course, the Stratos Zero was a design exercise; a model intended to supply Carrozzeria Bertone with new customers – later, it became the real Stratos, also very radical and a serial winner of the World Rally Championship (and today priceless). The Stratos Zero itself is also priceless, now part of an eclectic collection in California, sweeping up trophies at the most important concours events in the world. Gautam Sen has taken a closer look at the Stratos Zero and written an interesting book about this provocation on wheels - supplemented with a large report on Gandini, Carrozzeria Bertone and their creations - this book belongs in every library of design enthusiasts.