French with Italy at heart — excitedly tells a kid he grew up with Carabo and Stratos models in his pockets. And that in the builder of these two dream cars, Marcello Gandini, and in the design of another great car, Giorgetto Giugiaro, as a boy identified a guide making his way in the sector in which he built a stellar career. Until today, he is responsible for the style of all 14 of the Stellantis Group’s brands, with the specific mandate of giving a new look and identity to future Lancia models. We met Jean-Pierre Bloy In the Sala Grande in the Reggia di Venaria, where yesterday the House of Turin unveiled Bo + Ra zero (in the pictures), the visual sculpture without wheels in which the team led by the French designer distilled the cornerstones of the stylistic language of upcoming Lancias (over here to know more). Starting with the first order of arrival, the new ypsylonIn the 2024.
Presenting such an “ethereal” and fanciful concept inevitably generates great anticipation among enthusiasts. But will this statement for the future really be able to leave something to the new Ypsilon?
“Pu + Ra Zero will leave behind much more than a thing in Ypsilon tomorrow. Looking at it, if you play with a little imagination, you can already imagine it: two very elegant compact volumes, four meters long and therefore larger than the current one. We were inspired by the front of the car that Unveiled today to define the front, which will feature a cup-shaped grille painted in gloss black across the top.”
And the new logo? How will it fit into the mask?
“The logo simply wouldn’t be on top.”
How is that?
“We preferred to focus on the Lancia capital lettering, which, together with the cup, allowed us to give the muzzle a more radical and unique style.”
It’s probably too early to talk about it, but what does the flagship we’ll see in 2026 have in common with the 1950s Aurelia?
“It must be emphasized once again that Aurelia, for the time being, is only an ‘internal use’ codename, bearing in mind that we are working on a very prestigious and important car for our brand. Having said that, it is still too early to go into the style details of this model. However, I can expect that the sides will have an arched shape, like the Aurelia B20. But this will be the new calling card of all three new Lancias.
Even the Delta heir? Napolitano (CEO of Lancia, ed.) said that although it finally arrives, in 2028, it is the only car really ready, because his boys literally competed to design it.
“Yes, and I repeat: the arched shape of the sides will characterize all the models in the new range. This does not mean that the Delta of tomorrow will not embody the strength and radical nature of the original model. In fact, it is precisely the first version, dating back to the end of the seventies, that we looked at so closely. In the absence of further details—which Ploy for the time being preferred to ignore—all that remained was to try to imagine how the Giugiaro delta would affect its long-awaited heir. However, one thing is certain: in an atmosphere of great enthusiasm and desire for the future such as that which can finally breathe at Lancia, the signature of the Maestro can only be benevolent.
“Unable to type with boxing gloves on. Freelance organizer. Avid analyst. Friendly troublemaker. Bacon junkie.”
