For some time now I have been involved in researching the history of motor-racing in South America. What a nightmare! Luckily I am doing this in association with Jim O'Keefe of North America, one of the very best researchers.
Jim has sent me some photocopies of pictures of a car referred to as the Fulgor Especial. Fulgor was/ is a brand of Brazilian cigarettes but the name might not relate to that fact. I don't know. In the entry list for the first round of the 1957 Brazilian championship Celso Lara Barberis is down to drive a "Ferrari 4500cc" in the unlimited sports car class. The car he is seated in is a central seater and appears to have Bardahl sponsorship. The additves company had been associated with the Luigi Chinetti Kurtis- Ferrari attempt at Indianapolis 1956 so there is a connection.
Later in September Barberis/ Rugero Peruzzo won the most important race held in Brazil in 1957, the Independence Day 500, on the outer circuit at Interlagos. Seen taking the chequered flag is a car described as the Fulgor Especial; a central seater sports car but stripped of lights etc.
On the net the various sites that mention this race and have Barberis driving a Maserati- Chevrolet taking the victory. Yet to me the car appears to be the Ferrari 375 sports car conversion of Landi's 375, .... or possibly the re-rebodied Rosier 375. See p543 of the Hans Tanner/ Doug Nye Ferrari book.
Ferrari 375 Fulgor Especial
Ferrari 375 Fulgor Especial 2
In the Triangular Championhip of 1959 there was a Ferrari of one Ciro Cayres, a Brazilian. This car was a bulbous single-seater, Chevy-powered, with the explanation, "El coche de Cayres es la Ferrari 4500 que trajera al pais Maurice Trintignant en 1955; una ex monoposto convertida a biplaza, y ahora recovertida a monoplaza". It would seem that Cayres car was the ex-Rosier ( Trintignant ) car that may, possibly, once have been the Fulgor Especial. If the Fulgar Especial was the ex-Rosier car then what happened to Landi's car after its conversion?
Now just to confuse the issue Oscar Gonzalez of Uruguay raced a Ferrari 375 in the Triangular Championship. Is Oscar Gonzalez's car the ex-Landi machine. If that is the case then this car would also have gone from mono to sports and back to mono but Oscar's car looks more like an original late model 375. If Oscar's car is not the ex-Landi, and Cayres reportedly is not, then quite probably the ex-Landi car was the Fulgor Especial! That makes three 375 chassis down South America way and what happened to it after being the Fulgor ESpecial?
Doug, when Rosier's car was rebodied for the third time was it then a central seater unlike after its first face-lift?
To be honest I'm not sure the two photographs are even of the same Fulgor Especial, but both are central seat sports cars which would make them useless in normal European sports car races of the day. The loose regs of Brazil, of course, would not be a problem.
Just as easily it could be that the photographs don't look like these Ferraris to anyone else except me and so the Fulgor Especial could have been a Maserati-Chevrolet.
If anybody is still with me I would appreciate some informed comment!
Ferrari 375 Fulgor Especial?
Started by
humphries
, Jun 13 2003 17:17
9 replies to this topic
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#2
humphries
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Posted 13 June 2003 - 17:30
Sorry about first pic. Will investigate problem but not tonight. Friday night is Friday Night and I do have priorities!
John
John
#3
David McKinney
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Posted 13 June 2003 - 18:27
Rosier sold his 375, with central-seat sports bodywork, late in 1955 to New Zealand, where it remained throughout the period in question
#5
Frank S
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#6
dretceterini
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Posted 13 June 2003 - 19:54
Two experts on South American racing (both are in Argentina) who have helped me with Alfa stuff are:
eiacona@fibertel.com.ar
and
eleiserson@ciudad.com.ar
Maybe they can help..
eiacona@fibertel.com.ar
and
eleiserson@ciudad.com.ar
Maybe they can help..
#7
Doug Nye
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Posted 13 June 2003 - 20:59
Crikey John! Make them easy....
I haven't really got time to address this right now in adequate detail but off the top of my head there were at least three Ferrari 375 monoposti which spent some time in South America. Most notable in Brazil - of course - was Landi's yellow and green 'Camelli' with the high tail which was converted to carry centre-seat sports bodywork as you describe.
The second was the Rosier car which raced briefly in South America before being taken to New Zealand and sold there - where it ran for a long period in Ron Roycroft's hands, and was maintained by George Horne.
The car ended up with Gavin Bain who had it rebodied in monoposto form in Christchurch, where I saw it looking like a freshly unwrapped boiled sweet - with its chassis serial '2' ENGRAVED onto the frame rather than stamped as original. Gavin Bain was convinced it was the Gonzalez 1951 British GP winner because The Bod had quoted 'No 2' as the works team muletto's serrial as driven by JFG in that race. Rosier's car - I am pretty much convinced - did NOT begin life as that British and German GP-winning muletto, since I have a photo showing what became the Rosier car at Monza '51 with the battered old twice-victorious muletto standing in the background in front of the pits.
The other car was the very highly modified works 375 which Ascari had driven at Albi '53 and which was then taken to Argentina (I believe, again off the top of my head) which was then left there I believe. We always believed that this was the car which yielded the swag of bits which were later combined with a 375 V12 engine 'liberated' from Vandervell Products at Maidenhead to create the Dries van der Lof 375 in Holland. Those bits may well have comprised some of the residue of the Barberis/Cayres Brazilian central-seater. Perhaps? Perhaps not?
Sorry not to be of greater immediate assistance.
DCN
I haven't really got time to address this right now in adequate detail but off the top of my head there were at least three Ferrari 375 monoposti which spent some time in South America. Most notable in Brazil - of course - was Landi's yellow and green 'Camelli' with the high tail which was converted to carry centre-seat sports bodywork as you describe.
The second was the Rosier car which raced briefly in South America before being taken to New Zealand and sold there - where it ran for a long period in Ron Roycroft's hands, and was maintained by George Horne.
The car ended up with Gavin Bain who had it rebodied in monoposto form in Christchurch, where I saw it looking like a freshly unwrapped boiled sweet - with its chassis serial '2' ENGRAVED onto the frame rather than stamped as original. Gavin Bain was convinced it was the Gonzalez 1951 British GP winner because The Bod had quoted 'No 2' as the works team muletto's serrial as driven by JFG in that race. Rosier's car - I am pretty much convinced - did NOT begin life as that British and German GP-winning muletto, since I have a photo showing what became the Rosier car at Monza '51 with the battered old twice-victorious muletto standing in the background in front of the pits.
The other car was the very highly modified works 375 which Ascari had driven at Albi '53 and which was then taken to Argentina (I believe, again off the top of my head) which was then left there I believe. We always believed that this was the car which yielded the swag of bits which were later combined with a 375 V12 engine 'liberated' from Vandervell Products at Maidenhead to create the Dries van der Lof 375 in Holland. Those bits may well have comprised some of the residue of the Barberis/Cayres Brazilian central-seater. Perhaps? Perhaps not?
Sorry not to be of greater immediate assistance.
DCN
#8
humphries
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Posted 14 June 2003 - 13:51
Thanks Frank for retrieving the picture. I haven't a clue how you did it.
Doug
Some progress. The Ex-Rosier Ferrari went to NZ in 1955 and yes it was now a central seater sports car ( Graham Vercoe's Historic Racing Cars of NZ p126 ), but was a much better proportioned car than that of Landi's shown in the Tanner/ Nye book. So in 1957, if that is Landi's central seater car winning the 500 at Interlagos, the 1959 Argentine report referring to the mono-sports-mono car of Ciro Cayres must be Landi's and not Trintignant/ Rosier's.
Up until August 1957 the Landi car was raced in the sports car class by Barberis and when he took over a 750S Monza the central seater was driven by "Siri", whoever he was. For the 500 in September the car appears to have been stripped of headlights etc and raced as a F.Libre. Thereafter it disappeared until it became a mono.
Cayres' car which looks nothing like a 375 made its debut in June 1958 and took pole position in a race at Interlagos, but the race was won by Luiz Americo Margarido in a Talbot-Lago powered by a Cadillac engine. This Talbot was 11008, an ex-Etancelin car that was taken to Brazil by Jean Achard and raced later by Pines and "Gino Bianco". Pierre Abeillon lost track of it but it was sold in 1956 to Margarido and raced by him later with the Caddy V8. Later he acquired a 250F.
One of the many problems encountered researching the Fifties races in South America is that for a period the Brazilians adopted the American practice of calling cars Specials or in their case Especials. Also the Brazilians sometimes referred to the cars capacity as not that of the installed engine but as a reference to the engine in the original chassis. A Ferrari 375 is often called a Ferrari 4500 although the actual engine might be a larger Chevrolet V8. Also you rely heavily on newspapers rather than a specialist press. Finally Argentinians often referrred to their cars by the engine and tuner with often no reference to the chassis; there were a lot of Chevrolet Waynes.
The racing and cars of this period are fascinating but the research is also very fristrating. Any help is appreciated.
Doug
Some progress. The Ex-Rosier Ferrari went to NZ in 1955 and yes it was now a central seater sports car ( Graham Vercoe's Historic Racing Cars of NZ p126 ), but was a much better proportioned car than that of Landi's shown in the Tanner/ Nye book. So in 1957, if that is Landi's central seater car winning the 500 at Interlagos, the 1959 Argentine report referring to the mono-sports-mono car of Ciro Cayres must be Landi's and not Trintignant/ Rosier's.
Up until August 1957 the Landi car was raced in the sports car class by Barberis and when he took over a 750S Monza the central seater was driven by "Siri", whoever he was. For the 500 in September the car appears to have been stripped of headlights etc and raced as a F.Libre. Thereafter it disappeared until it became a mono.
Cayres' car which looks nothing like a 375 made its debut in June 1958 and took pole position in a race at Interlagos, but the race was won by Luiz Americo Margarido in a Talbot-Lago powered by a Cadillac engine. This Talbot was 11008, an ex-Etancelin car that was taken to Brazil by Jean Achard and raced later by Pines and "Gino Bianco". Pierre Abeillon lost track of it but it was sold in 1956 to Margarido and raced by him later with the Caddy V8. Later he acquired a 250F.
One of the many problems encountered researching the Fifties races in South America is that for a period the Brazilians adopted the American practice of calling cars Specials or in their case Especials. Also the Brazilians sometimes referred to the cars capacity as not that of the installed engine but as a reference to the engine in the original chassis. A Ferrari 375 is often called a Ferrari 4500 although the actual engine might be a larger Chevrolet V8. Also you rely heavily on newspapers rather than a specialist press. Finally Argentinians often referrred to their cars by the engine and tuner with often no reference to the chassis; there were a lot of Chevrolet Waynes.
The racing and cars of this period are fascinating but the research is also very fristrating. Any help is appreciated.
#9
O Volante
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Posted 14 June 2003 - 14:47
First, I do not have the solution of your problem.
But second, some observations to think about:
- At a first glace, the car on your pictures looks rather small, especially if compared with the Rosier 375F1 single-seater sports car or the Scaglietti sports car said to be possibly the Landi car.
- Perhaps it's therefore more useful not to take the "4500" reference serious, but rather "Trintignant" and/or "1955".
- Your citation is in Spanish, so I assume the country here in question is Argentina.
- In 1955 Ferrari brought down for the Argentine GP and Buenos Aires GP a number of 500/625 cars; in both events one to be raced by M. Trintignant. Did they all return to Italy? (To my knowledge, the individual records of these cars are very muddled, to say the least ...)
- For the 1956 races Ferrari brought - possibly already in late 1955? - D50 Lancias and (at least) three 555 cars: Two of them (at least) are said to returned to Italy: The 555-Lancia and the standard 555 - but what happend to the 555 with the extra large tank? (In European races in 1955, Trintignant had driven a 555 on occassion, so such car may also be linked to the man ...)
- Is your car perhaps a 500 or 625 or 555 with a 4500 Corvette engine, dressed in sports-bodywork?
Third, another line of reasoning:
- As far as I know, the "Camelli" car of Landi became Barberis 375F1 sports and was then reconverted to a single seater, raced by Fritz d'Orey. For a picture of the car in this latest form, see the relevant recent thread ...
- As you said, there was a second 375 with Corvette power in late 50s/early 60s MN/MC racing: Oscar "Bocha" González example which indeed looked very much like a standard late 375F1, i.e. with a bodywork mixing "Indy-type" and "500/625-type". For picture see relevant recent thread ...
- I came to the same assumption like expressed here by Doug, i.e. that this was most likely the car raced in 1954 by Ascari for SF in the BsAs GP, and then left behind ... for some $, of course!
- However, "Bocha" had a second car which could be refered to as "4500 Ferrari": that was an Allard chassis equiped with a 4.5 Ferrari engine, probably from a 375F1 (writes Jorge A. Augé Bacqué in his "Ferrari y Argentina: Un Amor pasional", p. 59). This car was a very, very bulbous looking single-seater (central position), which raced in Buenos Aires in 1958 with cycle-wings. For a picture, see above book ...
- Did "Bocha" make two cars from his 375F1 Ferrari, both fitting into the very loose rules of Argentine, Brazilian and Uruguayan racing? Did other drivers do the same with their purchases from Europe?
Fourth, only as background information:
- Besides there were at least three other Ferrari-Corvette monoposti in South America ...
- The Froilán Gonzales car, which was also based on a Ferrari single-seater frame from the "old" F1 before 1954 (for this info, which is in contradiction of standard knowledge that says based on 625, see Robert Carozzo's González biography), in other words, another car based on a 375F1, or an even old design ...
- The Alberico Passadore car with a very big tail end ... or is this the big tank 555?
- The Carlos Danvila car, which is said to have been based on a 166 single-seater frame ... perhaps the António Pinheiro Pires, ex-Jean Achard car (at times also raced by Rubem Abrunhosa and Carlos Menditeguy)?
- And there were more Ferrari-Corvette sports-cars ...
But second, some observations to think about:
- At a first glace, the car on your pictures looks rather small, especially if compared with the Rosier 375F1 single-seater sports car or the Scaglietti sports car said to be possibly the Landi car.
- Perhaps it's therefore more useful not to take the "4500" reference serious, but rather "Trintignant" and/or "1955".
- Your citation is in Spanish, so I assume the country here in question is Argentina.
- In 1955 Ferrari brought down for the Argentine GP and Buenos Aires GP a number of 500/625 cars; in both events one to be raced by M. Trintignant. Did they all return to Italy? (To my knowledge, the individual records of these cars are very muddled, to say the least ...)
- For the 1956 races Ferrari brought - possibly already in late 1955? - D50 Lancias and (at least) three 555 cars: Two of them (at least) are said to returned to Italy: The 555-Lancia and the standard 555 - but what happend to the 555 with the extra large tank? (In European races in 1955, Trintignant had driven a 555 on occassion, so such car may also be linked to the man ...)
- Is your car perhaps a 500 or 625 or 555 with a 4500 Corvette engine, dressed in sports-bodywork?
Third, another line of reasoning:
- As far as I know, the "Camelli" car of Landi became Barberis 375F1 sports and was then reconverted to a single seater, raced by Fritz d'Orey. For a picture of the car in this latest form, see the relevant recent thread ...
- As you said, there was a second 375 with Corvette power in late 50s/early 60s MN/MC racing: Oscar "Bocha" González example which indeed looked very much like a standard late 375F1, i.e. with a bodywork mixing "Indy-type" and "500/625-type". For picture see relevant recent thread ...
- I came to the same assumption like expressed here by Doug, i.e. that this was most likely the car raced in 1954 by Ascari for SF in the BsAs GP, and then left behind ... for some $, of course!
- However, "Bocha" had a second car which could be refered to as "4500 Ferrari": that was an Allard chassis equiped with a 4.5 Ferrari engine, probably from a 375F1 (writes Jorge A. Augé Bacqué in his "Ferrari y Argentina: Un Amor pasional", p. 59). This car was a very, very bulbous looking single-seater (central position), which raced in Buenos Aires in 1958 with cycle-wings. For a picture, see above book ...
- Did "Bocha" make two cars from his 375F1 Ferrari, both fitting into the very loose rules of Argentine, Brazilian and Uruguayan racing? Did other drivers do the same with their purchases from Europe?
Fourth, only as background information:
- Besides there were at least three other Ferrari-Corvette monoposti in South America ...
- The Froilán Gonzales car, which was also based on a Ferrari single-seater frame from the "old" F1 before 1954 (for this info, which is in contradiction of standard knowledge that says based on 625, see Robert Carozzo's González biography), in other words, another car based on a 375F1, or an even old design ...
- The Alberico Passadore car with a very big tail end ... or is this the big tank 555?
- The Carlos Danvila car, which is said to have been based on a 166 single-seater frame ... perhaps the António Pinheiro Pires, ex-Jean Achard car (at times also raced by Rubem Abrunhosa and Carlos Menditeguy)?
- And there were more Ferrari-Corvette sports-cars ...
#10
Frank S
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Posted 14 June 2003 - 23:11
Thanks Frank for retrieving the picture. I haven't a clue how you did it.
Two URLs generated close in time and seemingly similar; one works and one doesn't. Must be some mechanical thing early in the process:
aitchttp://hompage.ntlworld.com/j.e.humphries/Ferrari . . .
aitchttp://homepage.ntlworld.com/j.e.humphries/Ferrari . . .
A little mallet and chisel work, there you are.
Frank S
