VIN: the works / NART Ferrari 250 P / 275 P / 330 P chassis 0812
History of chassis 0812
The 250 P was Ferrari’s first mid V12-engined Sports Prototype. Four of them were assembled to contest the 1963 season.
That year, the de Facto World Championship was decided by GT cars (such as the 250 GT) while purebred Sports cars (like the 250 P) fought it out for the International Prototype Trophy which was decided by the outcome of four events: the Sebring 12 Hours, Targa Florio, Nurburgring 1000km and Le Mans 24 Hours.
Chassis 0812 made its debut at the Sebring 12 Hours (March 23rd) where it was allocated to Willy Mairesse and Nino Vaccarella. Grid slots were decided on engine size.
Having been delayed early on as a result of loose plug leads, Mairesse and Vaccarella (who were later joined by Lorenzo Bandini) went on to finish second overall behind the sister car of Surtees / Scarfiotti.
0812 next appeared at the annual Le Mans Test weekend (April 6th and 7th) where five Ferrari drivers took the wheel and the car smashed the existing lap record in the hands of John Surtees. Surtees hit 181mph down the Mulsanne Straight and went six seconds quicker than the works 330 LM Berlinetta that finished with second fastest time.
At the Targa Florio on May 5th, 0812 was driven by Scarfiotti and Mairesse.
Scarfiotti led at the end of lap one, but at the end of lap two he came into the pits with the engine running rough. Mairesse took over, but was himself in at the end of lap three. He set off again, only for the car to ground out over a bump which damaged the fuel supply inlet underneath the tank and partially cut the feed. 0812 was forced to retire out on track.
For the Nurburgring 1000km (May 19th), 0812 was allocated to Surtees / Mairesse who started from pole. On the 15th lap, Parkes took over from Scarfiotti in one of the sister cars and a quicker pit-stop meant he left the pits ahead of Mairesse who had taken over from Surtees who had thus far led most of the race.
Despite subsequently picking up a puncture caused by debris from Parkes’ accident, 0814 recovered the lead from Porsche and went on to claim victory.
At the Le Mans 24 Hours (June 15th and 16th), 0812 was again piloted by Surtees / Mairesse who qualified sixth. Surtees had moved up to second by the end of the first lap and took the lead two-and-a-half hours in.
0812 led until at 10:45am on Sunday morning when Mairesse took over from Surtees. However, as the Belgian swept under the Dunlop Bridge on his out lap, there was a flash of flame. By the time Mairesse came out of the Esses, 0812 was fully ablaze; during the pit-stop, some fuel had carelessly been spilled into the engine bay and an electrical spark caused by applying the brake lights caused it to ignite.
Mairesse parked up and jumped out with his driving suit alight. Fire fighters were quickly on the scene and Mairesse received medical attention for burns to his face, shoulder and right arm.
0812 was returned to the factory and repaired but did not appear again until 1964.
Now fitted with a 275 P motor and brought up to the latest specification, 0812 was wheeled out for the Sebring 12 Hours (March 21st) where Parkes / Maglioli qualified fifth.
By the three hour mark, 0812 had moved up to third.
With the race drawing to a close, it looked as though Parkes / Maglioli would have to settle for second. But when the sister car of Scarfiotti / Vaccarella was forced to make a late pit-stop, 0812 swept through to take its second major victory.
The car’s final outing for Scuderia Ferrari came at the Le Mans 24 Hours (June 20th and 21st) where Baghetti / Maglioli qualified twelfth. On the opening lap, Baghetti stopped with clutch problems just before the Mulsanne Straight. After a half hour delay, he eventually make it back to the pits.
A troubled run then ended at 10pm when Baghetti ploughed into an AC Cobra which had itself crashed between Arnage and White House. The Cobra was completely demolished. Later, officials were horrified to find three spectators (who had been watching from a prohibited area) had been killed in the accident.
After its disappointing run at Le Mans, 0812 was repaired and, like several of its sister cars, converted to ‘Lightweight Roadster’ trim with a cut-down windscreen and a rear body section sans Pininfarina’s original basket handle aerofoil (a small rollover bar was added behind the driver instead).
In this configuration (and now fitted with a 330 engine), 0812 was sold to Ferrari’s US distributor, Luigi Chinetti, for his North American Racing Team (NART). Over the next twelve months, Chinetti ran the car on five occasions.
On its debut for NART, 0812 won the 100 mile Player’s Trophy at Mont Tremblant in the hands of Pedro Rodriguez (September 13th). Afterwards, a 275 engine was re-fitted.
Rodriguez then took 0812 to a second place finish in the Bridgehampton 500km (September 20th) and Walt Hansgen placed fourth in the Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport (September 25th).
0812’s penultimate outing was at the 1965 Sebring 12 Hours where it appeared under the Carl Kleiner Racing Enterprises banner owing to Enzo Ferrari’s dispute with the race organisers who allowed unlimited Sports cars in the race. Factory drivers Maglioli and Baghetti finished eighth overall and second in class.
For 0812’s final race, it appeared in a handsome dark blue livery with white centre stripes. Mario Andretti was selected to drive at the Bridgehampton 500km (September 19th) but retired with gearbox trouble.
0812 returned to Chinetti’s warehouse where it remained until late 1967. At this point, it was fitted with a new Gullwing-doored body designed by Robert Peake fabricated by Michelotti. Dubbed the 275 P2 Speciale, the newly configured car went on to star at the 1968 New York Motor Show and also on the cover of the August 1968 edition of Car and Driver magazine.
0812 remained in this configuration until the late 1980s when Luigi Chinetti’s son (Coco) had it converted back to its original specification.
Notable History
Scuderia Ferrari
23/03/1963 WSC Sebring 12 Hours (W. Mairesse / N. Vaccarella / L. Bandini) 2nd oa, 2nd P3.0 class (#31)
07/04/1963 IND Le Mans Test (J. Surtees / M. Parkes / L. Scarfiotti / L. Bandini / W. Mairesse) 1st oa, 1st P3.0 class (#23)
05/05/1963 WSC Targa Florio (L. Scarfiotti / W. Mairesse) DNF (#172)
19/05/1963 WSC Nurburgring 1000km (J. Surtees / W. Mairesse) 1st oa, 1st P3.0 class (#110)
16/06/1963 WSC Le Mans 24 Hours (J. Surtees / W. Mairesse) DNF (#23)
Fitted with 275 P engine
21/03/1964 WSC Sebring 12 Hours (M. Parkes / U. Maglioli) 1st oa, 1st P3.0+ class (#22)
22/06/1964 WSC Le Mans 24 Hours (G. Baghetti / U. Maglioli) DNF (#22)
Converted to ‘Lightweight Roadster’ trim and fitted with 330 P engine
Sold to Luigi Chinetti (NART), New York
13/09/1964 CSC Players Trophy, Mont Tremblant (P. Rodriguez) 1st oa (#??)
Fitted with 275 P engine
20/09/1964 WSC Bridgehampton 500km (P. Rodriguez) 2nd oa, 2nd SR/P1.6+ class (#81)
25/09/1964 CSC Canadian GP, Mosport (W. Hansgen) 4th oa, 4th S2.0+ class (#4)
27/03/1965 WSC Sebring 12 Hours (U. Maglioli / G. Baghetti) 8th oa, 2nd SR2.0+ class (#33)
Blue with White stripes
19/09/1965 WSC Bridgehampton 500km (M. Andretti) DNF gearbox (#18)
1968 rebodied by Michelotti to a design by Robert Peake
04/1968 New York Motor Show
08/1968 Car and Driver magazine cover car
1989 restored to original configuration
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: ACO / Le Mans 24 Hours - https://www.24h-lemans.com/en
