Ferrari America

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Various sports cars from the Italian manufacturer Ferrari are grouped under the collective name Ferrari America and Superamerica , which were built in the 1950s and 1960s and were the company's most expensive and powerful models at that time. They were primarily intended for the North American market and, in the first few years, had individual bodies made according to customer requirements.

History of origin

Lettering of a Ferrari 340 America

The Modenese company Ferrari has its roots in racing ( Scuderia Ferrari ). After the end of the Second World War , Ferrari, like Maserati, gradually began building street sports cars . The first models were the 166 , 195 and 212 , although only a few were sold. The common feature of these vehicles was a twelve-cylinder engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo , which over the years was offered with displacements from 2.0 to 3.0 liters. In view of its length, it is often referred to as a short block .

These models and their successors in the 250 and 330 series were particularly successful with European customers. In the North American market, on the other hand, the cars with their small, sophisticated engines hardly met with interest; Here, large, high-displacement engines were primarily in demand. In order to establish the brand in the USA, Ferrari provided the small street sports car with a series of coupés and convertibles from 1951, which were powered by the larger and much more powerful long-block engines from Aurelio Lampredi . These engines were derived from a racing engine. The road vehicles equipped in this way were the most expensive Ferrari models; they were considered special prestige objects. To document their primary purpose, they were given the suffixes America and Superamerica. In the 1950s, four editions of the America series were created, in which Ferrari gradually developed the concept. The displacement of the Lampredi engine increased from an initial 4.1 liters to a final 5.0 liters. It was not until the 410 Superamerica that the Lampredi engine was no longer used. In a broader sense, the 500 Superfast and the 365 California Spyder also belong in this series. They occupied a similar position in the Ferrari model range, but did not have the terms America or Superamerica in their names. The Ferrari 330 GT America has a special role.

The Lampredi twelve-cylinder ( long block )

The Lampredi engine in a Ferrari 375 (1954)

Aurelio Lampredi's long block engine was originally designed for motorsport. It is based on the short construction by Gioacchino Colombo, but differs from it in that it has a larger cylinder spacing. They allow larger bores, so that a significantly larger displacement can be achieved overall.

The Lampredi engine appeared with a displacement of 3.3 liters (3322 cm³) for the first time in the fall of 1950 in the Ferrari 275F1 Formula 1 racing car , and then in the 1951 season with 4.1 and later 4.5 liters in the 340F1 and 375F1 to compete against the Alfa Romeo 158 "Alfetta" . Other versions of the Lampredi engine were used in races in Indianapolis.

In 1951, Lampredi developed a roadworthy version of these racing engines, which was built into Ferrari's line of road sports cars intended for North America. With a displacement of 4.1 liters, it was used in the 340 America and 342 America. The 4.5-liter version appeared in the 375 America, and the largest expansion stage with a displacement of approximately 5.0 liters powered the 410 Superamerica. Only with the 400 Superamerica did Ferrari turn away from the pure Lampredi engines in this segment.

The original America family models

340 America

Ferrari 340 America with touring body

The first street model in the America range is the 340 America, presented in 1951, which was sold until 1952. It has a 4101 cm³ V12 engine (bore × stroke: 70 × 68 mm), which is equipped with three Weber 40DCF double carburetors. The compression ratio is 8: 1. Later models received dry sump lubrication instead of wet lubrication. The engine output is 162 kW (220 hp) at 6000 rpm. It is thus significantly more powerful than the Colombo twelve-cylinder of the 212 offered at the same time, which develops 118 kW (160 hp). The chassis is technically the same as that of the 212, but the wheelbase of the 340 America has been shortened to 2420 mm. The manual five-speed gearbox is not synchronized. In 1951 and 1952, a total of 23 340 America vehicles were built, some of which were also successful in racing. Belong to the series

  • eleven cars with Vignale bodies (five coupés and six barchettas)
  • seven cars with touring bodies
  • five cars with bodies from Ghia .

342 America

Ferrari 342 Pininfarina Coupe

In 1952 the 342 America appeared, supplementing the 340 America. It combines the 4.1 liter Lampredi twelve-cylinder engine of the 340 America with a longer chassis, the wheelbase of which, at 2650 mm, is even longer than that of the 212 Inter. Ferrari saw the 342 America as a luxury touring car. Therefore the engine output was reduced to 200 hp; in addition, the 342 America received fully synchronized four-speed transmissions. The 342 America were more than 300 kg heavier than the 340 models and had decidedly elegant bodies. In total, only six copies of the very expensive model were made. Pininfarina designed three coupes and two convertibles; there was also a convertible from Vignale. One of the Pininfarina convertibles went to the Belgian royal family.

375 America

Ferrari 375 America with Vignale body

At the Paris Motor Show in October 1953, Ferrari introduced the 375 America, which replaced the 340 and 342 America alike.

The 375 America is powered by a version of the Lampredi long block engine (Tipo 104) enlarged to 4523 cm³ (bore × stroke: 84 × 68 mm) . With three Weber 40DCF double carburetors and a compression ratio of 8: 1, the engine has an output of 221 kW (300 hp) at 6300 rpm. The chassis is technically the same as that of the 250 Europa, but has a wheelbase extended to 2800 mm. Until the 612 Scaglietti appeared in 2004, the 375 America was the Ferrari with the longest wheelbase. The 375 America reached a top speed of 250 km / h.

Twelve copies were made by 1954. Vignale built three convertible and one coupé body; the remaining eight vehicles received a Coupé body from Pininfarina. Seven of them were more or less identical; the last Pininfarina car that was delivered to Giovanni Agnelli, on the other hand, had a separate body with a front panoramic window.

410 Superamerica

Ferrari 410 Superamerica

In the spring of 1956, the 410 Superamerica was the successor to the 375 America. His Lampredi engine was enlarged to 4962 cm³ (Tipo 126). The output was initially at 254 kW (340 PS), which occurred at 6000 revolutions per minute; At the end of the production period, the engines came to 400 hp according to the factory. There are three series to be distinguished. In the first series, the wheelbase is initially 2800 mm; However, the last first series cars already have the wheelbase shortened to 2600 mm, which later marked the series 2 and 3. The bodies came mostly from Pininfarina, but also from Boano and Ghia. The price was very high - importer Luigi Chinetti offered the 410 Superamerica at $ 16.800 at the New York Auto Show .

400 Superamerica

Ferrari 400 Superamerica

The 400 Superamerica had a smaller 4.0 liter Colombo engine, but delivered as much power as its predecessor. It appeared in 1959 when production of the 410 ended and was available as a Coupé, Spider or Cabriolet with a specially made Pinin Farina body. Four wheel disc brakes were a new addition. 50 of the 400 were built before the 400 made way for the successor in 1964.

Conceptual successor

500 superfast

Ferrari 500 Superfast

The end of the America series was the 500 Superfast, built in 1964. Early on in their development and production, these cars were called “Superamerica”, but at the last moment that was changed to “Superfast”. The engine was again a 5.0-liter Lampredi engine, but with 400 hp (298 kW) speeds of up to 274 km / h were possible. The chassis was based on the contemporary 330 GT 2 + 2 , and the body was again made by Pinin Farina. 37 were produced through 1966, including twelve "Series II" models, with an improved 5-speed transmission.

365 California Spyder

Ferrari 365 California Spyder

The 1966 365 California was a stepchild. It had the chassis of the Americas with its 2650 mm wheelbase and rigid axles rear suspension, but used the 4.4-liter Colombo V12 of the other 365 vehicles. Only 14 of the open roadsters were built and production ended in 1967.

Ferrari 330 GT America special case

Ferrari 330 GT America

The Ferrari 330 GT America occupies a special position, which only belongs to the America range in name, but conceptually has nothing to do with it. Unlike the other America models, the 330 GT America is not a special model with a large-displacement engine. It is an interim model that was created in 1963 when Ferrari made the transition from the now obsolete 250 family to the 330 series. In 1963 a new twelve-cylinder engine ( Tipo 209 ), enlarged to 4.0 liters, was ready for use as a successor to the 250 engine, but new bodies for the 330 series were not yet ready. In order to be able to sell the new Tipo 209 engine in the USA as early as 1963, Ferrari launched a special series at the instigation of its US importer Luigi Chinetti that combined the new engine with the old Pininfarina body of the 250 GTE 2 + 2 . Of this small model, which was offered parallel to the large 400 Superamerica, 50 were made, most of which were sold in the USA.

literature

  • Leonardo Acerbi: Ferrari: A Complete Guide to All Models. MBI Publishing Company LLC, 2006, ISBN 978-0-7603-2550-6 .
  • Georg Amtmann, Halwart Schrader: Italian sports cars. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1999, ISBN 3-613-01988-4
  • Martin Buckley, Chris Rees: World Encyclopedia of Cars . Anness Publishing, London 1998, ISBN 1-84038-083-7 .
  • Matthias Braun, Ernst Fischer, Manfred Steinert, Alexander Franc Storz: Ferrari road and racing cars since 1946. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02651-3 .
  • Peter Braun, Gregor Schulz: The great Ferrari manual. All series and racing vehicles from 1947 to the present day. Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-501-8 .
  • Godfrey Eaton: The Complete Ferrari. Edited by Geoff Willoughby. Cadogan Books, London 1985, ISBN 0-947754-10-5 .
  • Brian Laban: Ferrari. Translated from the English by Frauke Watson. Parragon Books, Bath 2006, ISBN 978-1-4054-1409-8 .
  • Frank Oleski, Hartmut Lehbrink: Series sports cars. Könemann, Cologne 1993, ISBN 3-89508-000-4 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Peter Braun, Gregor Schulz: The large Ferrari manual. All series and racing vehicles from 1947 to the present day. Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-501-8 , p. 33.
  2. ^ Brian Laban: Ferrari . Translated from the English by Frauke Watson. Parragon Books, Bath 2006, ISBN 978-1-4054-1409-8 , p. 49 ff.
  3. ↑ a b Matthias Braun, Ernst Fischer, Manfred Steinert, Alexander Franc Storz: Ferrari road and racing cars since 1946 , Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02651-3 , p. 44.
  4. ^ Peter Braun, Gregor Schulz: The large Ferrari manual. All series and racing vehicles from 1947 to the present day . Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-501-8 , p. 31.
  5. ^ Matthias Braun, Ernst Fischer, Manfred Steinert, Alexander Franc Storz: Ferrari road and racing cars since 1946 , Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02651-3 , pp. 120-122.
  6. ↑ Matthias Braun, Ernst Fischer, Manfred Steinert, Alexander Franc Storz: Ferrari road and racing cars since 1946 , Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02651-3 , p. 123.
  7. ^ Peter Braun, Gregor Schulz: The large Ferrari manual . Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-501-8 , p. 64.