There are two types of car designers. The ones who carefully colour inside Stellantis’ corporate lines, making sure every plastic panel fits neatly with a budget brief. And then there’s Christopher Giroux, a senior Ford man who, in his downtime, decided to resurrect one of Italy’s most charismatic ghosts: the Lancia Montecarlo.
Yes, the Montecarlo — the rakish Pininfarina-penned coupe that arrived in 1975 with mid-engine mischief, rear-wheel drive, and the DNA that would go on to create the flame-spitting Lancia Rally 037, the last rear-driven car to ever beat Audi’s quattro in the WRC. Proper heritage. Proper romance. And Giroux thought: why not? It’s the 50th anniversary. Let’s bring it back.
The result is the Lancia Pu+Ra Montecarlo, and it’s equal parts retro postcard and sci-fi sketch. Think wedge-like profile, blacked-out nose, and T-shaped LED lights — the kind of thing you’d expect to see in Turin’s design studios after a long lunch of Barolo and cigarettes. Only here, the nostalgia has been filtered through Blender, Photoshop, and AI, which is either blasphemy or genius, depending on whether you still have Paolo Pininfarina posters on your bedroom wall.
From some angles, it looks like a glassier, sleeker Stratos. The front chin juts out with proper exotic swagger, while the roof gets circular cutouts like it’s been moonlighting as a Bauhaus experiment. Around the back, there’s a discreet spoiler, razor-thin lights, and a diffuser that seems to whisper: don’t worry, I’ll look fantastic in Martini stripes.
Speaking of which, Giroux didn’t just stop at the showroom fantasy. He built a full-blown Alitalia-liveried rally version, complete with gold alloys, swollen arches, and more intakes than a Dyson showroom. It’s a clear nod to the 037, but updated with LED daggers, a ducktail spoiler, and a diffuser that screams “I’m ready for Monte Carlo 1983, where’s my group B entry form?”
Of course, there’s one small problem: it doesn’t actually exist. No drivetrain, no chassis, no Stellantis green light. It’s a sketch, a digital passion project. Giroux hints at an EV layout — slim proportions, sealed surfaces — but he’s also teased exhausts and vented rear ends like it’s packing a mid-mounted turbo four. The truth is, it could be anything from a hairdryer to a hydrogen rocket.
And therein lies the tragedy. Because while Lancia is busy selling a single Ypsilon to pensioners and planning crossovers that’ll inevitably wear more chrome than soul, this Pu+Ra Montecarlo proves the brand could still build something with fire in its belly. Something worthy of the badge that once conquered rally stages and lit up Italian piazzas.
Will it happen? No. Stellantis has more spreadsheets than sports car dreams, and Lancia needs stable sales before Turin’s accountants let the word “coupe” into the boardroom. But still, Giroux’s vision is a reminder: the Montecarlo isn’t just history. It’s a challenge. A dare. A stylish ghost from the ’70s tapping Stellantis on the shoulder and whispering: remember what you used to be?
Source: Lancia