Gioacchino Colombo when he worked for Alfa Romeo...Like I said, the same people...But it was modified alot before it won the F1 championship in 1950. The Alfa's were running much higher rpm than the Ferrari's even after the bearings were changed on the Ferrari's. This is the kind of stuff I like to see Doug Nye write about. He is so articulate at describing mechanical details on old race cars.
Found this line just a bit relevant to the car.... "Once Portago commented, "I won't die in an accident. I'll die of old age or be executed in some gross miscarriage of justice". Nelson countered this assertion, saying de Portago would not live to be 30. According to Nelson, "every time Portago comes in from a race the front of his car is wrinkled where he has been nudging people out of the way at 130 mph (210 km/h)".[3]"
I love "behind the scenes" photos. From my small collection of old prints. Porsche 917K getting ride height inspection prior to the 1970 Sebring race. This is the #14 car driven by Jo Siffert, Brian Redman and Leo Kinnunen this car DNF'd. The #15 917K behind this car(doors/tail up) was driven by Pedro Rodriguez, Jo Siffert and Leo Kinnunen finishing 4th. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Only found these two photos. Still no rear shots. It had no bumpers during the race. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Macca didn't say it was 0858. As he correctly said, it's #0854, which is pictured in its non original and not as it left the factory, Spyder form without the small central vent on the nose. The car has been reconfigured by JG to its original Berlinetta form with a replica roof, windows, oil tank and carburettor hump.
excuse me. I Scrip 0858 (330 P4) thinking 0854 (412 P) mille excuses, j'ai écri 0858 en pensant 0854.
I don't know what happened to Ricart after the war. Thru no real fault of his own he was never able to fulfill that task he was given to bring Alfa competitive with the Germans. Ramponi and Colombo and others were brought in after the war and were quite successful for Ferrari despite limited financial resources. What is interesting is that Alfa seemed to get the roller bearings to work at high rpms. What Ferrari needed was a bearing that would handle the high rpms and also be adapted for use in production engines. The Thinwall bearings solved this problem and the rest is history. In Colombo's book there is an interesting discussion of the complexities of roller bearings and why they never could be adapted to the production engine. The Thinwall bearing design actually came from an American design for WW2 aircraft engines which after the war was given to the British as part of what became the Marshall Plan. tongascrew
From memory Ricart went to work for ENASA in Spain that produced trucks but also the infamous Pegaso cars.
In the early 1950 Wilfredo Ricart persuaded E.N.A.S.A., the state-owned Company that constructed the nation's trucks and buses, to fund his design of a world-class sports car, Pegaso, a brilliant design and by a wide margin the most advanced car of its time: 4-cam engine, all-independent suspension - deDion at the rear - transmission in unit with the differential, disc brakes the only thing lacking and they were just being introduced by Dunlops. Total production from 1951 to about 1957 was some 80-odd units. E.N.A.S.A. produced some rather homely berlinettas, Saoutchik a few very flamboyant ones and Touring designed and built 'superleggera' berlinettas and spyders that to my eye are among the most beautiful sports cars ever made. Below will be a few photos (they are copyrighted) I made at the 1953 New York Automobile Show at Grand Central Palace at which Pegaso introduced the Z102b to the U.S. The last photo is of a one-off built for Rafael Trujillo, the dictator-ruler of Dominican Republic, and informally named 'El Doninicano'. As to roller bearings, the first Porsche Carreras had them in conjunction with a Hirth built-up crankshaft. I have a vague recollection that the 1954-55 M-B W196 G.P. cars and the 300SLR sports racers did too. Anyone with better info on the Mercedes'? Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Talking about Ferrari... and Pegaso. The 'spanish army' (V8 engines, many of them supercharged) couldn't defeat the simple Ferrari 750 Monza, driven by Willy Daetwyler. 1955 Copa Montjuic Sport - Barcelona (Spain). Antonio ps: if anyone is interested in racing Pegasos, autódromo, magazine of which I'm editor and founder, has published a special issue. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Pegaso = greatest car on paper, like a true supercar; but not actually as effective in the real world. Pete
As well known, Enzo Ferrari never had a great consideration for Ricart and when speaking of him, he was ironic also about the thick rubber sole shoes that Ricart usually wore, explaining that he wore that type of shoes in order to protect his fine brain, from the roughness of the terrain ... Ciao Andrea
Back in the day, my friend Asa Clark had two cars for sale: A Pegaso like your first two pix, and a Ferrari PF 500 Mondial (S/N 0434MD). I was in love with the P-car (a REAL P-car) but opted for the Mondial as I thought I knew more about Ferraris. I've always wondered what happened to the Pegaso.
Three-pad front disc brakes were made in collaboration with Lockeed, and briefly tested in 1954. Below will be a few photos (they are copyrighted) I made at the 1953 New York Automobile Show at Grand Central Palace at which Pegaso introduced the Z102b to the U.S. The last photo is of a one-off built for Rafael Trujillo, the dictator-ruler of Dominican Republic, and informally named 'El Doninicano'.'[/QUOTE] Actually, the presentation was at the Fred Pittera's 1st World Motor Sports Show, held at the NYC's Madison Square Garden, 2/53. The above shots show the very first Touring-bodied spyder and berlinetta (chassis...0118 and 0119 respec.), and the one-off Tea Rose (chassis ...0121) designed and made Pegaso in-house, at the Brewster Automobiles stand. The TR won the "Honour Prize" and WP Ricart "The Designer's Prize". At 29200 U.S.A. $ was by far, the most expensive exhibit. Few weeks later on, she collected further prizes at the International Motor Shows of Harford, CT, 3/53, and NYC's Grand Central Palace, 4/53.
In fact both cars belong to the first series run of 14 berlinette Touring. Foreground 811 is chassis nº ...154 (3200 cc aspirated), displayed at the 1954 Turin Motor Show. Owner. F. Godia. Here is captioned during a special stage of a gruelling VI Vuelta a Cataluña, May 1955, and yes: windscreen broke during the event and a couple of tiny fans were hastly fitted on hood trying to protect somehow the ocupants from the unchained elements. They finished 10 OA.
Ref.54 has been in the USA for some 50 years now. The Panoramica must be Ref.72, the only one produced in 1955.
