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HISTORY OF CHASSIS 002 C

Chassis 002 C was the third car built by Ferrari. It started life as a 159 Sport and followed the brace of 125 Sports numbered chassis 01 C and 02 C.

The first chassis to be fitted with the new type 159 engine was actually sister car 02 C which had one of the 1.9-litre V12s installed for a street race in Pescara during mid August of 1947. Chassis 002 C then appeared six weeks later for the Circuito di Modena where all three of the Ferraris were on hand (all now with 159 engines installed).

Unfortunately, the Modena contest proved arguably Scuderia Ferrari’s most disappointing outing of the year. Chassis 002 C was allocated to Franco Cortese who had already retired when the race was stopped after five spectators were killed and scores more injured when Giovanni Bracco lost control of his Delage and ploughed into the crowd.

Ferrari’s final appearance of 1947 came at the Torino GP on October 12th where 002 C was the Scuderia’s solitary entry. Two-time Le Mans winning Frenchman Raymond Sommer was brought in to drive the 159 Sport for the 105 lap event and won in style after the Maseratis of Ascari and Villoresi dropped out.

Over the winter of 1947-1948, chassis 002 C was uprated with Ferrari’s new 2-litre type 166 engine. It was then sold to the Besana brothers, Soave and Gabriele, along with a new 166 Spyder Corsa (chassis 004 C).

Together, the Lombardy-based siblings embarked on a full season of racing during 1948. Immediately after sale, chassis 002 C was shipped out to South America where Gabriele Besana contested the Gran Premio de Eva Peron on February 14th and the Gran Premio de Interlagos a week later. Sadly, he failed to finish on either occasion.

Having returned to Europe, 002 C was refreshed back at the Ferrari factory and fitted with a modified front grille. The car then had its best result of the 1948 campaign when works pilot Chico Landi drove it to victory at the Gran Premio di Bari. Other highlights from 002 C’s 1948 season included second overall at the Gran Premio di Napoli and fourth at the Circuito di Garda with Soave Besana behind the wheel on both occasions.

The Besana brothers retained chassis 002 C for 1949, but the little Spyder was used much less frequently. The car appeared for its first race of the year, the Mille Miglia, with a newly modified nose that featured an enlarged F1-style intake aperture and egg-crate grille. Gabriele Besana and Franco Cortese failed to finish the 1000-mile road race. 002 C also retired on its only other outing during 1949 when Clemente Biondetti posted a DNF at the Coppa Adriatica in Senigallia.

During 1950, chassis 002 C was acquired by Luigi de Filippis of Campania whose solitary outing in the car came at the Gran Premio di Roma where it was involved in an opening lap pile up.

The damaged car was then sold to Renato Nocentini who ran Garage Rotunda in Florence and had 002 C rebodied with a fully enveloped body by Carrozzeria Motto.

Nocentini entered three events in his newly acquired Ferrari between April 1951 and July 1952. He placed second overall at the ‘51 Firenze-Fiesole Hillclimb, failed to finish the Coppa della Toscana road race and came home seventh overall at the Coppa della Consuma Hillclimb.

In 1953, Nocentini sold chassis 002 C to Samuel Scher, a pioneering plastic surgeon and renowned car collector who was visiting from New York and subsequently exported the Ferrari to the United States. Scher did not keep 002 C for long; it was sold via broker, Irwin Goldschmidt, to fellow New Yorker, Frank Adams, who had the engine rebuilt before passing it on to Don Vitale of Waterbury, Connecticut.

During the 1960s, chassis 002 C passed through the hands of Richard o’Hare and Stanley Nowak before joining the renowned collection of Carl Bross in Detroit. Unfortunately, having started restoration on the car, Bross passed away in 1969. In 1972 his collection was sold to Anthony Bamford from Great Britain. Bamford kept chassis 002 C until 1978 when it was sold in ‘as acquired’ condition to Canadian David Cohen who completed the restoration and retained it until the early 1990s.

Notable History

Scuderia Ferrari

28/09/1947 Circuito di Modena (F. Cortese) DNF (#20)
12/10/1947 Torino GP, Valentino Park (R. Sommer) 1st oa (#78)

Uprated with 166 engine

Sold to Gabriele & Soave Besana, Milan

14/02/1948 F1 GP de Eva Peron, Buenos Aires (G. Besana) DNF (#22)
21/03/1948 F1 GP de Interlagos (G. Besana) DNF (#26)
30/05/1948 F2 GP Bari (C. Landi) 1st oa (#38)
13/06/1948 F2 Coppa Nuvolari, Mantova (G. Besana) 9th oa (#24)
18/07/1948 F2 Coupe des Petites Cylindrees, Reims (S. Besana) DNF (#44)
01/08/1948 Aosta-Gran San Bernardo Hillclimb (G. Besana) DNF (#??)
15/08/1948 Circuito di Pescara (G. Besana) DNF (#18)
19/09/1948 F2 GP Napoli (S. Besana) 2nd oa (#12)
26/09/1948 F2 Firenze GP (S. Besana) DNF (#60)
24/10/1948 F1 Circuito di Garda (S. Besana) 4th oa (#2)

Nose modified with F1-style enlarged intake aperture and egg-crate grille

24/04/1949 Mille Miglia (G. Besana / F. Cortese) DNF (#630)
21/08/1949 Coppa Adriatica, Senigallia (C. Biondetti) DNF (#102)

Sold to Luigi de Filippis, Campania

11/06/1950 GP Roma, Caracella (L. de Filippis) DNF (#38)

Sold to Renato Nocentini (Garage Rotunda), Florence

Rebodied with fully enveloped bodywork by Motto

22/04/1951 Firenze-Fiesole Hillclimb (R. Nocentini) 2nd oa (#??)

01/06/1952 Coppa della Toscana (R. Nocentini) ran (#1235)
06/07/1952 Coppa della Consuma Hillclimb (R. Nocentini) 7th oa, 4th in class (#168)

1953 sold to Samuel Scher, New York City, New York

Sold to Frank Adams, New York City, New York

Sold to Don Vitale, Waterbury, Connecticut

1964 sold to Richard O'Hare, Westfield, Massachusetts