If you're here, you already know about the true automotive icon that is the Lancia Delta. Lancia used the 8V model to compete for a number of years, and it won a World Rally Championship in 1988. It is the grandfather of all modern rally cars, one of the first to have a 2 liter engine, turbo, and 4WD. The reason to buy an 8V over a 16V is that it is a more manual, condensed version. When you get into the 16V, there are a lot more electronics. Italian electronics. Italian electronics from the 80s. With fewer moving parts and electronics, there are fewer causes for problems in the 8V. It’s simply more reliable, and parts are cheaper.
Yes the 16V has more HP and torque, but the 8V compensates with lighter weight. And for a turbo, you really don’t need more than 8V. If you’ve driven a 16V side by side with an 8V like we have, you would be hard pressed to feel a difference unless you are a rally circuit driver. It’s like any sports car. You can buy a faster Porsche, but your skill level will unlikely ever match the ability of the car anyway.
So yes, you’ll hear “Oh, it’s not a 16V.” But you’ll be too busy driving your car every day to care.
