29 replies to this topic

[teegeefla]

Does anyone have any info and photos of the Anson Johnson Ferrari Chevrolet from the mid-1960's? Did this hybrid get much attention at the time? And how easy or hard was it to mate Detroit Iron to a Ferrari chassis?

[Bruno]

I know only that this

20/9/1958 Watkins Glen Gp
Richard Lyeth/375 MM "0364AM" n°91
do not finish engine V8 Chevrolet 4640cc



and more:
http://www.wspr-raci.../usrrc1963.html

[Arjan de Roos]

Of racing Ferraris I do not know specifically, but many US purchasers of Ferraris from the early production years added american power plants (Chevrolet/Buick) in their cars.

I know of a 340 America (0082A) that got a Chevy engine and 4-speed gearbox when in California. A 212 Export Vignale Coupe (0131E) got a 1957 Chevrolet 283 engine and transmission while in the hands of composer Benjamin Bok. This was the car that had previousley won the Carrera Panamerican in 1951 with Taruffi and Chinetti.

Main modifications were: Installation of the Chevy with reground cams as far back as possible. New motor and transmission mounts had to be made from steel plate. The exhaust system was modified to fit around the steering column. Shift linkage reworked to clear frame. Use of Stromberg carbs, Ford 1956 diff, a larger capacity radiator and a rebalanced Corvette driveshaft. Hydraulically operated clutch and a modified floor tunnel for the larger and slightly higher mounted transmission.

[HistoricMustang]

The Bob Ward Chevy powered Ferrari is pictured here:

http://www.augustain...com/cobras.html

Also have a photograph of the Anson Johnson's wrecked #13 from the same 1964 USRRC event. Not sure of the make or year. Let me dig a little for the photograph.

Here it is........................................perhaps? Certainly not positive.



Henry

[RA Historian]

Originally posted by Bruno
I know only that this

20/9/1958 Watkins Glen Gp
Richard Lyeth/375 MM "0364AM" n°91
do not finish engine V8 Chevrolet 4640cc

This is Rich Lyeth in the "Hi-Tork Special". The car is the former Jim Kimberly 375, modified, and with a Chevy V-8 stuffed in it. Lyeth drove it in a number of races in 1958 in this guise. He was 5th OA at the Road America June Sprints that year. He also led the first 100 miles of the 1958 Road America 500 before DNFing. (Do not be alarmed; the 500 that year used a split start with the class B Modified cars leaving first. Hence Lyeth got a "running start" over the rest of the field).

Actually, there were a good number of Ferraris which had Chevy V-8s dropped into them back then. Much easier and less expensive than having the V-12 repaired when the owner buzzed it. Among such conversions was the 1958 Le Mans winning 250 Testa Rossa, into which Owen Coon shoehorned a Chevy V-8.

Another conversion was Ferrari 250-TR/59, 0770, when it was owned by George Reed. First of all, he substituted a 3.5 290 V-12 for the 250 unit, then later a 4.5 375 V-12. Finally, he put a 7.0 Ford big block V-8 into the car. Fortunately, the car was later restored and was featured in Vintage Motorsport about a year or two ago.
Tom

[red stick]

Seems like sacrilege.

In both directions.

[cavvy]

Check out the Aussie photos thread - Corvette power used where waiting for bits was out of the question - see Ferrari 500.

[Peter Leversedge]

There was a Monza Ferrari here in New Zealand that had a Chev V8 in it for a number of years. It was the car that Ken Wharton was killed in at Ardmore in 1957??. I understand the car is still here with the 4 Cyl Ferrari engine back in it
Also there was a Ferrari Super Squalo with a Chev engine and a Morris Minor body on it racing in saloon car races when we had a class called "Allcomers"

[tam999]

Bill Sherwood had some success in California in 1961-62 with this "Ferrari-Chevy":

http://www.tamsoldra...lSherwood2.html

Tam McPartland

[Ray Bell]

And Dick Cobden's V12 was replaced with a Chevrolet engine too, wasn't it?

I'm sure this is the car that Curley Bryden ran at the 1958 AGP at Bathurst, the same race seeing the Tipo B Alfa of Ray Wamsley using a similar engine alongside the Maybach and Tornado similarly powered.

[Jerry Entin]

Anson Johnson was from Jamaica, New York. His Ferrari/Chevy started life as a 500TRC, chassis 0686. Externally the Chevy engine looked like a perfect fit, with only a small hoodbulge needed to cover the V8.

The Bob Ward Ferrari/Chevy was the former Masten Gregory Ferrari Mondial, chassis 0454. During its life [before Ward] it was also owned by Austin Young of West Palm Beach and Tommy Charles of Birmingham, AL.
all research Willem Oosthoek.

[David McKinney]

Not bad - only 10 posts before someone actually responds to the questioner
Thanks Jerry and Willem (as always)

[T54]

Let's not forget the Oscar Koveleski "Car 54"... a 1955 Ferrari Monza (with tail fin) and small-block Chevy prepped by Jack Deren if I recall correctly.

[ERault]

Oddly enough, I just mentionned 500 TRC 0686 in my (already second paged) thread on Koechert's Ferrari.(he said hoping his ploy to gather some Ferrari experts attention to his issue would work)

[S&M Minis]

Here’s Oscar Koveleski’s “Car 54” at the 1964 Cumberland Nationals. A fair percentage of my meager dollars went to Oscar’s business, Auto World, a mail-order slot car company. For those of you unfamiliar with it, “Car 54 Where Are You?” was a TV sitcom in the early 60’s about an inept duo of New York City policemen. Although he kept the number 54 on later cars I believe this was the only one with the TV show reference. As in T54’s post, it was always “Car 54”, not just “54”. And in my teenage naiveté these cross-breeds were all lumped together as “Testa Rosas with Corvette engines”.



This thread piqued my interest and upon checking the site http://www.classicsc...s/ferrari2.html I found no less than 18 Ferraris with American engine swaps, starting at Chassis 0304. There may be more prior to that chassis number and several of the cars mentioned in this thread do not have a V8 swap indicated. Of the cars listed one had a Lincoln V12 (?), one Buick, one Chevy later replaced by a Pontiac, four Ford, and 11 Chevrolet. In the later mid-engine cars only one is listed with an engine change, a 268SP with a Buick engine. (Not the Tom O’Brien 268, the other one!)

In the early 1980’s I was at Mike Dopudja’s shop in Denver to see the 427 Daytona Coupe as it was being loaded up for its first public showing at the Monterey Historics (as I recall). Of more interest to me were two “Testa Rosas” (still lumping them together) being loaded for the trip and two more in the shop in various stages of restoration. I commented to Mike that I remembered most front-engine Ferraris having Chevy motors stuffed in them in the 60’s, to which he responded “…and that’s the way they all showed up here.”

While recognizing the historical significance of the original cars and with apologies to the purists, wouldn’t it be nice to see Car 54 or one of its kind in a modern-day vintage race? Of course I would also like to see a Grumman TBF/TBM restored as a fire bomber, but that isn’t going to happen.

[cavvy]

Originally posted by David McKinney
Not bad - only 10 posts before someone actually responds to the questioner
Thanks Jerry and Willem (as always)

sincere apologies for answering within the limits of my ability !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[maoricar]

Randy has a valid point...why NOT restore SOME of these old warhorses to the spec in which they last competed.
As these European race cars ventured further and further from their original sources of parts/service, it was almost impossible at that time to make repairs to original engines, in a timely fashion, to say nothing of the (sometimes) crippling expense..
Power plant substitutions were 'normal'...in 'period' In New Zealnd, assorted flat-head Ford, Dodge etc etc engines were used..they were easliy obtainable and to some extent, tuneable. Then came Jaguar's iconic 6cyl, these too were shoehorned into the odd vehicle or two, until..woder of wonders, a slew of American OHV V-8's arrived...cheap, very tuneable, often (in Ford's case esp.) lighter and RELIABLE. Without too much effort or expense, a small block Ford or Chevvy could out perform and outlast the original unit.
And now we have these old nails...eg..Monzas...whose original 4 cyls were problematic ( to be kind !!) running, in period with V-8 power.
Would I think differently IF I actually owned one of these cars??...Aye..there's the rub!!!

[T54]

The Ferrari-Corvette "Car 54" was owned by my good buddy Oscar Koveleski who used it for many years to promote his Auto World business. Indeed, the Pactra model company produced a 1/24 scale clear plastic slot car body of the thing, that also came as a rare version in "gold" plating with a red stripe.
Oscar is a joker and always was, so indeed the "car 54" refers to the TV series with Broderick Crawford, hence the famous call "Car 54, where are you?"... I also have a friction-power Japanese tinplate police car with siren with the "car 54" emblems, obviously made after the TV series.
Oscar of course kept his "car 54" number on both his MK6, M8C and M12 over the years, and still uses the number on some of his kids plastic cars he is peddling nowadays.

[raceannouncer2003]

Originally posted by T54
"car 54" refers to the TV series with Broderick Crawford

Someone will probably beat me to this, but Broderick Crawford was "Highway Patrol", while "Car 54..." was Fred Gwynne and Joe E. Ross (gosh, I'm old!)

Vince H.

[HistoricMustang]

Originally posted by David McKinney
Not bad - only 10 posts before someone actually responds to the questioner
Thanks Jerry and Willem (as always)

WOW! Actually thought I got pretty close in post #4 (or third response).

Henry

[T54]

Someone will probably beat me to this, but Broderick Crawford was "Highway Patrol", while "Car 54..." was Fred Gwynne and Joe E. Ross (gosh, I'm old!)

Of course you are right and I am old enough to figure that one out! I was THINKING of Fred Gwynne and somehow, Crawford's name came to mind. Shorted neurones I am sure!

[David McKinney]

Originally posted by HistoricMustang
WOW! Actually thought I got pretty close in post #4 (or third response).

Sorry, Henry. I didn't read your post right through :

[arttidesco]

Now the question has been answered, wondered if anybody has seen any pics of Lou (Lew?) Yates Chevy powered Mondilet a 500 Mondial #0438 MD from '57 to '71 ?

[Lee Nicolle]

Randy has a valid point...why NOT restore SOME of these old warhorses to the spec in which they last competed.
As these European race cars ventured further and further from their original sources of parts/service, it was almost impossible at that time to make repairs to original engines, in a timely fashion, to say nothing of the (sometimes) crippling expense..
Power plant substitutions were 'normal'...in 'period' In New Zealnd, assorted flat-head Ford, Dodge etc etc engines were used..they were easliy obtainable and to some extent, tuneable. Then came Jaguar's iconic 6cyl, these too were shoehorned into the odd vehicle or two, until..woder of wonders, a slew of American OHV V-8's arrived...cheap, very tuneable, often (in Ford's case esp.) lighter and RELIABLE. Without too much effort or expense, a small block Ford or Chevvy could out perform and outlast the original unit.
And now we have these old nails...eg..Monzas...whose original 4 cyls were problematic ( to be kind !!) running, in period with V-8 power.
Would I think differently IF I actually owned one of these cars??...Aye..there's the rub!!!

And probably the cars are more historically correct to race with their engine swaps than the original car was. And a lot cheaper to run and faster too for the most part.

[Jean L]

Now the question has been answered, wondered if anybody has seen any pics of Lou (Lew?) Yates Chevy powered Mondilet a 500 Mondial #0438 MD from '57 to '71 ?

Ferrari Album n°1 p55 Pomona 58 (Bill Love ?)
Vintage american road racing cars 1950-1970 p224

[arttidesco]

Ferrari Album n°1 p55 Pomona 58 (Bill Love ?)
Vintage american road racing cars 1950-1970 p224

Most kind Jean, thank you

[Eaglenindy]

I remember an old 70'- 74' F1 Ferrari with a Chevy V8 in the pits at Indy in the late 70's or early 80's. It was the style with the wide flat nose. I don't remember much about it except it was slow and didn't try to qualify. If I recall correctly, it was still Ferrari red and had wings added. The radiator was still in the nose while in those days, the radiators were side mounted. I also remember the tires (15") being "out of scale" to the original car as I had seen pix of. I've tried to find info about it a few years ago and was unable to find anything on it. I'll ask Donald Davidson next time I see him.

Edited by Eaglenindy, 19 September 2012 - 01:34.

[Jerry Entin]

Bill Love was an amateur racer from Florida. It is highly unlikely he would have raced in Pomona, California.

Bill Love shows up sporadically with an AC/Bristol in the late 50s in Florida, but until 1962 he was never a regular entrant. A 1958 entry at Pomona just does not seem right. So far no Ferrari connection has been established for Love until the end of 1961, if at all.

all research: Willem Oosthoek

Edited by Jerry Entin, 19 September 2012 - 06:07.

[Jean L]

I was doubtful but it was said in Ferrari Album:
"Is it still a Ferrari with a Chevy in it ? Bill Love tries V-8 power in this 500 Mondial in Pomona 6-hours race in 1958."
Another Bill Love , a confusion with Pete Lovely or simply Lew Yates ?

[raceannouncer2003]

There definitely was a prominent California racer named Bill Love. A couple of links:

http://www.racingspo...l-Love-USA.html

http://www.barchetta....500Mondial.htm

I would bet Allen Kuhn has photos of the Ferrari. Here is the link to his website:

http://vintage-sportscar-photos.com/

Vince H.