At this year’s Pebble Beach Concours there was a lot of emphasis on Ferrari, given that 2017 is the 70th anniversary of this famous automotive and racing brand. There were many important Ferraris on hand, including a large display outside of the Ferrari headquarters along the 1st fairway at the Pebble Beach Lodge.
However, the real Ferrari gems were included as part of the Pebble Beach Concours itself on the 18th fairway in front of the Lodge, a gathering of Ferrari Race Winners. Here are some of them.
This is the Ferrari 166MM (0008M) that was driven by Luigi Chinetti and Lord Selsdon (Peter Mitchell-Thomson) to win the 1949 Le Mans 24 Hours. This was the first of nine overall victories for Ferrari at the world’s most famous sports car race.
And this is the lovely 340 America berlinetta (0082A) that was driven by Luigi Villoresi (with mechanic Piero Cassani) to victory in the 1951 Mille Miglia.
One of the most important of all the Race Winners was this Ferrari 315 Sport (0684) which had been driven by Piero Taruffi to win the 1957 and last Mille Miglia. This small series of very powerful four-camshaft Ferrari sports racers were called by Phil Hill, “The best front-engined race cars every built by Ferrari.”
Another important Ferrari was this 250GT/Comp61 short wheelbase berlinetta (2689GT) which had been driven by Pierre Noblet and Jean Guichet to third place overall and first place in the GT category at the 1961 Le Mans 24 Hours.
The Race Winners would not have been complete without a 250GTO, such as this lovely example (4293GT), which had been driven by “Jean Beurlys” (Jean Blaton) and Gérard Langlois van Ophem to second place overall and first in GT at the 1963 24 Hours of Le Mans.
From the 1960s prototype years was this very rare Ferrari 365P2 (0838) of the North American Racing Team which won the 1965 12 Hours of Reims, driven by Pedro Rodriguez and Jean Guichet, two weeks after this same car had finished seventh at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Pedro Rodriguez and Nino Vaccarella.
Race Winners all and quite an impressive collection!
To see a selection of racing images from The Klemantaski Collection, including our new TomMarch archive, go to: http://www.klemcoll.com/TheGallery.aspx
Klemantaski Collection 
Yes, all of these examples ” winners”. but to my eye and heart
Ferrari will always be the original 166 barchetta when displayed
at Turiin automobile show in September 1948
Had the good fortune to see the very same car in Hollywood, that next
summer in the television studio of local playboy Tommy Lee. Star of his
Stable which included, Talbot Lago, Bugatti 35, Mercedes 540K, and 3
versions of the Alfa Romeo 2900..!
Jim Sitz
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Conspicuously missing from this assembly of great “Ferrari Winners” was the 1954 Le Mans first overall finishing 375 Plus PF chassis 0396AM driven by José Frolián Gonzales and Maurice Trintignant to score Ferrari’s truly first factory entry victory at Le Mans. Following Le Mans, the car was purchased by my father, John Edgar, through Luigi Chinetti, in the summer of 1954 and subsequently, tragically, wrecked during the first stage of La Carrera Panamericana in November of that year, claiming the life of Jack McAfee’s co-driver, Ford Robinson, and severely wounding the car. Edgar soon had it re-bodied by Scaglietti, after which it was raced a few times, including at the Grand Prix in Havana. Edgar then sold 0396AM back to Chinetti, with it ultimately going to Pierre Bardinon, who in turn had it re-bodied back to its original Pinin Farina 1954 Le Mans configuration by Carrozzeria Fantuzzi in Modena for Bardinon’s extensive competition Ferrari collection near Aubusson, France. With Pierre’s death in August of 2012, I am not certain where the car is today. What is known, 0396AM regretfully was not at Pebble Beach last week to share its place amongst that flattering herd of other celebrated winners gleaming under their badges of Cavallino Rampante.
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Dear William,
Thanks for your comment. Ferrari 0396AM has been for many years an important part of the famous Mas du Clos collection in France, put together by our late friend Pierre Bardinon. It is possible that their 1954 Le Mans winning 375 Plus may be sold at auction in the future, depending what the Pierre’s children ultimately decide to do with the remaining cars in their father’s incredible treasure house.
Peter
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