Ferrari has never been noted for its presence in the world of rallying. Early forays with the 250 GTO were rewarded with success in the 1957 and 64 Tour de France but these victories were recorded when the majority of the event was made up of race circuit mileage. Come the early 1980’s and Ferrari again tested the waters of the WRC in a privateer effort with some manufacturer backing. Jean-Claude Andruet entered and won the 1981 Tour de France and the 1982 Tour de Course using the 308 GTB he’d worked so hard in convincing the factory to give him. Victory on these events, now run on proper special stages, begs the question ‘what might’ve been’ if the factory had committed to the cause fully. Certainly the 308 had echoes of the legendary Stratos, what with its engine bedecked with a prancing horse and its competence on tarmac. There the similarities ended. The Stratos was light and compact with a manic V6 situated to the rear of the car. The 308 was too large and heavy for group B competition and its V8, even with its standard carburettors replaced with Kugelfischer fuel injection, too bulky for the job. The car might still have gone on to greater things if ‘Il Commendatore’ Enzo Ferrari himself hadn’t fallen out with the Lancia team regarding the 1982 Italian Championship. Lancia’s Jolly Club concern forced Antonio Tognana to use the new 037 for some events, abandoning his previously dominant 308 and allowing the Turin based manufacturer to share in his success. Such bitter politics under the Fiat umbrella soured rallying for Enzo Ferrari and the forthcoming 288 GTO, developed to be ultra competitive within the group B race rules, never turned a wheel in anger on a special stage. It’s also worth noting that by 1982 the slim window for success had already been missed, as well all know, Audi had debuted the Quattro two years previously and by 1983 had ironed out the teething troubles that had allowed Walter Rohrl and the Ascona to snatch a brief sliver of WRC limelight. Ferrari’s 288 plans hit the rocks soon after, and the manufacturer has yet to show even a glint of renewed interest in the WRC.
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