10% off your first order — create a free account

Create free account
✓ 14-day returns ✓ Hand-checked before dispatch ✓ Secure checkout
My account

Lancia 037 ESSO #3 F. Tabaton Rally Targa Florio 1985 Kyosho 1:18

Sold out
Lancia 037 ESSO #3 F. Tabaton Rally Targa Florio 1985 Kyosho 1:18 08306H Diecast
1 / 8
Kyosho's 1:18 diecast Lancia 037 reproduces the ESSO-sponsored #3 entry of Fabrizio Tabaton at the 1985 Targa Florio Rally, a tarmac event fought on Sicily's mountain roads. Group B arches, opening doors and bonnet and a mapped cabin sit on a weighty zinc alloy body. Pairs naturally with Kyosho's Martini-liveried Safari 037 for a two-event Group B display.
Lancia 037 ESSO #3 F. Tabaton Rally Targa Florio 1985 Kyosho 1:18
Current price: £142.50

Price shown excluding UK VAT. Import VAT and the courier's customs clearance fee are collected on delivery.

Out of production

This model is currently sold out. Enter your email and we'll let you know when it's back in stock.

Browse Lancia models
Pay securely with
Specifications
Car Brand
Lancia
Model Manufacturer
Kyosho
Scale
1:18
Material
Diecast
Model Condition
New Model
SKU
08306H
Genuine articles Sourced from manufacturers
5-layer carton Foam-filled interior
Hassle-free returns 14-day no-quibble returns
Secure payment Bank-level encryption

About the Lancia 037 ESSO #3 F. Tabaton Rally Targa Florio 1985 Kyosho 1:18

TL;DR: Kyosho's 1:18 diecast Lancia 037 recreates the ESSO-liveried #3 driven by Fabrizio Tabaton at the 1985 Targa Florio Rally, a tarmac event on Sicily's mountain roads. Group B arches and opening panels sit on weighty zinc alloy, a companion piece to the marque's Safari-spec 037.

While the Safari Rally tested a car's endurance on rough African roads, the Targa Florio put the 037 back on the tight, technical tarmac where its rear-wheel-drive balance worked best. This ESSO-liveried #3 represents that home-ground strength.

Kyosho's 1:18 Lancia 037 in Targa Florio Specification

Diecast Build and Tarmac Rally Stance

Kyosho's 037 keeps the correct Group B arches and mid-engine proportions shared across every livery of this casting, but the tarmac-spec stance sits lower and tighter than the raised Safari version, reflecting a car set up for smooth, fast mountain roads rather than rutted gravel. The zinc alloy body carries genuine weight, and the wheels wear a road-biased tread pattern rather than the aggressive off-road blocks fitted to the Safari car, a small but accurate distinction between two entries built for very different events.

ESSO Livery and #3 Race Graphics

The ESSO livery swaps the Martini car's blue and red stripes for the sponsor's own colour scheme, and Kyosho reproduces the graphics with sharp, unbroken registration across the bonnet, doors and rear quarters. The #3 door number sits crisp and legible, and the sponsor decal placement matches how the works Lancia squad dressed the car for this specific event, giving the model a documented identity rather than a generic rally paint job.

Fabrizio Tabaton and the Targa Florio Rally

A Tarmac Rally on Sicily's Mountain Roads

The Targa Florio's rally format sent cars over narrow, twisting mountain roads on the Sicilian countryside, a very different test from the circuit races the same name once hosted, rewarding precision and confidence on tarmac over the raw endurance demanded by an event like the Safari. That environment suited a well-balanced rear-wheel-drive car like the 037, where placement and cornering speed mattered more than sheer ground clearance.

The 037's Home Ground Against 4WD Rivals

Fabrizio Tabaton campaigned for the Lancia works effort during the Group B era, and an entry like this one shows the marque defending ground where the 037's rear-wheel-drive chassis still held an edge, even as four-wheel-drive rivals were beginning to dominate on looser surfaces elsewhere in the championship. Tarmac rounds like the Targa Florio were where the 037's cornering balance mattered most. Reproducing his specific car and event on this casting gives the model a documented identity that a generic Group B livery cannot match.

The 037's Last Stand Against Four-Wheel Drive

By 1985, the World Rally Championship had already tipped decisively toward four-wheel-drive machinery, with Peugeot's 205 T16 and Audi's quattro setting the pace on the loose-surface rounds where traction mattered most. Lancia kept campaigning the rear-wheel-drive 037 on events like the Targa Florio, where a lighter, well-balanced car could still compete on tighter, more technical tarmac, even as the writing was already on the wall for rear-wheel-drive machinery at world championship level. The Delta S4 that would replace it was already taking shape, making entries like this one some of the 037's final competitive outings on the world stage.

A Companion Piece to the Safari-Spec 037

Displayed alongside Kyosho's Martini-liveried Safari entry, this ESSO 037 tells the fuller story of a single car campaigned across very different terrain within one season, tarmac precision on one shelf and rough-road endurance on the other. At roughly 22 centimetres, it shares the same manageable footprint as its stablemate, making a two- or three-car 037 grouping an easy fit even on a modest shelf. Collectors weighing scale should note 1:43 ranges offer broader event coverage but drop the opening panels this format keeps. This is a considered pairing purchase for a Lancia or Group B-focused collection rather than a standalone hero piece.

Same marque, same scale

Collectors also bought

Browse all 1:18

10% off your first order

Create a free account and claim 10% off your first order — from hundreds of collectible 1:18, 1:43 and 1:12 models by Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and more.

Create free account Browse the collection
Collectible 1:18 scale Porsche model on a clean studio backdrop — Models118 first-order offer
0