Weber Carburetors is an automotive manufacturing company founded in 1923, known for their carburetors .
88-555: The Aston Martin V8 is a grand tourer manufactured by Aston Martin in the United Kingdom from 1969 to 1989. As with all traditional Aston Martins, it was entirely handbuilt – with each car requiring 1,200 man-hours to finish. Aston Martin were looking to replace the DB6 model and had designed a larger, more modern looking car. The engine was not ready, however, so in 1967 the company released
176-677: A pilota da corsa at the 1949 Mille Miglia . The A6 1500 was the first road going production car to be offered by the Maserati factory, featuring a tubular chassis with independent front suspension and coil springs , the 1500 cc six-cylinder being derived from the Maserati brothers pre-war voiturette racing engines. The body of the A6 1500 was an elegant two-door fast-back coupé body, also by Pinin Farina. Enzo Ferrari , whose Scuderia Ferrari had been
264-695: A "much abused and confused term") are typically more "crude" compared to "sophisticated Grand Touring machinery". However, the popularity of using GT for marketing purposes has meant that it has become a "much misused term, eventually signifying no more than a slightly tuned version of a family car with trendy wheels and a go-faster stripe on the side". Historically, most GTs have been front-engined with rear-wheel drive , offering more cabin space than mid-mounted engine layouts. Softer suspensions, greater storage, and more luxurious appointments add to their appeal. The GT abbreviation—and variations thereof—are often used as model names. However, some cars with GT in
352-601: A 100 mph car. Lancia chose the Gran Turismo name for its new model and the suggestion could only have come from Vittorio Jano himself, for had he not been responsible for the original 1750 Alfa Romeo of the same name back in 1929? Four semi-ufficiali works B20 GTs, together with a number of privateer entrants, were sent to the Mille Miglia in April 1951, where the factory Bracco / Maglioli car finished second overall, behind only
440-562: A 6C Alfa Romeo and Maserati in 1948, along with the Fiat 1100 S coupé with its rear accommodation for children. The original Aurelia had been under-powered and, in 1951, the V6 was enlarged to 1991 cc, which was also extended to the coupé, though in 75 rather than 70 bhp form as the B20 was developed as a sporting model in its own right. In addition the B20 had a shorter wheelbase and a higher rear axle ratio, making it
528-518: A DBS V8 and two cars were commissioned by the tobacco company W.O.Wills to promote their new premium brand of cigarettes: one show car with chassis number DBSV8/10380/R and one road going car with chassis number DBSV8/10381/RC. A third "replica" car was commissioned by a private party. In April 1972, the DBS V8 became just the Aston Martin V8 as the six-cylinder DBS was dropped, leaving just this car and
616-460: A Ferrari sports racer of twice the engine capacity. Lancia Aurelias swept the GT 2.0 Liter division. In June 1951, Bracco was partnered with the "father of GT racing" himself, Johnny Lurani , to race a B20 GT at Le Mans, where they were victorious in the 2.0 liter sportscar division, placing a very creditable 12th overall. A 1–2 finish at the famous Coppa d'Oro delle Dolomiti, among other victories including
704-536: A GT car", was winner of the Vetture Chiuse category at the 1931 Mille Miglia. An improved and supercharged version, the 6C 1750 GTC Gran Turismo Compressore , won the Vetture a Guida Interna category of the 1932 Mille Miglia. The Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 was designed by Vittorio Jano, who would later be instrumental in the design of the 1951 Lancia Aurelia B20 GT. From the basic Fiat 508 Balilla touring chassis came
792-531: A Lagonda-style outline grille fitted within the space normally filled by the standard Aston Martin grille. In 1986, Timothy Dalton took over the role of James Bond from Roger Moore and EON Productions had decided to bring Aston Martin back to the Bond franchise with the new 007 now paired with a series 4 model in the film, The Living Daylights . However, the film caused some confusion for viewers (even those quite familiar with Aston Martin models of that era). At
880-428: A Weber carburetor, intake manifold or manifold adapter, throttle linkage, air filter, and all of the hardware needed for installation on a vehicle. Weber carburetors are marked with a model code on the mounting flange, the body, or on the cover of the float chamber. This begins with a number which originally indicated the diameter (in millimetres) of the throttle bore, but later lost this significance. If this number has
968-402: A conversion kit for Fiats . Weber pioneered the use of two-stage twin-barrel carburetors, with two venturis of different sizes (the smaller one for low-speed/rpm running and the larger one optimised for high-speed/rpm use). In the 1930s, Weber began producing twin-barrel carburetors for motor racing , where two barrels of the same size were used. These were arranged so that each cylinder of
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#17328582830431056-584: A more powerful "Stage 1" engine with new camshafts and exhaust brought it up to 305 hp (227 kW; 309 PS). These cars either fitted 225/70VR15 Pirelli Cinturato CN12 or 235/70VR15 Turbospeed Rolls-Royce tyre on the Auto models or the 255/60R15 Pirelli Cinturato CN12 off the Vantage. Production of Series 3 cars lasted from 1973 through October 1978, but was halted for all of 1975. 967 examples were produced in this time. While earlier V8 cars have louvers cut into
1144-658: A position similar to the Bugatti 57SC of 1939. In 1962 the GTO Ferrari coupés had a remarkable season of successes in G.T. racing and have become the standard by which any competition coupé is measured, and by steady development [the Ferrari 250GT] has become one of the world's greatest cars. 1953 saw the first serious attempt to series produce the Ferrari motor car, two models of the Type 250 Europa being produced. The cars were an evolution of
1232-447: A single pair of digits, both chokes are of the same diameter and operate together; if it has two pairs of digits separated by a stroke (e.g. 28/36), there are primary and secondary chokes that are opened one after the other, usually of differing diameter. These numbers are followed by a group of letters, which indicate various features: the DCOE is a sidedraft unit, all others being downdraft;
1320-423: A team of prototype cars of extremely advanced and interesting design. By 1954 these had undergone sufficient development to be placed on the market as the "300SL" , one of the costliest and most desirable cars of our time. The conventional chassis has been abandoned in favor of a complex structure of welded tubes , although the coil spring suspension is retained, and exceptionally large brakes are fitted, inboard at
1408-467: A top speed of 242 km/h (150 mph). 402 DBS V8s were built. A DBS V8 was planned to be used by Roger Moore 's character Brett Sinclair in the television show, The Persuaders! but no V8 car was available at that time so a six-cylinder DBS was modified to look like a V8 model for use in the show. The DBS V8 by Ogle Design was introduced in 1972 at the Montreal Motor Show. It is based on
1496-568: Is a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive two-door coupé with either a two-seat or a 2+2 arrangement. Grand tourers are often the coupé derivative of luxury saloons or sedans. Some models, such as the Ferrari 250 GT , Jaguar E-Type , and Aston Martin DB5 , are considered classic examples of gran turismo cars. The term is a near- calque from the Italian language phrase gran turismo , which became popular in
1584-494: Is a problem arising from a poorly prepared carb, it is often most noticeable during idle or cruise. Interchangeability works in both directions, as internal parts may also be swapped for original ones. Webcon has some handy downloads to help tell genuine Webers from fake Fake Weber 1 Fake Weber 2 Proper carburetor jetting is based on engine displacement, RPM and engine usage. Either one or more carburetors connected to each other are used. For small engines, even only one half of
1672-451: Is recognized as the first Ferrari gran turismo . After that race, the national governing body of Italian motorsport, CSAI ( Commissione Sportiva Automobilistica Italiana), officially introduced a new class, called Gran Turismo Internazionale , for cars with production over thirty units per year, thereby ruling out Ferrari's hand-built berlinettas . Ferrari's response for the new Italian Gran Turismo Internazionale championship in 1951
1760-399: The 159 and 166 models, including the 1949 Ferrari 166 Inter , a road-going berlinetta coupé with coachwork by Carrozzeria Touring and other coachbuilders. The Ferrari 166 'Inter' S coupé model won the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa motor race. Regulations stipulated body form and dimensions but did not at this time specify a minimum production quantity. The car was driven by Bruno Sterzi, and
1848-431: The 250 GTO . A full Testa Rossa engine was employed (albeit with black crinkle-finish engine covers) with six twin-choke Webers. Power was up to 300 b.h.p. at 7,400 r.p.m. and with a lightweight 2000 lb body and chassis: the car was an immediate winner. Remarkable as it might be on the circuit, it is also a remarkable machine on the road. One American Ferrarist, who owned and raced many G.T. Ferraris, commented that
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#17328582830431936-622: The DBS with the straight-six Vantage engine from the DB6. Two years later, Tadek Marek 's V8 was ready, and Aston released the DBS V8 . With the demise of the straight-six Vantage in 1973, the DBS V8, now restyled and called simply the Aston Martin V8 , became the company's mainstream car for nearly two decades. It was eventually retired in favour of the Virage in 1989. From 1969 through 1972, Aston's flagship model
2024-451: The Fiat -based 1100 cc four-cylinder Cisitalia was no match on the race track for Ferrari's new hand-built 2000 cc V12 , and Ferrari dominated, taking the first three places. An 1100 cc class was hurriedly created, but not in time to save Cisitalia's business fortunes—the company's bankrupt owner Piero Dusio had already decamped to Argentina. The Cisitalia 202 SC gained considerable fame for
2112-691: The Fiat 8V "Otto Vu" was unveiled at the Geneva Salon in March 1952 to international acclaim. Although not raced by the factory, the Otto Vu was raced by a number of private owners. Vincenzo Auricchio and Piero Bozzinio raced to fifth in the gran turismo category of the 1952 Mille Miglia, and Ovidio Capelli placed third in the GT 2000 cc class at the Coppa della Toscana in June, with a special race-spec lightweight Zagato coupe;
2200-548: The New York International Auto Show . The compact Weber / Marelli system no longer needed the space of the previous carburettors , so the bonnet bulge was virtually eliminated. 405 Series 5 cars were built before production ceased in 1989. The Volante Series 2 received the same changes; 216 were built. Between 1974 and 1976, seven four-door Lagonda saloons were produced based on the Aston Martin V8, with
2288-453: The post-war era especially, have since become valuable cars among wealthy collectors. Within ten years, grand touring cars found success penetrating the new American personal luxury car market. The terms grand tourer , gran turismo , grande routière , and GT are among the most misused terms in motoring. The grand touring designation generally "means motoring at speed, in style, safety, and comfort". "Purists define gran turismo as
2376-504: The 1950s, driving a Zagato-bodied Fiat 8V, Elio emerged as the consummate gentleman racer in Italian GT championship events. Zagato, his father's firm, provided the lithe, lightweight aluminium bodies for many of the Lancias, Alfa Romeos, Abarths and Maseratis that dominated these meetings. Elio won 82 races out of the 150 he entered, and won four of the five championships he entered. Working with
2464-594: The 1955-1965 Chrysler 300 . Despite this, the United States, enjoying early post-war economic expansion , became the largest market for European grand-touring cars, supplying transportation for movie stars, celebrities and the jet set ; notably the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (imported by Max Hoffman ), the Jaguar XK120 , and the Ferrari berlinettas (imported by Luigi Chinetti ). Classic grand-touring cars from
2552-517: The 1980 model year, adding weight and somewhat marring the car's lines. Owners of US-specified cars often modify them to have the slimmer European bumpers. By 1981, the success of the Volante meant that the coupé model was only built on individual demand. The 1980s were also tuned to provide much better fuel economy, up by some thirty percent. The fuel-injected Series 5 cars were introduced in January 1986 at
2640-592: The 250 chassis was employed for improved handling and road-holding in corners, and top speed was up to 157 m.p.h. In 1957 Gendebien finished third overall in the Mille Miglia, and won the "index of performance". Alfonso de Portago won the Tour de France and GT races at Montlhéry and Castelfusano in a lightweight Carrozzeria Scaglietti 250 GT. Gendebien became a gran turismo specialist in 250 GTs when he wasn't driving sports racing Ferrari Testa Rossas ("Red Heads" for their red engine covers), achieving success in both
2728-587: The 6 Ore di Pescara, rounded out an astonishing debut racing season for this ground-breaking car, winning its division in the Italian GT Championship for Umberto Castiglioni in 1951 . Lancia B20 GTs would go on to win the over 2.0 liter Italian GT Championship in 1953, 1954 and 1955 with the B20-2500 . A surprise to the international press, who were not expecting a gran turismo berlinetta from Italy's largest manufacturer of everyday standard touring models,
Aston Martin V8 - Misplaced Pages Continue
2816-472: The April 1951 Coppa Inter-Europa, driven by Luigi Villoresi, and in June (chassis no. 0092E) was first in the gran turismo category at the Coppa della Toscana driven by Milanese Ferrari concessionaire and proprietor of Scuderia Guastalla, Franco Cornacchia. The 212 Export continued to serve Ferrari well in the Sports and GT categories until replaced by the 225 S, and although it would later be overshadowed by
2904-500: The Bosch fuel injection system work correctly. These cars are distinguished by a taller hood scoop to accommodate four twin-choke (two-barrel) Weber carbs. The car produced 310 hp (231 kW; 314 PS) and could reach 60 mph (97 km/h) in 6.1 seconds with an automatic transmission or 5.7 with a manual . Performance suffered with emissions regulations, falling to 288 hp (215 kW; 292 PS) in 1976. The next year,
2992-452: The CSAI were raced with the original chassis and engine layout as specified in the factory catalog and available for customers to buy; engines could be tuned and bored out, but the bodywork had to conform to regulations. The CSAI were concerned that FIA (known as AIACR at the time) ' Annexe C ' Sports cars were becoming little more than thinly-disguised two-seat Grand Prix racers, far removed from
3080-544: The DCD has a piston-type starter valve as opposed to a strangler choke; and so on. After the letters there will be a further number, which may be followed by a letter, e.g. 4B, 13A; these indicate the series, which in turn almost always indicates the original equipment fitment of the product. The full designation might be 40 DCOE 29, 45 DCOE 9, etc. Copies of DCOE, IDF, IDA or DGV carburetors can be found made by other companies, like EMPI, FAJS or REEDMORAL, LOREADA, often at up to half
3168-593: The English language in the 1950s, evolving from fast touring cars and streamlined closed sports cars during the 1930s. The grand touring car concept originated in Europe in the early 1950s, especially with the 1951 introduction of the Lancia Aurelia B20 GT , and features notable luminaries of Italian automotive history such as Vittorio Jano , Enzo Ferrari and Johnny Lurani . Motorsports became important in
3256-405: The G.T.O. is an even more pleasant car on the road! He maintains that it is most tractable and overheating in traffic congestions is no problem. In its short lifetime the 250GTO has established an enviable record. It is also one of the most sought after competition cars as evidenced by recent European suggestions that "black market" G.T.O.s bring higher prices than new ones. The demand is greater than
3344-517: The GT category overall at this event was won by Franco Cornacchia's Ferrari 212 Export (refer above). Capelli and the 8V Zagato topped this accomplishment by winning the GT category of the Pescara 12 Hours in August, ahead of two Lancias. The new Fiat 8V garnered sufficient competition points over the season to become the national two-liter GT Champion (a feat it repeated every year until 1959). Elio Zagato ,
3432-590: The Giro Sicilia and Tour de France. In 1958, sports racing Testa Rossas swept the Manufacturer's Championship , and in 1959 the T.R. engine was adapted to the 250 GT. The spark plugs were relocated and each cylinder now had a separate intake port . Larger Weber twin-choke carburetors were employed in a triple configuration (sports racing T.R.s employed six) and some special customer cars had three four-choke Webers (one choke per cylinder). Dry-sump lubrication
3520-548: The Mille Miglia was an epoch-making event, which told a wonderful story. The Mille Miglia created our cars and the Italian car industry. The Mille Miglia permitted the birth of GT, or grand touring cars, which are now sold all over the world. The Mille Miglia proved that by racing over open roads for 1,000 miles, there were great technical lessons to be learned by the petrol and oil companies and by brake, clutch, transmission, electrical and lighting component manufacturers, fully justifying
3608-530: The Redline name. Other suppliers include Overseas Distributing, Pierce Manifolds & Lynx Weber in Australia. Weber carburetors are sold for both street and off-road use, with the twin-choke sidedraft DCOE ( Doppio Corpo Orizzontale E ; "Double-Body Horizontal E") being the most common one. They are sold in what is referred to as a Weber conversion kit. A Weber conversion kit is a complete upgrade package consisting of
Aston Martin V8 - Misplaced Pages Continue
3696-483: The SIATA and Fiat aerodynamic gran turismo -style Berlinetta Mille Miglias of 1933 and 1935. Siata was a Turin, Italy-based Fiat tuner, typical of a popular class of Italian artisan manufacturers of small gran turismo , sports and racing cars—usually Fiat based—that came to be known in the 1970s as Etceterini , such as Nardi , Abarth , Ermini and, in 1946, Cisitalia . The Fiat and SIATA berlinettas , influenced by
3784-840: The UK, and WorldPac (known as RedlineWeber) in the US. Webcon operates a global distribution chain via a long established network of dealers and specialists, many of whom are located in the EU. In modern times, fuel injection has replaced carburetors in both production cars and most modern motor racing, although Weber carburetors are still used extensively in classic and historic racing. They are also supplied as high-quality replacements for problematic OEM carburetors. Weber fuel system components are distributed by Magneti Marelli, Webcon UK Ltd., and, in North America, by several organizations, including Worldpac, marketing under
3872-458: The V8's alloy wheels. The tail lights were taken from the Hillman Hunter . A road test report of the time noted that the car had gained 250 lb (113 kg) in weight with the fitting of the V8 in place of the previously used six-cylinder unit, despite the manufacturer's assurance that the engine weighed only 30 lb (14 kg) more than the older straight-six . Other contributions to
3960-552: The beginning of the film, the car is a V8 Volante (convertible). The actual car used in these scenes was a V8 Volante owned by Aston Martin Lagonda chairman, Victor Gauntlett . Later, the car is seen being fitted with a hardtop ("winterised") at Q Branch . However, later scenes actually feature a pair of V8 coupés with the same number plate as the Volante seen in the beginning of the movie, retrofitted with other "optional extras" such as spiked tyres, skis , lasers, and missiles . Clearly,
4048-664: The car was intended to be seen as a V8 Volante with hardtop. The V8 coupé has made a comeback in the James Bond film, No Time to Die . Aston Martin CEO Dr. Andy Palmer confirmed on 20 June 2019 that the V8 would make another appearance sporting the same registration it had in The Living Daylights 32 years prior. Grand tourer A grand tourer ( GT ) is a type of car that is designed for high speed and long-distance driving with performance and luxury. The most common format
4136-454: The carburetor was used, with the other half blinded and partially cut off. The basic carburetor size can be selected by the butterfly valves, for DCO/DCOE the sizes are 38/40/42/45/48/50/55, with 40/45/48/50/55 being more common and available today. Jet size is based on choke size, and choke size is just based on engine displacement, RPM and application. Today you can simplify the calculation work and use an online jetting calculator or go through
4224-549: The cars ordinary motorists could purchase from the manufacturers' catalogs. Weber carburetor Eduardo Weber began his automotive career working for Fiat, first at their Turin plant (in 1914) and later at a dealership in Bologna. After WWI, with gasoline prices high, he reached a certain success in selling conversion kits for running trucks on kerosene instead. The company was established as Fabbrica Italiana Carburatori Weber in 1923 when Weber produced carburetors as part of
4312-630: The chief stylist Ercole Spada , Zagato produced some of the most beautiful GT designs of the era; spare and muscular cars such as the Aston Martin DB4GTZ , the Alfa Romeo Junior TZ and SZ , and the Lancia Flaminia Sport . These were minimalist shapes bereft of superfluous trim that introduced phrases such as "double bubble" roof to the car body design language: twin shallow domes, devised by Elio, to give extra head room and strengthen
4400-436: The coachbuilder's son, was successful in competition with the Otto Vu in 1954 and 1955, attracting further customer interest and leading Zagato to eventually develop two different GT racing versions. Upon his passing in 2009, Elio Zagato was described as a leading figure of Italian GT racing and design: Elio Zagato, who has died aged 88, was one of the leading figures of Italian Gran Turismo (GT) racing and car-body design. In
4488-516: The earlier carburetors. Just 288 Series 2 cars were built. Although David Brown had left the company, he had overseen development of this model. The first 34 cars still carried leftover "DBS V8" badging. The car switched back to Weber carburetors for the Series 3 in 1973, ostensibly to help the car pass new stricter emissions standards in California but most likely because Aston Martin was unable to make
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#17328582830434576-710: The engine had its own carburetor barrel. These carburetors found use in Maserati and Alfa Romeo racing cars. Twin updraft Weber carburetors fed superchargers on the 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C competition vehicles. Fiat assumed control of the company in 1952 following Weber's disappearance in 1945. In time, Weber carburetors were fitted to standard production cars and factory racing applications from automotive marques such as Abarth , Alfa Romeo , Aston Martin , BMW , Chrysler , Ferrari , Fiat, Ford , IKA , Lamborghini , Lancia , Lotus , Maserati , Morgan , Porsche , Renault , Triumph and Volkswagen . In 1986, Fiat also took control of Weber competitor Solex , and merged
4664-442: The enjoyment, excitement and comfort of open-road touring." According to Sam Dawson, news editor of Classic Cars , "the ideal is of a car with the ability to cross a continent at speed and in comfort yet provide driving thrills when demanded" and it should exhibit the following: Grand tourers emphasize comfort and handling over straight-out high performance or ascetic , spartan accommodations. In comparison, sports cars (also
4752-575: The evolution of the grand touring concept, and grand touring entries are important in endurance sports-car racing . The grand touring definition implies material differences in performance, speed, comfort, and amenities between elite cars and those of ordinary motorists. In the post-war United States, manufacturers were less inclined to adopt the "ethos of the GT car", preferring to build cars "suited to their long, straight, smooth roads and labor-saving lifestyles " with wide availability of powerful straight-six and V8 engines in all price-ranges like
4840-460: The fastest category of sports car racing from 1994 to 2001. The inclusion of "grand tourer", " gran turismo ", "GT" or similar in the model name does not necessarily mean that the car is a grand tourer since several manufacturers have used the terms for the marketing of cars that are not grand tourers. Grand touring car design evolved from vintage and pre-World War II fast touring cars and streamlined closed sports cars . Italy developed
4928-433: The first gran turismo cars. The small, light-weight, and aerodynamic coupés , named the " Berlinetta ", originated in the 1930s. A contemporary French concept, known as " grande routière ", emphasized style, elegance, luxury, and gentlemanly transcontinental touring; the grande routières were often larger cars than the Italian gran turismos . Italian designers saw that compared to traditional open two-seat sports car ,
5016-542: The first of the lightweight grand touring coupés, driven by Gendebien , battled with the Mercedes 300SL of Metternich and Einsendel to come in fifth overall and first in G.T. over 2,000 c.c. The G.T. Ferrari had arrived! Motor Sport , March 1963. After its 1956 debut, the 250 GT "went from strength to strength". Powered by the Colombo 250 engine, output was up to 240 b.h.p. at 7,000 r.p.m. A short-wheelbase (SWB) version of
5104-545: The increase in weight and frontal area of an enclosed cabin for the driver and mechanic could be offset by the benefits of streamlining to reduce drag . Independent carrozzeria ( coachbuilders ) provided light and flexible fabric coachwork for powerful short-wheelbase fast-touring chassis by manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo . Later, Carrozzeria Touring of Milan pioneered sophisticated superleggera (super light-weight) aluminum bodywork, allowing for even more aerodynamic forms. The additional comfort of an enclosed cabin
5192-555: The internationally famous 250 GT , the 212 Export was an important model in the successful line of Colombo-engined V12 GT cars that made Ferrari legendary. 1951 was the stunning debut of Lancia's Aurelia B20 GT. Lancia had begun production in 1950 of their technically advanced Aurelia saloon; the design had been overseen by Vittorio Jano. At the 1951 Turin Motor Show , the Pinin Farina-bodied gran turismo B20 coupé version
5280-536: The little panel mounted beneath the rear windshield, the Series 3 and later cars instead have a small lip at the bottom of this panel, just ahead of the leading edge of the boot lid. The "Oscar India" specification was introduced in October 1978 at the Birmingham International Motor Show . Visually, the former scoop on the bonnet gave way to a closed " power bulge ", while a spoiler was integrated into
5368-405: The model name are not actually grand touring cars. Among the many variations of GT are: Several past and present motor racing series have used "GT" in their name. These include: There have also been several classes of racing cars called GT. The Group GT3 regulations for modified road cars have been used for various racing series worldwide since 2006. The Group GT1 regulations were used for
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#17328582830435456-459: The old adage that motor racing improves the breed. The Mille Miglia is still celebrated today as one of the world's premier historic racing events. A closed sports coupé almost prevailed at Le Mans in 1938, when a carrozzeria touring-bodied Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B , driven by Raymond Sommer and Clemente Biondetti , led the famous 24-hour race from the third lap until early Sunday afternoon, retiring only due to engine problems. Johnny Lurani
5544-596: The outstanding design of its Pinin Farina coachwork , and is credited with greatly influencing the style of subsequent berlinetta or fastback gran turismo coupés. A Cisitalia 202 "GT" is exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City . The Maserati A6 1500 won the 1500 cc class at the 1949 Coppa-Europa. It was driven by Franco Bordoni , former fighter ace of the Regia Aeronautica who had debuted as
5632-462: The previous models, available with either the Colombo or Lampredi versions of the 250 V12 engine, coil spring front suspension, an improved sports gearbox (four speeds) with Porsche synchromesh , large drum brakes and luxurious outfitting. A few appeared in motorsports but did not initially threaten the international Mercedes-Benz 300 SL and Porsche 356 competition. In the Mille Miglia of 1956
5720-465: The price of the authentic Spanish Weber versions . Often these are referred to as Knock offs, Clones or 'fakes' by Weber users. Most of these copies are manufactured in China, and being direct copies means that parts are at least meant to be interchangeable. Operation however, usually varies from the original, due to inaccurate drilling and poorly calibrated parts and use of different quality materials. If there
5808-633: The racing division of Alfa Romeo from 1929 until 1938, parted ways from Alfa Romeo in 1939: Enzo Ferrari's first car (itself an Etceterini) the Fiat-based Auto Avio Costruzioni 815 racing sports car , debuted at the 1940 Mille Miglia. Two were produced. The first car constructed in Ferrari's name, the V12 125 S , also a racing sports car, debuted in 1947 at the Piacenza racing circuit. Again, only two were produced, but they rapidly evolved into
5896-417: The rear. The engine is sharply inclined to the near-side in the interests of a low bonnet-line, and with Bosch fuel injection produces 240 b.h.p. at 6,000 r.p.m. Claimed maximum speed is in excess of 160 m.p.h. and although the car is by no means small, dry weight has been kept to 23 cwt . The depth of the multi-tubular frame prevents the use of conventional side-hinged doors and these cars are fitted with
5984-502: The roof-hinged "gull-wing" doors which characterize an exceedingly handsome and practical car. An open touring version is available. In competition the "300SL" has become a powerful contender, and abetted by the success of the Grand Prix cars [and " 300 SLR "] has captured a substantial portion of the export market." The 250GT Ferrari must surely represent the ultimate in modern high-speed sporting travel, or GT competition, and holds today
6072-409: The roof. For lightness, Zagato pioneered the use of Perspex and of aerodynamics, with trademark forms such as the split or stub tail. Indeed, Elio would take prototypes out on the autostrada covered in wool tufts in order to test air flow over the body. The 8V Otto Vu earned its name courtesy of its high-performance V8 engine (Ford having already trademarked "V8"). The German automotive industry
6160-498: The six-cylinder Vantage in production. The V8 became known as the AM V8, a model retroactively referred to as the Series 2 V8 to separate it from later models. Visual differences included twin quartz-halogen headlights and a mesh grille, a front design which was to last until the end of production in 1989. AM V8 cars, produced from May 1972 through July 1973, used a similar engine to the DBS V8, albeit with Bosch fuel injection rather than
6248-453: The successful Alfa Romeo 6C GT/GTC coupés , competed in the Mille Miglia endurance race and were significant among Weymann and Superleggera enclosed sporting cars appearing in the 1930s. They featured tuned Fiat engine and chassis, and bespoke carrozzeria , in common with the landmark post-war Cisitalia 202 SC , and are among the first small-displacement gran turismos . The first recognised motor race specifically for gran turismo cars
6336-504: The supply. In November 2016, it was reported that a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO was being offered for public sale—normally brokers negotiate deals between extremely wealthy collectors "behind closed doors". GTOs had previously been auctioned in 1990 and 2014. The 2017 sale was expected to reach US$ 56,000,000.00, the particular GTO concerned (the second of just thirty-six ever made) thus set to become the world's most expensive car. The Italian Mille Miglia thousand-mile race, held from 1927 to 1957,
6424-471: The tail. Most Oscar India cars were equipped with a Chrysler "Torqueflite" three-speed automatic transmission , with wood trim fitted for the first time since the DB2/4 of the 1950s. Just 352 Oscar India models were built from 1978 through 1985. The power of the now de-smogged engines kept dropping on American market cars, down to a low of 245 hp (183 kW) in the early eighties. The convertible "Volante"
6512-604: The two into a single company ( Raggruppamento Controllo Motore , or the "Engine Management Group"). This was then reorganized as Magneti Marelli Powertrain S.p.A. in 1986. Genuine Weber carburetors were produced in Bologna , Italy, up until 1992, when production was transferred to Madrid, Spain, where they continue to be made today. Weber carburetors are made in a facility owned by LCN Automotive based in Spain. There are only two direct distributors of Spanish Weber carburetors: Webcon based in
6600-457: The weight gain included heavier ventilated brake discs, air conditioning, fatter tyres, a new and stronger ZF gearbox as well as some extra bodywork beneath the front bumper. Marek's V8 engine displaced 5,340 cc (5.3 L; 325.9 cu in) and used Bosch fuel injection . Output was not officially released, but estimates center around 315 hp (235 kW). The DBS V8 could reach 100 km/h (62 mph) in 7.1 seconds and had
6688-609: Was 170 bhp from the 2600cc Gioacchino Colombo-designed 'short-block' V12 engine , evolved from the earlier Ferrari 166 (2000cc) and 195 (2300cc). All versions came with the standard Ferrari five-speed non-synchromesh gearbox and hydraulic drum brakes. All 1951 Ferraris shared a double tube frame chassis design evolved from the 166. Double-wishbone front suspension with transverse leaf spring , and live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and radius rods were employed. The Ferrari 212 Export (212 MM) gran turismo berlinetta (chassis No. 0070M) debuted in first-place overall at
6776-557: Was beneficial for the Mille Miglia road race held in Italy's often wintry north. The first car to be named " gran turismo " was the 1929 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Gran Turismo , a sporting dual-purpose road/race chassis and engine specification that was available with a wide variety of body styles or carrozzeria . The influential Weymann fabric-bodied berlinetta version by Carrozzeria Touring, "an early example of what we generally perceive to be
6864-412: Was central to the evolution of the gran turismo concept. The event was one of the most important on the Italian motor-sport calendar and could attract up to five million spectators. Winning drivers such as Tazio Nuvolari , Rudolf Caracciola , and Stirling Moss ; and manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo, BMW , Ferrari and Porsche would become household names. According to Enzo Ferrari: In my opinion,
6952-407: Was devastated by the second World War, but in the post-war period a small number of firms brought it to prominence again. The emergence of the classic Porsche 356 is covered in the accompanying sports car article. In 1957 author John Stanford wrote: "The post-war Mercedes sports cars are in a way even more remarkable than those of Porsche . The firm was particularly badly hit by the war and it
7040-409: Was employed, and the camshaft valve timing was only slightly less than the full-race Testa Rossas . G.T. power was up to 267 b.h.p. at 7,000 r.p.m. (240 b.h.p at 6,800 rpm for road versions). Experiments were conducted with Dunlop disc brakes, which were adopted in 1960, along with an even shorter wheelbase for competizione versions. In 1962, the definitive competition gran turismo was unveiled,
7128-485: Was impressed by the dominant performance at the Mille Miglia in 1940, by a carrozzeria touring-bodied BMW 328 coupé, winning the event at over 100 mph average speed, driven by Fritz Huschke von Hanstein and Walter Bäumer : The BMW team included a splendid aerodynamic Berlinetta , wind tunnel designed by German specialists, that was extremely fast at 135 mph... I couldn't believe the speeds these BMWs were capable of. Italy's national governing body of motorsport
7216-464: Was introduced in June 1978, but featured the Series 4 bonnet from the start – a few months before the coupé received the Oscar India update. The Volante Series 1 weighs 70 kg (155 lb) more than the coupé, due to the necessity of reinforcing the frame. At this time, manufacturing a V8 Volante took about four months from beginning to end. US market cars received much larger bumpers beginning with
7304-426: Was several years before anything but a nominal production of cars could be undertaken. In 1951 appeared the "300" , a luxurious and fast touring car with a single-camshaft six-cylinder engine of 2996 c.c. and chassis derived from the pre-war cars with swing-axle rear suspension. The "300S" was a three-carburetor edition, but in 1952 great interest was aroused by the almost invincible performance in sports-car racing of
7392-576: Was the Commissione Sportiva Automobilistica Italiana (CSAI). Count Giovanni Lurani Cernuschi (popularly known as Johnny Lurani) was a key commissioner. He was also a senior member of the world governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Lurani was instrumental in designing the regulations for the Italian 1937 Turismo Nazionale championship, whereby production vehicles approved by
7480-525: Was the DBS V8 . Though the body and name was shared with the six-cylinder DBS, the V8 sold for much more. The body was a modern reinterpretation of the traditional Aston Martin look, with a squared-off grille and four headlights (William Towns admitted that the rear quarters were "borrowed" from the early Ford Mustang ). Distinguishing features of the V8 model are the larger front air dam, radial as standard 225/70VR15 Pirelli Cinturato CN12 tyres and lack of wire wheels , though some six-cylinder DBS cars also used
7568-472: Was the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa held at Monza . It was initially hoped by Italian motor industry observers that the small and struggling Italian sports and racing car manufacturer, Cisitalia, would find in the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa regulations (initially called Turismo Veloce or Fast Touring) a category for its Cisitalia Tipo 202 SC —the road-going production coupé version of Cisitalia's single-seat D46 racing car and two-seat 202 open sports car. However,
7656-424: Was the road/race Ferrari 212 . Twenty-seven short-wheelbase competition versions called Export, some with increasingly popular gran turismo -style berlinetta coupé coachwork, were produced for enthusiasts (Ferrari called the first example 212 MM ) while the road version was called Inter . The Ferrari 212 Export featured long-range fuel tanks, high compression pistons and triple Weber 32 DCF carburettors ; power
7744-491: Was unveiled to an enthusiastic motoring public. Here, finally, according to historians Jonathan Wood and Sam Dawson, was a fully realized production GT car, representing the starting point of the definitive grand tourer: This outwardly conventional saloon bristled with innovation and ingenuity, in which the masterly hand of Vittorio Jano is apparent. In the B20 are elements of the Cistalia of 1947, coupés which Pinin undertook on
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