Alfa Romeo Tipo B
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| Constructor: | Vittorio Jano | ||||||||
| Predecessor: | Alfa Romeo P2 / P2-30 | ||||||||
| Successor: | Alfa Romeo 8C-35 Type C. | ||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chassis: | Spars and cross struts made of pressed sheet steel with “C” cross-section | ||||||||
| Engine: | 8-cylinder in-line engine with 2654 to 3822 cm³ Roots compressor |
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| Length: | 3840 mm | ||||||||
| Width: | 1375 mm | ||||||||
| Height: | 1165 mm | ||||||||
| Wheelbase: | 2642 mm | ||||||||
| Weight: | 680 or 750 kg | ||||||||
| Petrol: | petrol | ||||||||
| statistics | |||||||||
| Driver: | see point "Driver" | ||||||||
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| World Cup points: | - | ||||||||
| Podiums: | - | ||||||||
| Leadership laps: | - | ||||||||
The Alfa Romeo Tipo B was a single-seat Grand Prix racing car that Alfa Romeo built and used between 1932 and 1936. The vehicle designed by Vittorio Jano was based on the Alfa Romeo 8C models. The P3 was Alfa Romeo's second single-seater after the Tipo-A-Monoposto (1931). He took over some of the components of the previously very successful Alfa Romeo P2 , which led to the unofficial name "P3" in the press and among motorsport enthusiasts. Thanks to the numerous victories achieved by Tazio Nuvolari and Achille Varzi , among others , it is considered to be one of the best competition cars ever built.
Development and technology
During its service life, the Tipo B went through two stages of development:
1932
The task of Vittorio Janos and his team was to develop a competitive car that would solve the weight problems of the 8C 2300 "Monza" that was still in use and the complications of the Tipo A.
The chassis with longitudinal spars and cross members made of pressed steel C-profiles, derived from that of the Tipo A, was adapted to the regulations and modified to accommodate the new engine. This version of the engine had a larger displacement of 2654 cm³ (bore × stroke: 65 × 100 mm) than the turbocharged eight-cylinder in-line engine of the 8C 2300 "Monza". It was progressive in its day, with a cylinder block and head made of light metal divided into two halves, each with four cylinders. Jano divided the block in order to reduce the torsional vibrations of the crankshaft and camshafts by arranging all power take-offs in the middle of the crankshaft: the drive for the camshafts, the drive for the supercharger on the side and, on the opposite side, the drive for the pumps for oil and cooling water. The crankcase was in one piece. The engine had dry sump lubrication , two Roots compressors and two Weber carburettors , magneto ignition and water cooling. It developed 215 hp at 5600 rpm.
The four-speed gearbox and the multi-plate clutch were locked to the engine.
The front and rear wheels were suspended from rigid axles with semi-elliptical leaf springs and friction shock absorbers, rear springs and dampers were double. The drum brakes were operated mechanically. A novelty of the Type B P3 was the placement of the differential immediately behind the manual transmission. From there, the power was transferred to the rear wheels via pairs of bevel gears with two diagonally arranged shafts. The differential located further forward reduced the unsprung masses and the load on the rear axle. This should reduce the tendency to oversteer .
This 700 kg single-seater with its simple, streamlined body reached 225 km / h.
1934
For the 1934 season , the Grand Prix regulations were changed in several points: The maximum weight of vehicles with wheels but without fuel, oil, cooling water and tires was set at 750 kg. The body had to be at least 865 mm wide. In order to achieve this required width, (similar to the Maserati 8CM ), some metal sheets were welded on, but these did not increase competitiveness.
The engine and transmission were changed: a bore enlarged to 68 mm resulted in a total displacement of 2905 cm³ and a final output of 255 hp at 5400 rpm. The gearbox was modified by omitting 1st gear and translating the remaining 3 gears longer. After a long series of tests on the Autostrada dei Laghi , the aerospace engineer Cesare Pallavicino had also developed an aerodynamically more favorable version of the Tipo B for fast routes.
In 1935 , Scuderia Ferrari used an updated version of the Alfa Romeo Tipo B, the displacement of which was first increased to 3165 cm³ (bore × stroke: 77 × 100 mm) and then to 3822 cm³ in order to increase the power to 265 hp at 5400 rpm increase. This enabled a top speed of 275 km / h. The car received hydraulically operated drum brakes, double hydraulic shock absorbers and pushed quarter-elliptical boom leaf springs on the rigid rear axle. The Nuvolari and Chiron vehicles also had independent front suspension with pushed arms ( Dubonnet suspension ).
Driver's seat, the differential housing in front of the seat
The 8-cylinder engine of a type B P3, the two Roots compressors and the two carburettors on the inlet side are clearly visible
Engine - exhaust side
Front axle (1935) with Dubonnet suspension
Rear axle (1935) with the longitudinally aligned leaf springs and the friction damper above
Racing history
1932
Tazio Nuvolari won the first race of the Tipo B / P3 on June 5, 1932 at the 10th Italian Grand Prix in Monza . The season continued with six more victories for Alfa Romeo, including the most important Grands Prix of the time, namely those of France and Germany (at the Nürburgring ). The second driver was the German Rudolf Caracciola . Thanks to these successes, Alfa Romeo and Nuvolari won the International Automobile Championship, which that year was based on the Grands Prix of Italy, France and Germany.
1933
In 1933 the “ Alfa Corse ” factory team was closed due to Alfa Romeo's financial problems. Direct participation in competitions was consequently suspended. All Alfa Romeo racing material was handed over to Scuderia Ferrari in Modena , which had prepared and fielded the racing cars since 1929. This year Tipo B did not take part in the first 25 competitions and did not start again until August. He won six of the remaining eleven races, including the Italian and Spanish Grands Prix .
1934
At the start of the 1934 season , Alfa Romeo had a good run of victories in Monaco , Alessandria , the Tripoli Grand Prix and the Targa Florio and, with the streamlined version, at the AVUS in Berlin . At the French Grand Prix , P3 scored a hat trick with Luis Chiron first, Achille Varzi second and Guy Moll third. After this success, however, the more modern and progressive designs of the Mercedes-Benz W 125 and the Auto Union Type A , which were meanwhile stable and reliable, took the lead by winning the other four major competitions of the European season, leaving the P3 only at less prestigious race wins. Overall, however, P3 won 18 of the 35 races announced for this season.
1935
In 1935 , the technical superiority of German cars was clearly felt. Nevertheless, the Tipo B achieved one last great success: At the German Grand Prix , Nuvolari gave the "old" P3 preference over the newly developed, but now technically "outdated" Bimotore 16C . To the surprise of the 300,000 spectators, including numerous party leaders of the NSDAP , the P3 was the first to cross the finish line. Thanks to its versatility and agility, the Tipo B won 16 of 39 races in the 1935 season.
For the 1935 Mille Miglia , Scuderia Ferrari reported not only the cars from last year but also a Tipo B P3, which had to be modified to take part in the road race. On the basis of a car with a 2654 cm³ engine of 220 hp at 5500 rpm, a narrow two-seater with steering shifted to the right, fenders, dynamo, battery, headlights, electric starter and spare wheel was created, so with everything a car needs 1930s for a street legal. The car was entrusted to the driver Carlo Maria Pintacuda , who chose the Marquis Alessandro Dalla Stufa as co-driver. Marqui Dalla Stufa was a man of so delicate build that he could sit reasonably comfortably in the narrow, open cockpit. The duo won the race by over 40 minutes over the runner-up with an average speed of 114.72 km / h.
1936
In 1936 the same car was driven for the Mille Miglia by Clemente Biondetti , who placed it in fourth place behind three new Alfa Romeo 8C 2900s.
Historical pictures
Caracciola in his P3 (center) at the start in Monza in 1932
Mussolini for propaganda recordings at the wheel of a P3 (1932)
Starting line-up for the French Grand Prix 1932, on grid position “6” of the Tipo B, next to it an Auto Union Type A
Clemente Biondetti at the Coppa Ciano 1936
driver
The Tipo B was driven by a large number of well-known international pilots during its service life:
- 1932: Tazio Nuvolari , Rudolf Caracciola , Giuseppe Campari , Baconin Borzacchini
- 1933: Louis Chiron , Luigi Fagioli , Giuseppe Campari
- 1934: Achille Varzi , Louis Chiron , Guy Moll , Brian E. Lewis , Carlo Felice Trossi , Gianfranco Comotti
- 1935: Tazio Nuvolari , Raymond Sommer , Louis Chiron , "Raph" , Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth , René Dreyfus , Vittorio Belmondo , Mario Tadini , Antonio Brivio , Guido Barbieri , Pietro Ghersi , Renato Balestrero
- 1936: Raymond Sommer , "Charlie" Martin , José de Villapadierna , Giovanni Battaglia , Clemente Biondetti , Austin Dobson
Victories
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Alfa Romeo P3 in the museum and current missions (gallery)
A P3 at the European Motor Show Brussels 2006.
Detail of the rear of an Alfa Romeo "Gran Premio Tipo B P3 - Aerodinamica" in the Enzo Ferrari Museum in Modena
Easy to see: the leaf suspension and the friction damper installed above it
Alfa Romeo Tipo B at the 2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed
1932 Alfa Romeo Tipo B 'Don Lee Special'
Others
Tazio Nuvolari had the motto “Donne e Motori, Gioie e Dolori” (women and motors, joys and sorrows) painted on the bonnet of the P3, with which he won the German Grand Prix on July 28, 1935, combined with the picture a turtle that Gabriele D'Annunzio had given him.
Web links
- Classicdriver.com RM Sotheby's is auctioning sensational Scuderia Ferrari Alfa B P3 in Paris. Retrieved June 22, 2020
- fcaheritage.com The ALFA ROMEO P3 - A milestone. Retrieved June 22, 2020
- 1934 Alfa Romeo P3 - supercharged inline-8 Grand Prix car . On YouTube . Retrieved June 22, 2020
- 1935 Alfa Romeo P3 Tipo B - Goodwood FOS 2019 . On YouTube . Retrieved June 22, 2020
Individual evidence
- ^ Grand Prix Cars - Alfa Romeo P3. September 13, 2007, accessed June 20, 2020 .
- ↑ 1931 Alfa Romeo Tipo A Monoposto - Images, Specifications and Information. Retrieved June 20, 2020 (English).
- ↑ a b c 1932 - 1935 Alfa Romeo Tipo B P3 Monoposto - Images, Specifications and Information. Retrieved June 20, 2020 (English).
- ↑ Maurizio Tabucchi, Alfa Romeo 1910 - 2010, page 88, Milano, Giorgio Nada Editore, 2010, ISBN 978-88-7911-502-5 (Italian)
- ↑ 1934 Alfa Romeo Tipo B Aerodynamica - Images, Specifications and Information. Accessed June 21, 2020 (English).
- ↑ Millie Miglia 1936 (English)
- ↑ The Roaring Thirties at the Vintage Race Days 2016. April 30, 2016, accessed June 21, 2020 .
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