Tag Archives: Phil

Factory Floor Reinforcement – Ferrari 156 #0002R

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The 1961 season ushered in the 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui era of Formula One and only one team was fully prepared for what was to follow, namely Ferrari who had developed a suitable V6 motor for the previous Formula 2 rules. The British manufacturer BRM as usual was behind schedule with it’s V8 motor and so resorted to using the four cylinder Coventry Climax motors that most of the remaining British garagiste entrants were forced to use until the Coventry Climax V8’s became available.

Ferrari entered only seven of the eight championship events and won five of them beaten only by Stirling Moss in an outdated Lotus 18 at Monaco and the Nurburgring. Ferrari team leader Wolfgang “Taffy” von Trips won the Dutch and British Grand Prix, Phil
Hill won the Belgian Grand Prix and privateer Giancarlo Baghetti driving an FISA entered won the French Grand Prix, coming off a run of two non championship Formula One Victories to make him the only man to win from his first three Formula One race starts.

Ferrari 156, Replica, Goodwood Revival

Going into the penultimate race of the championship von Trips lead Phil Hill in points, however despite starting from pole von Trips was involved in an accident with Jim Clark that sent the German’s Ferrari into a collision with a grandstand at the end of the second lap. Consequently Von Trips and 15 spectators were killed and Phil Hill who started forth went on to win both the 1961 Italian Grand Prix and the Championship with one race to go.

Ferrari withdrew from the US Grand Prix, won by Innes Ireland driving a Lotus Climax 21 to record Team Lotus’s first team victory. At the end of 1961 the 156’s designer Carlo Chitti and team manager Romolo Tavoni walked out on Ferrari to found a new team called ATS, leaving Phil Hill and Baghetti joined by rookies Ricardo Rodriguez and Lorenzo Bandini to soldier on with the 156’s in 1962. The cars remained competitive in the opening races of the season but were eclipsed by both the V8 powered BRM P578 and Lotus 25, driven by Graham Hill and Jim Clark respectively, as the season progressed.

Ferrari 156, Replica, Goodwood Revival

At the end of 1962 Enzo Ferrari had all of the 156’s, known as Sharknoses, broken up with reusable parts saved for future use, while the chassis frames were cut up and used to reinforce a new Ferrari factory floor. For 1963 lighter versions of the 156’s were built in anticipation of a new V8 powered car designed by Mauro “Fury’ Forghieri that John Surtees drove to the 1965 World Drivers Championship Title.

The car driven by Jan Biekens featured today replicates the 65° V6 powered chassis #0002 in the colours of Equipe National Belge driven by Olivier Gendebien to a forth place finish with the three 156’s, all using more powerful 120° V6’s of Phil Hill, von Trips and Richie Ginther ahead of him. Von Trips drove the same car painted red at the Monaco Grand Prix where he was classified 4th after crashing on lap 98 of 100.

Ferrari 156, Replica, Goodwood Revival

I believe French GP winner Giancarlo Baghetti moved from the FISA to the Scuderia Sant Ambroeus team for the 1961 British Grand Prix at Aintree where he drove the original #0002 still fitted with the 65° V6 qualifying 19th and retiring after an accident having completed 27 laps. At the German Grand Prix Willy Mairesse drove the original repaired #0002 qualifying 13th on the tortuous Nürburgring and crashing out on the 13th of 15 laps.

For the Italian Grand Prix at Monza the original #0002 was fitted with the latest 120° V6 and given to Phil Hill who drove it to victory in the race and championship as outlined above.

In 2004 Jan undertook the building of this replica with Jim Stokes Workshops Ltd and it was completed some five years later using many original parts, you can see a diary of the work progressing in the ‘News’ pages of Jan’s website.

Thanks for joining me on this “Factory Floor Reinforcement” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Phil Hill Tribute – Peterson Museum

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It’s a great pleasure to blog about the recent tribute to Phil Hill, celebrating the 50th anniversary of his World Championship win, at the Peterson Automotive Museum thanks to GALPOT’s roving correspondent Geoffrey Horton.

Jay Leno, Phil Hill Tribute, PAM

Ueber car enthusiast Jay Leno was amongst the guests to lend humour to the occasion.

Pierce Arrow, PAM

Amongst the exhibits was this 1931 Pierce Arrow convertible sedan by Lebaron that was ordered new by Phil’s Aunt and in which Phil leaned to drive. He also used the car to attend USC and in 1955 he restored the car with his brother Jerry and promptly unexpectedly won the Best in Show award at Pebble Beach.

Peterson Automotive Museum

Some of Phil’s competitors from his early days at this event shared with the appreciative audience stories of Phil’s early exploits with an MG TC in Cal Club events which were not always entirely legal events held on circuits.

Ferrari 375MM Vignale, Peterson Automotive Museum

Of the delectable Ferrari’s present that Phil has driven was this unique 1953 375MM with Vignale bodywork and non stock tailfin that was added after the car was built in 1954. Phil drove this car to a second place finish in the 1954 Carrera Panamericana. It was also later driven by Carol Shelby.

Peterson Automotive Museum

Nothing remains of the original Shark Nose Ferrari 156 which he used to win the 1961 World Drivers Championship, they were all destroyed on the instruction of Enzo Ferrari, but the helmet seen here was used by Phil in his Championship winning season.

Packard Model 30, Peterson Automotive Museum

This 1912 Packard Model 30 with a gearbox mounted ahead of the rear axle and rear cable operated brakes only was purchased by Phil in 1966 and won it’s class at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in the 1970’s

Peterson Automotive Museum

Guests who discussed the life and times of Phil were left to right, John Lamm, Editor at Large “Road and Track, Denise McLuggage racing driver and journalist, Parnelli Jones, Jesse Alexander photographer, Dan Gurney, Jim Hall and Phil’s wife Alma.

My thanks to Geoffrey Horton for sending me the photo’s and the details of the Phil Hill Tribute evening at Peterson Automotive Museum.

Thanks for joining me on this Phil Hill edition of ‘Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres’ I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Dino Remembered – Ferrari 246S #0784

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At the end of 1955 Alfredo ‘Dino’ Ferrari proposed the idea of building a twin over head cam 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui V6 motor for use in second tier open wheel Formula 2 racing to his father Enzo. Soon afterwards ‘Dino’ was hospitalised with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, while in hospital ‘Dino’ discussed the technical details of his idea with legendary engineer Vittorio Jano.

Jano translated his disscusions with ‘Dino’ into what would become the first ‘Dino’ V6 which was used in Formula 2 races in 1957, by which time ‘Dino’ had fatally succumbed to his illness.

The motor had the two banks of cylinders unusually inclined at 65 degrees by 1958 a larger version of the ‘Dino’ V6 had been installed in Ferrari’s Grand Prix cars and used by Mike Hawthorn to win the 1958 World Drivers Championship.

A 2 litre / 122 cui version of the ‘Dino’ engine was installed in a sports car, s/n #0740, for Peter Collins to drive at Goodwood in the 1958 Sussex trophy where he came 2nd. The sports car was indistinguishable from the older Fantusi bodied 250TR apart from the 3 twin choke carburetors sticking out of the bonnet /hood where the larger engined 250 TR had 6.

Ferrari 246S, Bobby Verdon-Roe, Siverstone Classic

Several more variations of the Dino V6’s were built and raced including single over head cam versions with 60 degree inclinations between the cylinders. #0784 seen here in the hands of Bobby Verdon Roe at the Silverstone Classic was the last of the 246S models to be built in 1959.

#0784 was fitted with a twin cam V6 and uniquely with Formula One derived independent rear suspension. On it’s debut Phil Hill and Graf Berghe ‘Taffy’ von Trips drove this chassis into second place in the 1960 Targa Florio. This would remain the cars best result despite the best efforts Richie Ginther, Ludovico Scarfiotti, Ed Hugus, Alan, Cornell jr, Ricardo & Pedro Rodriguez, and Bob Grossman.

In 1962 the car was fitted with the high tail body seen on the car today. Among it’s many owners since the 1960’s was Nick Mason’s friend and Pink Floyd Manager Steve O’Rourke who was briefly the custodian of #0784 in 1997. More recently in 2009 Bobby Verdon Rowe and Nick Leventis took this 246S to victory lane in a one hour race at the Goodwood revival in 2009.

Thanks for joining me on the Dino V6 edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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What goes around – Ferrari 250 MM Vignale #0260MM

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The Ferrari 250 MM was launched with a tube frame chassis carrying a 237 hp V12 in 1953 weighing just 850 kgs / 1874 lbs.

Ferrari 250MM, Vignale

Phil Hill, who is pictured here by Geoffrey Horton at Danville Concours d’Elegance in 2007 was supplied with this vehicle by US Ferrari importer Luigi Chinetti and drove the Vignale bodied 250MM to victories at Pebble Beach and Santa Barbara in 1953 and scored a class victory at Stead AFB Reno, Nevada the same year.

There after the car was sold and continued to be raced up until at least 1957 before resurfacing on the Concours circuit, at Pebble Beach in 1983. Phil appears to have driven the car competitively for the last time at the Monterey Historic races in 1984.

For the 2007 Danville Concours d’Elegance, an annual event which raises money for the Parkinson’s Institute and Clinical Center, Sunnyvale, California, Phil’s former employers Road & Track created the Phil Hill Trophy for the winner of the Concours event.

Phil, who suffered from and died as a result of complications from Parkinson’s disease, may have been understandably a little biased when he selected the Vignale 250MM car he had once owned and raced to victory to be the inaugural winner of the trophy named after him.

My thanks to Geoffrey Horton who kindly sent me this image.

Thanks for stopping by today’s Phil Hill Trophy edition on ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now!

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Black Cat – Jaguar XK120 #670138

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I’d like to thank Geoffrey Horton for sending me these photographs of Phil Hill’s Jaguar XK120 at the 2007 Danville Concours de Elegance.

Danville CC 2007 011s

This chassis #670138 is known to have been raced by Phil, who was guest of honour at Danville in 2007, in at least 3 races in 1950 in which he scored two second place finishes and a win in the 100 Mile race at Pebble Beach in November 1950.

Danville CC 2007 020s

Last week it came to light that I had overlooked something in my original blog on the XK120, namely that while the standard XK 120 took it’s name from it’s 120 mph capability, it has transpired that Norman Dewis was bolted into an XK120 with a streamlined roof and recorded a production car record speed of 172.412 mph on the 21st October 1953 driving along a stretch of Belgian Motorway known as the Jabbeke Straight, between Bruges and Ostend.

My thanks to Terry, Tim, Allan, and Tony at The Nostalgia Forum for the additional details and thanks again to Geoffrey for today’s marvellous photographs.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s Black Cat edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ and that you will join me again tomorrow, Ferrari Friday, for a look at my favourite road going V8 Ferrari. Don’t forget to come back now !

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I’m in the wrong business – Ferrari 860 Monza #0604M

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There are photographs and then there are some photographs one could write a book about, today’s photograph by Carlyle Blackwell of then future world champion Phil “I’m in the wrong business” Hill driving a Ferrari 860 Monza to 2nd place overall and first in class at Pebble Beach on the 22nd of April 1956 is without question one of the latter. I’ll do my best to summarise the story here.

Ferrari 860 Monza, Pebble Beach

Photo Carlyle Blackwell, Publised Courtesy Blackwell Archive, for sales enquiry’s please e-mail infoATpsychoontyres.co.uk and your contact details will be forwarded to the Blackwell Archive.

The Ferrari 860 Monza is perhaps the ultimate expression of mid 1950’s sports cars before the regulations governing such vehicles changed in the aftermath of the tragedy at Le Mans in 1955. Mercedes and Jaguar had withdrawn their factory supported entries from the World Championship Sports Car races entirely, though Jaguar supported successful private entries of Ecurie Ecosse at Le Mans in 1956 and 1957.

Ferrari were the only serious contenders left for the World Sports Car Championship in 1956 and the 860 was fully poised to sweep the board with a 280 hp 3432 cc / 209 cui Lamperdi straight 4 engine.

With the withdrawal of the Mercedes team from all forms of racing no less a free agent than reigning 3 time world champion Juan ” El Maestro ” Fangio became the ‘must have’ free agent of the 1956 season if not all time and Enzo recruited him to replace Ascari who had recently died in an accident.

Ferrari did not take the 860’s to Buenos Aries for the first round of the Championship which let Maserati off the hook. For the Sebring 12 Hours chassis #0604 M pictured here was prepared for Fangio and the suave up and coming man Euginio Castellotti and duly took a comfortable 2 lap victory ahead of a sister 860 Monza.

Just one month later the Sebring winning car had changed ownership and now belonged to John von Neuman, himself a competent driver who would take #0604 to victory lane at Santa Maria later in 1956, and entered his new possession for freshly signed works Ferrari driver Phil Hill at Pebble Beach, where we can see him driving to a class victory behind Carol Shelby in an older modified Ferrari 750 Monza.

This turned out to be the last event run at the Pebble Beach venue, Ernie Macafee’s fatal accident during the race was enough to persuade organisers to seek a safer facility which led to the opening of the Laguna Seca track in 1957.

Chassis #0604 M continued to be raced until 1962 with future works Ferrari driver Richie Ginther being one of many to drive her and Lew Florence being the last to take her to Victory Lane at Shelton in 1959.

Since then #0604 M has become a sought after collectors item with former head of the Renault F1 team Jean Sage counting among it’s owners. In 2006 the vehicle was offered for sale at $3.5 million., it is said to currently reside in Italy.

Ferrari won The World Sports Car Championship in 1956 despite a second defeat at the Nurburgring by Maserati.

For those new to the history of motor racing here is a brief introduction to a hugely popular driver. Phil (no relation to the British two time champion Graham) Hill was born in Miami FL and raised in Santa Barbra, California, dropped out of college to pick up a wrench to work on racing drivers cars before becoming a driver himself.

Phil won his first race a 3 lap even at Carrell Speedway driving an MG TC in July 1949. In 1958 he drove a Maserati 250 F in his first Grand Prix and in the same year sharing a Ferrari with Olivier Gendebien won the Le Mans 24 Hours a feat he repeated with Olivier and Ferrari in 1961 and 1962.

In 1960 Phil won the Italian GP driving a Ferrari becoming the first American to win a Grand Prix in nearly 40 years and the following year he won two Grand Prix on his way to becoming the first US World Grand Prix Drivers Champion. Unfortunately a dispute between Ferrari and Grand Prix racing’s governing bodies meant Phil never got to properly celebrate on home turf in fact arguably Phil never got to compete in all the Grand Prix races in a single season.

In 1967 Phil retired after driving a Chaparral to victory in the BOAC 500 at Brands Hatch. He continued working in TV for Road & Track and his own vehicle restoration business Hill & Vaughan until he retired in 1995.

Phil aged 81 succumbed to complications from Parkinsons disease in 2008. He is quoted as saying of his presence on the motor racing circuit, “I’m in the wrong business. I don’t want to beat anybody, I don’t want to be the big hero. I’m a peace-loving man, basically”.

Finally I am reliably informed this photograph made the cover of Road & Track Magazine in September 1956, I have not seen it yet if you have a copy and can scan it please get in touch using the e-mail link on my profile page, I’d love to see it.

My thanks to Ed Arnaudin who purchased this slide, to his son Steve who sent it on, to El Wayne and Miltonian at Ferrari Chat who passed on essential information on the identification of the car, its location, date and details of the publication.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s “I’m in the wrong business” edition of Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres” and that you’ll join me for a look at the Maserati model the Ferrari had to beat to win the 1956 World Sports Car title. Don’t forget to come back now !

28 07 12 PS My thanks to Pamela Blackwell who has kindly retrospectively given me permission to post the photo’s her father took.

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Sister doing it for her self – OSCA Tipo S-187

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Today we return to Lime Rock in 1959 courtesy of Ed Arnaudin for a look at this OSCA Tipo S-187 belonging to Briggs Cunningham.

Officine Specializzate Costruzioni Automobili – Fratelli Maserati SpA was set up by the three racing mad Maserati brothers Ernesto, Ettore and Bindo after their involvement with the company bearing their own name had concluded with it’s sale to Adolfo Orsi in 1937 and the expiry of their subsequent 10 year consulting contracts in 1947.

The brothers focused on building extremely successful sports cars primarily with engines of 750 cc / 45 cui to 1500 cc / 91.5 cui. Cunningham’s car seen here appears to be one of 17 Tipo S-187’s built from 1956 – 1960 with a 70 hp 749 cc / 45 cui twin cam engine with a, for the time, high 9:1 compression ratio.

The real story behind the #23 OSCA on this day in 1959 however is the driver who took the car to victory lane, one D McCluggage from Kansas, who is well known for breaking down discriminating and prejudicial barriers in journalism and at the race track, simply D stands for Denise.

As well as regularly whooping all the boys on the race track she is a seasoned motor sports journalist who was famously sent to Indianapolis by The Herald Tribune only to find she was barred from the press box, pit lane AND garage area, unperturbed she got her story from elsewhere round the track and published anyway.

Phil Hill later described the prevailing attitude at the time “It’s a bit embarrassing to me, given today’s enlightened attitudes, to admit that in the late 50s I was a bit disturbed by the idea of this woman driver. It wasn’t a matter of feeling threatened, but like many men in that period, I had trouble understanding what kind of statement Denise might be making with her driving efforts. The fact is, gender stereotypes aside, she was holding her own on the track.”

All Denise wanted to do was win and she did often, after her career as a professional driver was over she became a founding light at AutoWeek where her accomplishments are still scene as an example for others to follow.

Denise recently became the only Journalist to ever be inducted into the Automotive Hall of fame and at over 70 she still writes her ‘Drive, She Said’ column syndicated in over 90 newspapers across the US and Canada.

Hat’s off to Denise gentleman, for waking us up to our equals !

Thanks to Steve and Ed Arnaudin for the photograph, and to Terry O’Neil for the race day information.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s prejudice free edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ and that you’ll join me tomorrow for a look at a splendid vintage Triumph Dolomite. Don’t forget to come back now !

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