OSCA 1600 GT Zagato - A Survey of Survivors

 

Courtesy carstyling.ru

I briefly summarised the OSCA 1600 GT in its various body forms in June ’22 – here.  Of the models created by Fissore, Boneschi, Touring and Zagato, the latter’s version was made in the greatest number - this is a more detailed survey of the Z-badged cars.

 

Though the 1600 GT was finalised at the OSCA factory in ’60, serial production was delayed until ’62.  The FIA homologation papers, dated 8th October ’62, referring specifically to model ‘GT2,’ indicate that production was initiated in ’61.  Although it was stated at the time that 128 GTs were made, (and it was claimed that 98 of these were Zagato-bodied), recent studies of historic data have concluded that the actual total was less than 60.  Whilst this may reflect a slow rate of sales, it also probably stems from disappointing manufacturing productivity which prevented the target of a minimum 12 cars per month being consistently met.  The last of the Zagato versions were probably made in late ’64.  At that point the restructured company, (sale of the majority interest by the Maserati family to Meccanica Verghera Augusta having taken place the previous year,) announced new models.

At the heart of the GT was the 1568 cc 4 cylinder, in line, twin cam engine made for OSCA by Fiat.  This was an evolved version of the unit that had powered the marque’s sports racers through the 50s.  Introduced for the MT4 in ’48, its capacity then was 1092 cc and it was rated at 70 bhp.  Though the block was Fiat-designed, the cylinder head was the work of Ernesto, youngest of the OSCA proprietor Maserati brothers.  It was not long before the head was converted from a single to a twin cam layout, at which point a 1342 cc capacity version was also launched.  Another increase in capacity came in ’53, with around 110 bhp extracted from 1453 cc.  In ’54, further revisions – identified with ‘TN’ designation - enabled a maximum power output of 125 bhp.  A single Weber 28-36 DCLD3 carburettor was specified for the 1600 GT – good for 95 bhp.  However, the GT2 employed twin Weber 38DCOEs, (105 bhp), whilst a GTV version was on twin 42DCOE3s, (125 bhp), and the GTS, though also 42DCOE-equipped, gave 140 bhp – the extra 15 bhp flowing from the twin spark ignition set-up.

 

The hybrid theme was continued in the 1600 GTZ with the use of OSCA’s own 4 speed gearbox which employed Fiat internal components.  With an ongoing incidence of failure in racing GTZs, the unit became suspected of being under-specified for reliable handling of the power generated by the GTV and GTS engines.  Other notable mechanical features on the GTS were Dunlop-designed/Girling-made disc brakes, front/rear, and independent suspension on both axles.  All in all, it proved to be a fast, well handling car, thanks also to relatively light weight – 862 Kg for the basic version, with the GTS 7% lighter at 800 Kg.

 

At the time, a basic GT was a little under £2,000 in the UK, (about £45,000 in current terms).  The GTS would have been approximately £2,250.

 

OSCA built the rolling chassis for delivery to Zagato, (and the other involved carrozzeria), utilising a frame made by Milan-based specialist constructor, Gilco.  The company had established a high profile in the industry, especially because of its long term status as a supplier to Ferrari.  For in-depth information about Gilco, its website is well worth a visit.  One of Gilco’s period advertisements is shown below:

Another third party-supplied item of particular note was the distinctively styled 4.5j x 15” Elektron/Magnesium alloy wheel branded as Amadori, a maker which was bought out by Campagnolo in its strategic evolution from being a bicycle wheels manufacturer.  These wheels eventually became the subject of criticism – like the gearbox – which contended that they lacked strength when run in competition on cars with over 125 bhp.  Breakages were not uncommon.

Amadori wheel. Courtesy SymbolicInternational

There are, however, no doubts about the quality of standard OSCA 1600 GTZ steering wheel. This was a 400 mm wood rimmed wheel made by Personal. Little has been written about the company’s founding/early days, but it is generally held that it originated in ’60. It is probable that OSCA would have been inclined to buy-in wheels for the GTZ from the well-known/respected maker, Nardi, another long term supplier to Ferrari. Personal secured the business however as the company was prepared to undercut Nardi on price in order to establish its presence in the market, enhanced by implied endorsement from the Maserati-linked association. Subsequently, Personal was in commercial collaboration with Nardi. The Nardi brand was separated from Personal in ’68 and its wheels continued to be marketed through to the present day.

The 1600 GTZ ‘Personal’ 400 mm steering wheel. Courtesy ExoticAutoParts28

Despite the problems that dogged the start-up of series production, an OSCA GT 1600 Zagato made the model’s race debut at the March ’62 Sebring 12 Hours – see photograph below.  Entered by N.A.R.T. for drivers, H Spencer Lichtie and Robert Publicker, the car had to be retired early, after only 33 laps (of winner’s 206), because of head gasket failure.

OSCA 1600 GT Zagato at Sebring, ’62. Courtesy Homer Willi

Earliest car by chassis number of which I have detail photographs is #0007, which was run as a factory entry – alongside #0036 – in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, June ’62.  Both cars are seen below, #0007 being the white car wearing race number 37.

Courtesy The GPL Collection

Driven by George Arents and Jose Behra, #0007 was still running into the 23^rd hour, but had to be retired after 227 laps with transmission failure.  It had run as high as 15^th overall and was likely on for a 2^nd in class finish.  (#0036 was out after just 13 laps with big end bearing failure.  It was a significantly different car from #0007 in having a flat roof and the live rear axle in place of the independent suspension normally installed in GTS Competizione models).

 

Chassis #0006 is a red 125 bhp GTS on twin 42 mm Webers.  The car changed hands in ’19 at Gooding’s Amelia Island sale for $489,000.

Weber 42DCOE3 carburettors, as fitted to #0036. Courtesy Petrolicious

#0006. Courtesy Gooding & Company

When Bonhams sold ’62-registered #0011 in October ‘19, the lot description included the statement, . . .according to marque expert Christophe Pund, (this car) is one of a mere 7 Zagato-bodied cars that were raced; indeed, '011' is probably the most raced of all OSCA 1600 GTs. Its driver was Fausto Mariani, who achieved numerous successes with '011' during the 1964 and 1965 seasons.  Little is documented about Mariani’s motor sport achievements and the events in which he campaigned the car were of regional/national status, such as the Trofeo Venturi, (Frascati), Hillclimb held in June ’65.  However, a class victory, (Coppa Gallenga Hillclimb) is cited in the ’65 season.

 

As is evident in the photograph below, #0011 has been restored in recent times.  Despite its good condition, it failed to sell at auction in 2016 but made €379,500 at the Bonhams sale three years later.  Note that the period photograph on the right below shows uncovered headlamps.  The earliest chassis number of which I have a photograph showing Plexiglass headlamp covers is the second ’62 Le Mans car, #0036.

#0011, left, seen in ‘19 and, right, racing in ’65. Courtesy Bonhams

#0029 is a ’62 GTS which was photographed, as below, at the Le Mans Classic in 2002.

#0029 is a ’62 GTS which was photographed, as below, at the Le Mans Classic in 2002

As mentioned above, #0036 appeared alongside #0007 at the ’62 Le Mans 24 Hours.  In the photographs below, the rear view clearly shows the 87 litres fuel tank fitted to GTS/Competizione GTs, while the frontal shot, with intake grille removed, well illustrates the frame/locating fastener for the Plexiglass headlamp cover.  That this car’s engine was the twin spark variant is evident from the view of the engine bay.

#0036. Courtesy Petrolicious

In ’66, the car was in the Bahamas, where George Waltman contested both the Governor’s Trophy/Nassau Tourist Trophy and the Nassau Trophy. Waltman was the Sport 1.6 class winner in the latter race. The following year he used #0036 to compete at Sebring in the 12 Hours, but failed to finish. Incidentally, it has been written that Waltman subsequently ran #0036 in the ’68 Daytona 24 Hours, driving the entire race unpartnered. However, he achieved this remarkable feat in a Morgan Plus 4, not the OSCA.

Since its foundation in 2007, Bring a Trailer has had a major effect on the market for classic/collectible cars. A factor in its success has been the encouragement of fully detailed descriptions of items offered for sale, supported by large numbers of good quality photographs. As a side benefit, these are often invaluable for researchers seeking to verify detail points of specification of a vehicle model/variant. The BaT listing for #0070 provides a good example of this feature. 302 images are presented, providing numerous exterior/interior views, including points of fine detail, engine bay and underside shots, identity plates and stampings and various documents, both model and specific chassis number related. In this instance, for example, the excellent quality of the photographs of the carburettors facilitates easy identification of this car as a GT2 – see below:

Courtesy SymbolicInternational

#0070 is unusual in being equipped with full width bumpers front and rear – GTS/Competizione models had not been fitted with these originally and it would appear that surviving GT/GT2s commonly have had OE bumpers and irons removed for aesthetic reasons – the race car ‘look’ being widely regarded as more attractive.

Courtesy SymbolicInternational

Restored in 2018, #0078 is a GT2 in the unusual off-white colour.  In photographs taken to advertise its sale, (on offer from La Montini Automobili in Autumn 2024), there is a good view of the GT Zagato’s handsome profile.  The limited boot space, (to accommodate the spare wheel), is clearly seen, as are the seats, which are the same type as fitted to the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Zagato.  The chassis identity plate is also well represented.

Courtesy Montini Automobili

Speedholics Society reported on RM Sotheby’s 2023 offer for sale of #0094 with notes on its early use: ‘Sold to its first owner—Alberto Luti—in 1963, the Italian campaigned the diminutive GT with great success.  A class win at that year’s Coppa Belvedere Hillclimb followed a 2nd in class finish at Ascoli-Colle San Marco and 3rd in class at Pontedecimo-Giovi.’

Courtesy RM Sotheby’s

#0094’s is an example of branding to the engine by an O.S.C.A. script applied to the right hand cam cover.  On some this is absent but a small branding plate is fixed to the same side of the cover, above the front end of the camshaft, as seen on #0078 – see below, #0094 left, and #0078 right:

Courtesy RM Sotheby’s and Montini Automobili

The interior of #0094 is especially attractive, the photograph below showing the clarity of the instrumentation and the generally good ergonomic characteristics of the controls.

Courtesy RM Sotheby's

At one time, Peter Kraus’s Rosso Bianco Museum in Aschaffenburg, near Frankfurt housed the largest collection of classic sports cars in the world.  Amongst the cars on show was #0097, a GT Zagato first registered in Rome in April ’63.  Before the museum’s closure, (in ’06), the car was sold to German author, Winfried Reiss, who had it fully restored before the millennium.  Since then it has changed hands a few times and seen success at various European concours events.

Courtesy Kidston

#0101, a GT2, was driven by Mario Nardari and Ottorino Zarattin in the ’64 Targa Florio, finishing 27^th, 5^th in class.  Nardari ran the car in ’63 and ’64 at the Consuma hillclimb and at circuit events at Imola, Mugello and Monza.  Best result was 4^th place at Imola in April ’64 in a GT2.5 race.  Other events entered are listed here.  The car is seen ‘then and now’ below.

#0101. Courtesy Ruote da Sogno Srl

Badges:

The circular O.S.C.A. Fratelli Maserati Bologna badge was centrally mounted, halfway between the leading edges of the bonnet and front panel:

#0101. Courtesy Ruote da Sogno Srl

#0029. Courtesy Wouter Melissen

 

A chrome script OSCA 1600 badge was applied centrally to the boot lid, halfway between the panel’s top edge and the top edge of the numberplate recess:

Courtesy Tomini Classics

#0101. Courtesy Ruote da Sogno Srl

 

As was usual with Zagato-bodied cars of the era, a ‘Z’ badge, engraved, ‘Zagato Milano,’ was applied to each front wing.  On most cars the badge is located between the indicator repeater lamp and the trailing edge of the front wheel arch, approximately in line (but a little lower) with the door handle.  The badge itself featured black infill, but this was often lost because of weathering, resulting in a largely uniform aluminium finish.

Courtesy (left to right) Kidston, SymbolicInternational, Petrolicious

 

The steering wheel boss is decorated with the ‘Maserati OSCA’ badge as seen below, (#0094):

Courtesy Speedholics

 

Where fitted, the wheel hub caps featured an OSCA script:

Courtesy SymbolicInternational

Literature/Documentation:

The OSCA 1600 GTZ naturally shares many of the aesthetic attributes of Zagato’s multi-marques output in the opening years of the 60s decade.  For comparison, see below, left - OSCA 1600 GTZ; centre, top - Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ Coda Tronca, centre, below – Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ Coda Tonda; right – Lancia Appia GT Zagato.

Most notably, the OSCA’s cab is relatively rearward set and the car incorporates a considerably more substantial C pillar. The rear of the OSCA has a particular affinity with that of the first version (Coda Tonda) of the Alfa, with the treatment of the rear wheel arch, with an emphasised swage line, very similar. The OSCA’s nose profile is markedly bluff in contrast with this part of the bodywork of the Alfa and Lancia. Fully distinctive on the OSCA are the air vent extraction ducts echoing the twin roof bubbles. This aspect brings to mind the Abarth 750 GT Zagato on which similar forms are seen on the engine deck lid. However, that car, being a mid-fifties design, is generally less comparable with the OSCA, Alfa and Lancia. All three are superb examples of Italian styling of the era, the shapes suggesting fast, wind-cheating machines, yet they were created just before the aerodynamic principles of drag reduction and the generation of downforce became better understood and capable of being accurately measured. Around 1960 the formula for a sports car of light weight, compact footprint and small capacity/high output 4 cylinder engine was becoming increasing seen as a preferred option, and the OSCA employed it especially well, but it was also the foundation of the Alfa and the Lancia. All three are true icons of mid-century automotive design.

If Only: The Abarth T140

The more I learn about Carlo Abarth, the more I wish I had had the opportunity to work for him.  He was I believe an especially notable example of the sort of distinctive personality one could encounter in a leader/senior management role in the automotive industry around the middle of the 20^th Century.  Their behaviour and outlook was such that in today’s social culture they probably would not retain their position for very long.  Such people had singular vision/belief, tremendous drive and no inhibitions about using their personality to manage and direct subordinates.  

  

In anecdotes from people who worked for him, Abarth himself is often referred to as someone who expected nothing less than their 100% dedication to the task, was very averse to ‘buttering them up,’ but who showed that he did in fact notice excellence by, for instance, handing over an envelope of bank notes!  By his own vision and dynamism he created a superb line of performance cars, the racing versions of which were highly successful, to the extent that they secured World Championships for six years in succession in the 1960s.  These achievements bolstered Abarth’s self-confidence whilst at the same time instilling in the Corso Marche factory workforce a pride in and dedication to his company.  These two factors are particularly relevant to the beginnings of a project designated ‘T140,’ which should have evolved into Abarth’s crowning glory.  Such a project – the creation of a 6 litre, V12-engine  and sports racing prototype car to compete with Ferrari, Porsche and Ford – needed to be originated and developed in a milieu of secrecy for which the automotive industry has never been well known.  And yet the obedient, proud and earnest workforce ensured with its discretion that both the engine and the body/chassis design were well advanced before anyone outside the Corso Marche factory gained any knowledge of the T140 before Spring 1967. 

The project had been announced internally by Carlo in July 1965.  The initial objective was competitiveness in the proposed new championship for Group 7 cars, the Can-Am Challenge Cup.  A joint initiative by the Sports Car Club of America and the Canadian Automobile Sports Club, the championship was due to be launched in September 1966 at Mont-Tremblant.  Abarth believed that the series, with its Johnsons Wax sponsorship, would offer a high profile marketing opportunity for his products.  However, with Group 7 being virtually a Formula Libre, he would need to create a new, much larger Abarth engine – designated ‘Tipo 240’ - to compete with the expected proliferation of ‘Big Block’ Chevrolet-engined cars contesting the races.

Responsibility for the engine’s design was delegated to Luciano Fochi.  Fochi – whose brother, Nino, was in charge of production at Abarth – had distinguished himself at Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Ferrari and Bugatti prior to joining Abarth in 1958.  In August the following year, Fochi persuaded Gianfranco Bossu, with whom he had worked at Bugatti, to move to Corso Marche, where they again collaborated with great expertise in the development of engines.  Recently, Gianfranco has kindly shared with me his recollections of the T140 project. 

By December 1966 a prototype engine with wet sump had been assembled.  The key features were: 120°, 5982 cc, V12,  SOHC, 24 valve, twin spark ignition, four Weber 40 LDA3C carburettors.  Bore was 92 mm and the stroke 75 mm.  The engine’s construction has previously been described as ‘modular’ in that the block and camshafts were composed of two joined component ‘halves.’  This was not of particular significance as these sub-components were newly created items and not derived from pre-existing, smaller capacity units.  However, the principle was noteworthy as applied also to the crankshaft, since it was at its centre joint – where power was taken off – that a major problem was discovered as soon as test running got underway.  The crankshaft is seen in Gianfranco’s contemporary sketch below:

 

Courtesy of Gianfranco Bossu

The arrangement is not exceptional, especially for a crankshaft of considerable length – that of the Porsche Type 912 Flat 12 917 engine, for instance, is similarly configured.  However, it was initially a weak point, giving rise to crack failures on the Tipo 240 engine.  Gianfranco remembers that the problem was solved by increasing the rigidity of the bearing supports with additional ribs and revised specification bearings.  At this stage the engine was found to be generating over 550 bhp.  With further development, including revision of the lubrication system resulting in the adoption of a dry sump in Quarter 1, 1967, 567 bhp was seen on the dynamometer; (Sample dyno graphs are seen below, with Power represented by the trace second from bottom, and Torque below that.)  With the project still in its early stages, it would have been reasonable to assume that higher output could be achieved with various upgrades, the application of fuel injection, for example.  Potential competitiveness can be judged by considering the performance of the Sixties large capacity racing power plants of Ford, Ferrari and Porsche.  The 7.0 V8 installed in the Mk.II version of the Ford GT40 developed 485 bhp; Ferrari’s mid-decade 330 P4s featured a 3 valve V12 which could give 450 bhp, while the later 512’s 5.0 V12 was good for 550 bhp; the Porsche 917 4.5 flat 12 had 520 - 580 bhp.  A disadvantage for the T240 was its weight, at 254.6 kgs (dry), whereas the 917, without the burden of a fluid cooling system, was 240.4 kgs.  It has been said that the prototype Tipo 240 engine was tested in a Lola T70 chassis, but no data exists to indicate just how well it performed on-track.

 

Courtesy of Gianfranco Bossu

But, of course, the potential of the T140 to take on that Big Three would depend also on the quality and capability of the chassis, which was designed by Antonio Tomaini.  Previously at Moretti, Tomaini had joined Abarth in 1962 to work in the design department.  However, before long Tomaini was also very active out and about at circuits, supporting the works team’s efforts, especially in terms of acquiring and evaluating feedback from the drivers.  For the T140, Tomaini set about designing a chassis in a format which would enable both an endurance racing coupe version and a Can-Am open car to be created with relative ease.  The timescale of the project did not allow the development of either the chassis or the bodywork to progress to any advanced stage, the latter being represented only by a wooden 1:1 model.  The origin of the style of the car can be seen in the contemporary OT Sport Spiders, which were Abarth’s first glass fibre-bodied products, and the 1600 OT Sport coupe.  The subsequent 2000 SE010 also provides a clear indication of how a finalised T140 would have looked.  The full size model was rendered by Sergio Seccatore who had arrived at Corso Marche in June 1966.  He recalls its initial presentation in his book, co-authored with Luca Gastaldi, Abarth Memories:

The wooden model was taken to the workshop, right beneath the technical office, and Colucci brought Abarth to see it.  Abarth looked at it but couldn’t understand the line of the car because the cuts for the doors, bonnet, lights hadn’t been made.  It was a beautiful piece of wood, a single shell.  So, Colucci called me to paint the model red.  I went to the storeroom but there wasn’t any red paint, so they gave me some iron rust preventer.  When the car was finished, Abarth came back and wanted to see the cuts for the doors, bonnet, lights, sockets and air vents, windshield.  I masked everything to paint the various parts with matt black paint.  I copied the headlights of the Ford GT40 and had the rear lights of the Alfa Romeo Giulia painted on the back.  I made holes for the headlights and started to mount one.  Abarth arrived at that moment.  He liked those solutions but when he picked up the light from the Giulia, he said it was too heavy and I had to find some others.  That one had a Zamak base and I had to find others in plastic.  So I went out on the street, to look at the cars parked there, hoping for inspiration.  I saw a Fiat 124 saloon: the rear lights were more or less the same shape and I had those purchased.  I completed the model.

Tomaini followed the conventions of the era in the construction of the chassis – mainly a tubular structure with aluminium and fibreglass panelling.  Some previous reviews of the T140 have cast doubt on how competitive it might have been, not only by way of engine performance, but also in terms of weight.  However, Abarth was quite adept at producing lithe prototype racing cars – the 2000 SE010 of 1968, for example, weighing in at just 480 kgs, to which the basic frame contributed a tiny 39 kgs.  For comparison, consider the contemporary Porsche 907, for which a kerb weight of 600 kgs has been quoted.  Tomaini and a design drawing of the T140 are shown below:

 

The mid-Sixties saw a considerable shake-up in the competitive hierarchy of endurance sports car racing.  Particular focus was increased on the Le Mans 24 Hours race and the determination of Henry Ford II to avenge, on-track, Ferrari’s rebuttal of a Dearborn take-over.  This gave rise to the GT40, a car which certainly delivered on Henry’s ambition, since it was driven to victory at Le Mans for 4 successive seasons, 1966-69.  The first two of those wins were achieved with the use of a 7 litre V8 engine.  For the governing body, the FIA, this caused concern – how could a good number of competitive entries be sustained if the performance benchmark was set by such a large capacity engine, especially, given the Paris-based FIA’s natural European-orientation – the continent’s automotive industry at that time being mainly engaged in projects with engines half that sort of size.  As a solution, and without preamble or consultation, on 12^th June 1967, the day after the second Ford victory by A J Foyt and Dan Gurney in a Mk.4 GT40, the FIA announced that for 1968 new ‘classes’ would apply for endurance racing, as defined by Appendix J to the International Sporting Code: Category A, production cars, Group 4 Sports cars; Category B, Group 6 Prototype sportscars.  For homologation, a manufacturer would have to produce at least 50 cars for Group 4 eligibility and engine capacity had to be less than 5 litres.  A 3 litre capacity limit applied for Group 6.  With a subsequent revision of the homologation requirement to 25 units, both Porsche and Ferrari would develop, respectively, the 917 and 512 models which provided some spectacular racing in 1970-71.

For Abarth, however, the announcement was wholly negative.  It was immediately concluded that the company did not have the financial strength and physical capacity to build and sell fifty T140s.  Equally, the continuance of the project to result merely in the construction of a very few examples to contest the Can-Am could not be justified on a cost/benefit analysis basis.  Sergio Seccatore’s recollection was that very soon after the FIA’s announcement, ‘We piled everything in a corner of the workshop and the story of the T140 ended like that.’  However disappointing that might be from my perspective, it’s quite possible that many at Corso Marche at the time breathed a sigh of relief.  It is said, for instance, that Carlo’s then manager of the mechanical chassis and bodywork department, Mario Colucci, was doubtful that the car could be built at a competitive weight.  Apparently, he also thought that the reported engine output values were somewhat exaggerated.  As with technical matters, such as the relative merits of a mid-chassis location for an engine against those applying to a rear-of-axle mounting, Colucci often acted as a foil to Carlo Abarth’s thinking, and he probably thought it prudent generally to counteract Carlo’s inherent optimism.  Though that optimism flowed from Carlo’s confidence built on a proven record of commercial and racing successes, it can equally be said that Colucci was well qualified to judge the specifics of chassis weight, he having designed the first tubular frame used by Abarth, for the 750 Sport, soon after he joined from Alfa Romeo in 1960.

Though the original project scope had included the manufacture of sufficient components to assemble two prototype engines, only a single unit has been seen in recent times.  This had been acquired by Engelbert Moll, former Abarth works driver (1963) and was a significant item in the collection of Abarth products held at his premises in Solothurn, Switzerland.  The Tipo 240 engine was the subject of much interest when displayed with other cars and engines from Moll’s collection at the Retromobile show in Paris, 2018, as seen in the photograph below.  I have been told by Tony Berni, global authority on Abarth and proprietor of Berni Motori, Maleo, Italy, that in the autumn of 2022, Moll sold his entire collection and it is now relocated in Japan.

 

As for the car, there is better news to report.  A BMW M73-engined replica was built by Hansi Marz in association with Udo Siekmann of Scuderia Gemini Corse and run at the Berni Motori track day held at Autodromo di Varano de’ Melegari in June 2017.  The car can be seen on the circuit here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzKN0_ep5Gk.  It also featured in a Petrolicious article https://petrolicious.com/articles/the-abarth-historic-track-day-showcases-the-best-of-the-beloved-brand-from-bologna which included the photograph seen below:

 

It is quite commonplace to read critical comment about both the decision to embark upon the T140 project and the subsequent abrupt cancellation.  But it is not hard to see that the situation came about because both Abarth and the FIA planned and operated at the time with unusually well preserved secrecy.  What is less well known is that Abarth was not the only marque in that era which started a highly ambitious sport prototype project which came to nothing.  This was the aspiration of Dr Alfredo Belponer.  In the early Sixties he determined to create a new scuderia to support the activities of amateur racing drivers in and around his hometown of Brescia.  Establishment – and formal recognition – of Scuderia Brescia Corse became possible in late 1964 when Carlo Abarth agreed to support the team’s registration with the sporting authorities.  The Scuderia was soon successful, primarily in sports car events, and by 1967 was running a GT40 at Le Mans.  But Belponer had the ambition and wealth to go further, and he asked Bertone to create a Group 6 prototype.  The Carrozzeria obliged with a design named ‘Panther’ and it was unveiled in Turin and Geneva in Spring 1968.  More information about the Panther is available; here: https://supercarnostalgia.com/blog/bertone-panther

 

Scuderia Brescia Corse intended to order several Panthers and use them in an extensive international endurance racing campaign.  However, what Bertone could not do was produce suitable motive power for the car.  Belponer entered into discussions with BRM, seeking a supply of the Bourne-made F1 3.0 V12s, modified with durability rather than peak power, in mind.  When negotiations stumbled, he switched his quest to Maserati, but there too, no deal could be finalised.  As a result, just as with the T140, after much earnest effort, considerable expenditure and enthusiastic activity, the project just quietly expired.  The Panther is seen below:

 

I can’t help but wonder – how well would a Panther have gone with a short stroke, 5.0 Tipo 240 engine behind the driver’s seat!

Kopf to Testa

Preparing for the new-for-1970 Group 5, (up to 5 litre engine capacity), sportscar class, the FIA announced in April 1968 that the number of cars required for homologation would be reduced from 50 to 25.  Within two months, the Porsche board had agreed a go-ahead for the 917 project and Hans Mezger’s team began work on designing the type 912 flat 12 engine soon afterwards.  A car was ready for presentation at the Geneva Salon in mid-March 1969.  A successful inspection of 25 completed cars was carried out by the FIA at Zuffenhausen the following month, and homologation was confirmed, effective 1^st May.

Left: 917 chassis #001 at the factory ready for shipping to Geneva, March 1969.

Right: Presentation of the first 512S, November 1969

Ferrari shook off the demoralising defeats at the hands of Ford at Le Mans, 1966-69, and also decided to contest the revised racing category.  Mauro Forghieri and his team had the first 512S ready for presentation in November 1969, with homologation signed off in January 1970.  Although the Ferrari was relatively late in comparison with the 917, it had been possible to compress the design process as Franco Rocci specified the Tipo 261 engine on the basis of the 3 litre V12 used for Formula 1 prior to the advent of the flat 12.  Also, the chassis was largely that of the 612P Can-Am car.  On the latter point, it is notable that this was a semi-monocoque - a significant factor in making the 512, at 845 kgs, 47 kgs heavier than the tubular frame chassis 917.  The 512 was produced both as a closed coupe and also without a roof panel, targa style, and referred to as a Spyder.

 

In their initial forms, the 917 (4.5 litre) and the 512S (5.0 litre) both ran with engine power outputs of around 550 bhp, (the 917 with 560 by the first race of 1970).  Thus, a closely fought dual for the World Sportscar Championship was apparently on the cards for the 1970 season.  To optimise the 917’s competitiveness, Porsche sub-contracted the running of the works entries primarily to J.W. Automotive Engineering Ltd.  The John Wyer/John Willment team was a proven success, it having secured the World Championship for Ford in 1968 with the GT40.  The team enjoyed lucrative sponsorship from the Gulf oil company.  To provide strength in depth, a second factory-supported equipe ran cars under the Porsche Konstruktionen Salzberg banner.  As the season progressed, additional cars appeared at championship races, entered by David Piper, AAW, Gesipa, Martini and Porsche-Audi Division (US).  The Ferrari factory entries were in the name, S.p.A. Ferrari S.E.F.A.C., and these were supplemented eventually by additional cars run by N.A.R.T, Scuderia Filipinetti, Georg Loos (Gelo), Scuderia Picchio Rosso and Ecurie Francorchamps. 

The leading drivers were, J.W. Automotive – Jo Siffert, Pedro Rodriguez, Brian Redman and Leo Kinunnen; Porsche Salzberg – Vic Elford, Hans Herrmann, Richard Attwood, Helmut Marko and Kurt Ahrens Jr.  S.E.F.A.C. Ferrari – Jacky Ickx, Clay Regazzoni, Ronnie Peterson, Derek Bell, Arturo Merzario, Ignazio Giunti, Nino Vaccarella, Mario Andretti, Peter Schetty,  Martini - Willi Kauhsen, Gerard Larrousse and Gijs van Lennep.  Scuderia Filipinetti - Mike Parkes, Herbert Muller; Jo Bonnier, Reine Wisell, Corrado Manfredini and Giampiero Moretti. 

Along with the 917 and the 512, other models of both manufacturers appeared at the season’s championship rounds – most notably the Porsche 908. Its inherent agility made it a favoured choice for the Targa Florio and the Nurburgring.  And the ‘old’ Ferrari312P was still capable of competitive performance in the Prototype class – indeed a N.A.R.T.-entered pair finished 4^th and 5^th overall at the opening round at Daytona. 

The championship’s first round was the Daytona 24 Hours, 1^st February. Although the revised, ‘Kurz’ 917 had proven very fast in testing at the Florida track two months previously, pole with a margin of 1.3 seconds was taken in wet conditions by a 512S driven by Mario Andretti.  Siffert/Redman’s 917 qualified second, with the Rodriguez/Kinnunen car third on the grid, though the Matra MS 650 of Beltoise/Pescarolo had been nearly 3 seconds quicker in a dry afternoon extra session.  The race featured plenty of damage incidents and reliability issues, resulting in some reshuffling of the driver/car allocations and several retirements.  With three 512s retiring as a result of accidents, only a single S.E.F.A.C. car finished – with driver credits for Andretti/Merzario/Ickx.  And this car managed third place, so not a hugely disappointing outcome.  However, for the J. W. Automotive team celebrations were fully justified since the 917 driven by Rodriguez/Kinnunen/Redman was 1^st and the Siffert/Redman car though 45 laps down, came in 2^nd.  The Salzberg 917 of Elford/Ahrens Jr retired with fuel system troubles at a little less than half distance.

Left to right: N.A.R.T. 512 at Daytona. Courtesy Fred Lewis; Daytona winning Gulf 917. Courtesy Lou Galanos;

Andretti in the S.E.F.A.C. 512 at Daytona. Courtesy Lou Galanos; Gulf 917 of Pedro Rodriguez at Daytona. Courtesy Fred Lewis

Several weeks later, the Porsche:Ferrari duel resumed at Sebring for the venue’s ’12 Hours.’  At Porsche, the ‘second’ team was run under the name ‘Porsche Audi USA,’ with driver pairings, Elford/Ahrens Jr, and Herrmann/Rudi Lins.  As at Daytona, Mario Andretti found his driving style and the 512 highly compatible, enabling him to capture the pole once again.  This time the margin was just a whisker under 1 second, with the Siffert/Redman 917 2^nd and Elford/Ahrens Jr 3^rd.  The Ickx/Schetty 512 was 4^th.  As technical issues and shunts took their toll, there was some shuffling of drivers by the teams, the most notable being a late drafting of Andretti into the Giunti/Vaccarella 512, which Mario then took to a narrow victory, Ferrari’s first sportscar World Championship win for two seasons.  Accounts of this race often focus on another dimension, usually characterised as ‘glamour.  This stemmed from the drivers of the second-placed Porsche 908 being Hollywood star, Steve McQueen and super-wealthy, (courtesy of the family’s ‘Revlon’ cosmetics business), Peter Revson.  The Rodriguez/Kinnunen 917 – with some help from Siffert after his own car retired with accident damage – came in 4^th .  Only one 917 and one 512 finished, and Ferrari in particular experienced a variety of failures and malfunctions.

Left to right: Gulf 917 of Rodriguez/Kinnunen leads N.A.R.T. 512 of Posey/Bucknum at Sebring. Courtesy Evo Magazine; Sebring start. Courtesy Harry Hurst; Andretti’s 512 passing the Revson/McQueen Porsche 908. Courtesy Lou Galanos

The next round was the 1000 Kms at Brands Hatch, April 12^th.  J.W. Automotive entered two 917s, for Siffert/Redman, Rodriguez/Kinnunen and also fielded a T car, nominally for Kinnunen and David Hobbs.  Hobbs main role however was as co-driver with David Piper who entered his own 917.  Salzburg entries were for Elford partnered by Denny Hulme and for Hans Herrmann/Dickie Attwood.  S.E.F.A.C. 512 Spiders were assigned to Ickx/Jackie Oliver and to Chris Amon/Merzario.  Scuderia Filipinetti – with S.E.F.A.C. support - ran Herbert Muller/Mike Parkes.  Another 512, owned by GELO team’s founder, Georg Loos, co-driven by Jonathan Williams, qualified for the race but was unable to start, lacking suitable tyres for the prevailing, very wet, race day conditions.  The race is well known for Rodriguez’s exceptional performance in such adverse weather, the superiority of his driving expertise indicated by the margin of his win – 5 laps!  The Salzberg 917s finished 2^nd and 3^rd.  The 512s came 5^th, 8^th and 13^th.  For Zuffenhausen this event’s outcome expunged the gloom occasioned by the Sebring defeat.

Left to right: Brands Hatch B.O.A.C. 1000 kms race start; Gulf 917 of Rodriguez leads 512 of Ickx; Salzberg 917 of Elford/Hulme

Two weeks later, whatever the weather in Kent, at Monza the conditions were in stark contrast with that endured for the Brands Hatch race.  But for Ferrari, the outlook was not so bright – Rodriguez had been devastatingly fast enough in the English deluge yet here in Italian sunshine both the J. W. Automotive and Salzberg teams had a new, full five litre, engine to try out.  Additional torque from this unit made for improved pick up and acceleration out of bends and Siffert demonstrated this in practice with a time virtually on par with the existing Formula 1 record, though a 4.5 engine was re-installed for the race because of lubrication issues. 

S.E.F.A.C. fielded three 512s, the third being driven by John Surtees, back in a Ferrari as a prodigal son, partnered by Peter Schetty.  Supporting the factory entries were two more 512s, Parkes/Muller for Scuderia Filipinetti and Manfredini/Moretti for Scuderia Picchio Rosso.  A sixth 512 for Gelo’s Loos/Franz Pesch failed to qualify.  Private entered 917s were in the hands of David Piper (owner), sharing with Tony Adamowicz, whilst AAW’s was crewed by Hans Laine/van Lennep, and Gesipa Racing Team’s by Jurgen Neuhaus/Helmut Kelleners. 

Giunti made a storming start to the race and led until the Gulf Porsches took up first and second positions after a few laps.  A lead pack comprised of Siffert, Giunti, Elford and Rodriguez then developed and broke away from the rest of the field.  Subsequently Siffert was delayed by accident damage.  Elford became the established leader as the laps accumulated, the 5 litre engine giving his car a small performance advantage over Rodriguez’s 917.  Whilst the Ferraris could not keep pace with the Porsches, they did all run reliably whilst various troubles began to afflict the Porsches – the Piper car was out with gear selection problems after 55 laps.  Just 8 laps later the Salzberg 917, with Attwood at the wheel, suffered valve gear failure.  A little short of a further 30 laps, Arhens Jr’s 917 had a rear tyre failure and the flailing rubber did enough damage to the suspension and oil tank to force the retirement of this Salzberg entry too.  So, by flag-fall, only one 917 was still in circulation, but this one – driven by Rodriguez – did have the distinction of being in first place, whilst the S.E.F.A.C. 512s had the consolation of finishing 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, and the Filipinetti and Picchio Rosso cars were 8^th and 9^th, respectively.

Left to right: 917 of Laine/van Lennep, Racing Team AAW, at Monza; Amon’s 512 leads Kinnunen’s Gulf 917; 917 of Gesipa Racing Team; Scuderia Picchio Rosso’s 512S

For the early-May running of the Targa Florio, J. W. Automotive put all its effort into the three 908/03s supplied by the factory.  The 917 was clearly not well suited to the Piccolo circuito delle Madonie, though a single 917 was shipped to Sicily by the Salzberg team.  Elford/Herrmann drove it primarily as a testing exercise but did record a time of 35:06.6, (before it was put away, not to be seen on race day) -  half a minute slower than their best time in the 908/03 which put them second on the grid. 

With the 312 PB still 8 months away in the future, Ferrari had no option but to use the 512S.  S.E.F.A.C. sent two for Giunti/Vaccarella to drive, one of which was to serve purely as training car.  Scuderia Filipinetti also entered one for Muller/Parkes. 

J. W. Automotive’s pairing of Siffert/Redman took the victory, with Rodriguez/Kinnunen 2^nd.  908s filled four of the top six places, but Ferrari was able to take some comfort from the 3^rd achieved by the Giunti/Vaccarella 512, and Parkes/Muller’s finish in 6^th. 

At this halfway point in the championship, it was already clear that Porsche was most likely to finish the season victorious, the Marque’s points tally having reached 42, with Ferrari on just 25.

Left to right: Targa Florio specialist Nino Vaccarella’s 512 Spider; Scuderia Filipinetti’s 512S; Salzberg 917

A fortnight on, round 6 was contested at Spa.  J. W. Automotive had two 917s present for the usual driver pairings of Siffert/Redman and Rodriguez/Kinnunen.  Salzberg followed suit with a two car line up for Elford/Ahrens Jr and Attwood/Herrmann.  Also entering their preferred crews were Gesipa with Neuhaus/Kelleners, while AAW ran Laine/van Lennep.  Both J. W. Automotive and the Elford/Ahrens Jr cars were equipped with the new 4,907 cc engine, while Attwood/Herrmann’s and the Gespia and AAW 917s retained the 4,494 cc version.
 
The three works Ferraris also carried a familiar driver squad – Ickx/Surtees, Schetty/Merzario and Giunti/Vaccarella.  The local team, Ecurie Francorchamps, entered a fourth 512 for Derek Bell/Hughes de Fiefiant.
 
During practice a revised rear section was tried on Rodriguez’s car and this successfully improved the aerodynamics, enabling him to record a stunning pole time which was 4 secs lower than Siffert was able to manage.  Ickx was close behind, but still 4.6 seconds ‘slower’ than Rodriguez.
 
The race got under way in drying conditions and soon was largely about a persistent battle between the J. W. Automotive 917s and the Ickx/Surtees 512.  At times the main difference came down to the efficiency and speed of the teams’ pitwork, and, on this occasion, J. W. Automotive’s was not as good as Ferrari’s.  Another significant factor was the varying expertise of the individual drivers in such powerful cars on such a challenging circuit, and, this day at least, Surtees was not especially quick, and consequently much of time that Ickx had saved when he was at the wheel was squandered during Surtees’s stints.  The car did however manage to finish on the same lap as the winning Siffert/Redman 917, though it would have been 3^rd if the Rodriguez/Kinnunen Porsche had not retired with a gearbox failure shortly after half distance.  Accordingly, it was the Elford/Ahrens Jr Salzberg 917 that took the final podium placing.

Left to right: Spa race start. Courtesy Motor Sport Images; Piech (centre, standing) and Wyer (right) in the Spa pit. Courtesy Motor Sport Images; Ferrari pit work at Spa -  512 of Schetty/Merzario refuelling. Courtesy Motor Sport Images

Championship round 7 was held at the Nurburgring at the end of May.  As at the Targa Florio, Porsche’s effort was concentrated on the circuit-suiting 908 model and only two 917s appeared – an AAW Racing Team entry for Toivonen/Axelsson, (which was withdrawn when Hans Laine was killed at the wheel of the team’s 908 during practice), and Gesipa’s for Neuhaus/Kelleners.  The latter qualified 9^th, quicker than several 908s and on a par with the 512s but was retired from the race with a wheel bearing failure.  908s finished 1-2 and 5-6-7-8, but the S.E.F.A.C. 512 of Surtees/Vaccarella managed 3^rd and Parkes/Muller brought the Filipinetti 512 home in 4^th.  The second works car, (Merzario/Giunti), was the race’s first retirement, with a fuel injection malfunction.

Left: Mike Parkes taking over the Filipinetti 512. Courtesy Motor Sport Images; Right: Gesipa’s 917. Courtesy Motor Sport Images

As a result of the points earned at the Nurburgring, Porsche was assured of the championship.  It had accumulated 60 points, whereas Ferrari, even if it won all the remaining three rounds, could not amass more than 57 points. 

As the teams arrived at Le Mans, Ferrari could feel a measure of confidence in the light of the Marque’s nine victories at the famous 24 Hours race.  Porsche, in contrast, and notwithstanding its unassailable lead in the current season’s championship points table, still had yet to take a first place at la Sarthe.  Little wonder therefore that no fewer than seven 917s would start the event.  However, not to be outdone, the Ferrari brand representation was spearheaded by a cohort of eleven 512s. 

Looking to optimise the 917’s performance on a circuit with such a long straight, three – J. W. Automotive’s for Siffert/Redman and Rodriguez/Kinnunen, and the Salzberg entry for Elford/Ahrens Jr – were fitted with the 4,907 cc engine.  The latter car also featured a longtail body, as did the psychedelic-liveried Martini Racing Team’s 917 assigned to Larrousse/Kauhsen.  However, the race became much more about reliability and avoiding accident damage than outright speed, especially as wet weather set in within the first hour.  For both makes, only two cars made it to the chequered flag and none of the expected front-runners figured in this group.  But this, no doubt, did not matter too much to the Zuffenhausen management because the Salzberg 917 driven by Attwood/Herrmann delivered the elusive first win.  And, for good measure, the Martini car came home second.  Perhaps the elation was a little spoiled by the fact that all three of the 5 litre engines failed. 

512s were placed 4^th and 5^th, driven by Posey/Bucknum (N.A.R.T.) and Walker/de Fieriant (Ecurie Francorchamps) respectively.  The other nine cars recorded retirements, five of which were attributable to accidents.

Left to right: Winning Salzberg 917 of Attwood/Herrmann. Courtesy Motor Sport Magazine; Race start. Courtesy Autotrend.com; Longtail of 2^nd placed Martini 917 of Larrousse/Kauhsen. Courtesy Primotipo

Although the championship was already decided, there was plenty of interest in round 9 at Watkins Glen, as several of the cars and the drivers took part the following day in a round of the Can-Am Challenge.  Although Ferrari had tackled the Group 7 series previously with the 612P, it was concerned that results had been mediocre, and used the event to reconsider next steps.  Andretti and Ickx both drove S.E.F.A.C.-entered 512S Spyders, the model that would be modified the following year to carry a 7 litre version of the V12 to create the 712P.  Porsche, however, looking to the next 2 or 3 seasons, perhaps had the most interest in the category, largely because of Jo Siffert’s personal persistence and the resulting 917 PA spider.  The Zuffenhausen marque too would compete in 1971 in Can-Am with an upgraded car - the 917/10.
 
The World Championship ‘6 Hours’ encapsulated the season’s general state of play, with a cohort of six 917s smothering the efforts of just three 512s – S.E.F.A.C. entries for Ickx/Schetty, Andretti/Giunti, and for Loos/Pesch by Gelo.  The Gulf Porsches dominated, Rodriguez/Kinnunen 1^st and Siffert/Redman 2^nd.  Andretti/Giunti took 3^rd but Ickx/Schetty could only manage 5^th, while the Gelo car failed to finish.  There was some embarrassment for J. W. Automotive as Rodriguez and Siffert collided an hour and half into the race, though neither sustained retirement-enforcing damage.

Left to right: Martini 917 of van Lennep leads 512 of Giunti. Courtesy Racing Archives.org; Siffert ahead of Rodriguez in the Gulf 917s. Courtesy Racing Archives.org; Gelo Racing Team’s 512. Courtesy Ralph Jennelli

After a three months break, the 10^th and final round was held at Zeltweg in October.  It might have appeared that by this time Ferrari had lost interest with just a single S.E.F.A.C. entry for Ickx/Giunti, but this was to a new ‘M’ specification which featured revised aerodynamics, increased engine power and improved rear brakes/suspension.  Gelo’s 512S was on hand for Loos/Pesch.  In contrast, six 917s were present, three cars each for the J. W. Automotive and Salzberg teams.  Notable in regard to the latter equipe was a 917 driving debut for Helmut Marko, taking the place made vacant by the retirement from racing of Hans Herrmann.  For Ferrari, a visible point of interest was the adoption of a ‘chopped’ tail, much like that devised for the 917 in Austria 12 months previously and leading to the ‘Kurz’ designation.

 Rodriguez took pole with a time just 1.2 seconds greater than that recorded by Jochen Rindt in practice for the Grand Prix at the circuit two months previously.  However, Ickx made the better race start.  The speed of the new 512M proved to be sustainable, leaving Rodriguez unable to stay on terms, and his engine failed after only 4 laps in the attempt.  The Ferrari’s control of the race was maintained until just short of one third distance when the car’s electrics/ignition failed.  In the latter stages, the victory looked well assured for the Siffert/Redman Gulf Porsche, but with a few laps remaining, it lost power with malfunctioning valve gear.  However, with a substantial lead, the car was capable of being nursed home and did indeed claim first place.

Left to right: Ferrari 512M of Jacky Ickx. Courtesy Alamy; Porsche 917 of Siffert/Redman. Courtesy MotorSportImages

With only the seven best results counted, the final championship points table showed Porsche to be the clear winning marque with 63 points, Ferrari’s total being 37.  Headline statistics for Porsche (Ferrari’s for comparison in brackets): Race Starts: 43 (40); Wins: 7 (1); Podiums: 14 (7); DNFs: 16 (19).  Considering that data, it will be no surprise that for Porsche the ambition/plan for ’71 was ‘more of the same.’  For Ferrari there was the promise that the new M version of the 512 would be fast and reliable, but S.E.F.A.C.’s Championship-contesting focus now switched to the 312 PB to be run in the Prototype (Group 6) class.