At the end of 1986, Group B rally cars were banned. That same year in May, Lancia launched the first Delta HF 4WD.

Equipped with turbo technology and advanced 4 wheel-drive expertise, Lancia decided to homologate the Delta for Group A competition. The 5298 units built between 1986 and 1987 (5000 were required within 12 months by the FISA to homologate the car into GPA rallying) all sport twin headlamps, fog lamps in the front spoiler, silver alloy wheels with eight small holes, sideskirt, and the red HF 4WD badge on the red framed grill.

In 1987 the HF 4WD had 165 bhp on tap. The engine had an intercooled American Garrett T3 turbo, which Lancia's engineers cleverly tweaked. By creating an overboost in the wastegate, they achieved unrivalled throttle response, never before successfully seen on a road car.

The 8-valve's power was distributed 56% to the front wheels and 44% to the rear

This car was the predecessor of the first Integrale; 

The Integrale 8-Valve.

The Integrale 8-Valve, packing a 185bhp punch, was unveiled in November 1987. Bigger Garrett T3 turbo and bigger intercooler. The 1995cc engine had a long stroke and small bore, and produced more low rev torque rather than high rev output. The power was distributed 56% to the front wheels and 44% to the rear, and the car would sprint to 100 Kph in 6.5 seconds. A new overboost valve allows 1 bar of pressure and helps boost torque to 31kgm. A number of other changes in the engine bay are related to the extra cooling required, which necessitates a bigger water and oil cooler to be fitted. A new clutch is the same as that fitted in the Ferrari engined Thema 8.32 and a lower final drive ratio is utilised. New suspension gives a sportier feel to the handling, and bigger brakes (now up to 284mm on the front) with new callipers and better friction material are more in keeping with the extra performance now achieved.Other outward changes include improved headlamps and bigger wheels (up from 6J*14 to 6J*15), which although the same pattern as the HF 4WD, are now shiny on the outside rim and painted grey in the dish and carry 195/55 * 15 tyres.

The Integrale claimed the 1988 World Rally Championship, and Lancia and Abarth together realised that further development was needed if they were going to stay ahead of their competitors. They focused on increasing the number of valves to 16, although on the continent, the 8V continued in production, both with and without a catalytic converter. Check out the specs: