Travel: Dream Convoy: 6 Homologation Specials On The Way To A Concours

Dream Convoy: 6 Homologation Specials On The Way To A Concours

By Petrolicious
June 6, 2016

Story and Photography by Jonathan Harper

It’s 6:30 am on June 5th, somewhere just outside New York City. I’m on a quiet street lined with row houses, and a nondescript double garage door rattles up to reveal six of the most desireable, unattainable, and just plain bonkers cars from the golden age of homologation racing.

In order to enter a vehicle into certain racing series from the mid ’70s to early ’90s, a manufacturer had to build a certain number of road-going vehicles on which their racing machine would be based. In order to give themselves the proper competitive edge, manufacturers began pumping out what amounted to very aggressive race cars disguised as street-legal road cars.

Sitting front and center is the Lancia Delta S4, with its massive side intakes gaping on either side of the rear windows and soft-to-the-touch fine Italian leather interior. To one side, a brilliant blue wedge of Lancia Stratos sits and to the other, a one-of-15 Porsche 924 GTS with full race appointments. Just behind, the orange BMW M1 waits, flanked by a Lancia 037 and the boy-racer-winged Mercedes-Benz 190E Evo II. This must be what heaven looks like.

In the words of owner Phil Toledano, “A homologation car is designed for racing. It was designed for reason and purpose, and it’s incredibly romantic.” As Phil puts six sets of keys in a hat and invites his buddies to grab a set at random for today’s drive, he quickly explains the nuances of each vehicle: “The S4 and 037 have race clutches so it’s essentially on/off. The Stratos will give you massive lift-oversteer so just don’t lift. The 924 GTS turbo comes in hard, be careful.”

And with that…we hit the road. The destination was the 2016 Greenwich Concours D’Elegance, where Phil’s stable would comprise the entirety of the homologation corral. The cars look incredible parked all together on the concours lawn, a drastically different feel than the polished chrome and wood accoutrements inhabiting the neighboring British touring corral.

Hours later, with two winning ribbons in his pocket as he downshifts the BMW M1 on the way home, Phil took a moment to reflect on the day. “Look,” he says, “if you have a couple of cars, how much better could it be, than with your friends in those cars all driving up together? To see them on the road, to hear them go past you, the sound of them, to see them in motion. That’s the thing for me, sitting around the lawn, that’s nothing. But driving, and all your friends driving together, that’s a thing.”

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Nick
Nick
7 years ago

It’s nice to see cars like this driving on the same roads I used to take to work and school. Just off the GWB and on the Henry Hudson Pkway up to Westchester were my own old stomping grounds. Keep those beasts alive!

Nickay Kitsune
Nickay Kitsune
8 years ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcQZshDysNc Some HD Video. Thanks Jonathan

Sean Fandam
Sean Fandam
8 years ago

Just beautiful.

z3coupe3.0
z3coupe3.0
8 years ago

The noise is missing. It must have been pretty orgasmic.

Patrick Frawley
Patrick Frawley
8 years ago

Hey, Harper, if Santo and his crew need a spare codriver next year I’ll be living in southwest CT and am very available for these kind of (arduous, stressful, difficult) duties. Keep me posted.

🙂

Stephen Ferguson
Stephen Ferguson
8 years ago

Decisions, decisions… what a nice problem to have each morning. 🙂

(By the way, does anyone know why the sill (rocker) covers on the 924 Carrera GT(S) are always so lumpy?)

rob
rob
8 years ago

Awesome.HD video ?

Michael Squeo
Michael Squeo
8 years ago

This is amazing. I still think Phil’s Lancia Stratos film is one of the absolute best of all time on Petrolicious……but I just looked for it and don’t see it listed. Was it removed or should I page through again?

JB21
JB21
8 years ago

This is the coolest fucking thing I’ve seen this month (so far)!

Derelict
Derelict
8 years ago

I cannot wait until shows start to accept cars from the 80s so we can get homologation cars like the Pulsar, Sport Quattro, Galant VR4, Cyborg, etc…

GoranJ
GoranJ
8 years ago

Now, that’s a excellent porn, if I ever saw one!

Northwest European
Northwest European
8 years ago

Yep, that is a proper line up. Fun day for good friends. Drive Tastefully indeed.

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