Peter Darnall

Tazio Nuvolari Meets Gabriele D’Annunzio

February 14, 2017 By pete

By Peter Darnall
Our thanks to Matteo Rinaldi at the Museo Nuvolari

The AIACR (Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus), which was the governing body controlling Grand Prix racing, issued an innovative ruling which would define racing events beginning with the 1934 season. Known as the 750-kilogram rule, the weight of a race car was limited to 750 kg, less tires, liquids, and driver. Intended to restrict the ever-increasing speed and power of Grand Prix machines, the ruling had quite the opposite effect: German interests, closely followed by Italian efforts produced the fastest and most powerful racing cars the world had ever seen.

This content is for Premium Subscriber members only.
Login Subscribe

Hans Ruesch and the Alfa Tipo 8C35

January 24, 2017 By pete

Montage image from photographer Piergiorgio Bardi aka Häaden 2 Como, Italy

Story and Montage by Peter Darnall
Additional photos from the collection of Dale LaFollette

Alfa Romeo Tipo C #50013 . . . The Hans Ruesch Era

The 1936 racing season brought victories for the Tipo C Alfa Romeos against the German Silver Arrows at Penya Rhin, Milan, and Budapest. The new monoposto showed it could compete with the Teutonic rivals—at least on tight winding courses when pushed to the absolute limit by Tazio Nuvolari. Italian hopes were high as the cars lined up for the start of the Coppa Ciano on August 2, 1936. No one could have known at that time, but Nuvolari was about to put on a virtuoso performance which would rank as one of the greatest drives of all time. [Read more…] about Hans Ruesch and the Alfa Tipo 8C35

Alfa Romeo 8C35 Grand Prix Cars

January 17, 2017 By pete

The Editor Tracks the three 8C35 Alfas
Montage above by Peter Darnall

One might wonder why we are so interested in the Alfa 8C35 cars. An old saying goes that history is written by the survivors; and indeed, this is the case for the 8C35. But in addition to being survivors, the various and sundry 8C35s running today are examples of the only Grand Prix car to give the combined Silver Arrows a real run for the money. Given the might of the Mercedes and Auto-Union teams, the Alfa Romeo 8C35 had a brief but reasonably successful two seasons in Europe. Designed to be fitted with either a V12 engine, or an 8 cylinder, the 8C35 used a longer version of the famous Alfa 8C 2.3 engine, running almost concurrently with the initially unreliable V12 (12C36) while it was being developed. In 1936 Tazio Nuvolari drove the 8C35 to great victories at Coppa Ciano and the Hungarian GP. In our humble opinion, although Vittorio Jano’s V12 (actually designed by Bruno Trevisan) may have led to his downfall in October of 1937, the 8C and 12 C are underrated and much more successful contenders than results might render. And speaking of results, at the bottom of this article we’ve reproduced the Alfa racing results from the years 1935 to 1937 for your perusal.

As VeloceToday is currently publishing a series of short articles that often include these cars, (read A Most Unusual Meeting) we thought this an opportune time to provide a brief history of the 8C35 chassis known today.

Of the six 8C35s listed by Fusi, three can be determined to still exist in some form: [Read more…] about Alfa Romeo 8C35 Grand Prix Cars

A Most Unusual Meeting

January 10, 2017 By pete

The Tipo C monoposto was a breakthrough design for Alfa Romeo. Giovanni Guidotti, a long-time employee of Alfa Romeo, remembered the initial test of the prototype and the bizarre events which followed. He originally told the story to a prominent member of the “Alfisti” more than thirty years ago. The story was recently passed on to me. Although possibly an apocryphal tale, this is Guidotti’s story.

Story and montage by Peter Darnall

Alfa Romeo was a major force in European racing during the early 1930s. Vittorio Jano’s innovative designs had made Alfas the cars to beat in both sports car and Grand Prix venues. However, the economic hardships of the Great Depression and the years which followed brought government control to Alfa Romeo with ever-increasing pressure to produce materiel for Mussolini’s military ambitions. Racing activities had been turned over to Scuderia Ferrari with an arrangement which allowed the Portello factory to design and build the cars while the Scuderia campaigned them.

The AIACR (Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus), which was the governing body for international motor racing, had decreed that beginning with the 1934 Grand Prix season, race cars would not weigh more than 750 kilograms (about 1650 pounds), minus the weight of tires, fluids and driver. Although Vittorio Jano’s masterpiece, the P3 monoposto, met the weight requirements of the new formula, the vintage Alfa racer could not expect to compete with the technologically superior German Mercedes Benz and Auto Union machines.

Dr. Porsche, meet Vittorio Jano.

[Read more…]

As Found Classic Number 24: The Racers Fiat Vignale

August 2, 2016 By pete

As Found Classic Number Twenty Four

By Pete Vack

The last automotive star of the movie The Racers has been found and is now under restoration and being readied for Pebble Beach 2017. The Vignale-bodied 1400 Fiat had a very brief role in the movie. It was difficult for even the hard core among us to determine exactly what make and model it was. [Read more…] about As Found Classic Number 24: The Racers Fiat Vignale

Cars and Stars of The Racers

June 21, 2016 By pete

No, next week for this. Below is a Racer's primer.

What is it and where is it? All part of the legend of “The Racers”.

Zealous car hunters and restorers have long ago discovered the chassis numbers, whereabouts, and current fate of the Maseratis, Ferraris and HWM that were the stars of the legendary 1954 classic movie “The Racers”.

But there was one car that had a small role in the movie and was perhaps as beautiful as the female lead in the movie, Bella Darvi. And now, that too, has been discovered.

Or so we think. Find out next week and perhaps our readers can help us determine if it’s the real thing. In the meantime, with image artist, writer and photographer Peter Darnall’s help we offer up this story about the book and the movie to provide some background to the recent find. [Read more…] about Cars and Stars of The Racers