Ferrari 125 F1
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2018) |
| Ferrari 125 F1 | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Ferrari |
| Production | 1948–1950 |
| Designer | Gioacchino Colombo, Valerio Colotti |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Formula One car |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 1.5 L Colombo 125 V12 |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 2160 mm (85 in) 2320 mm (91 in) |
| Length | 3685 mm (145 in) |
| Width | 1400 mm (55 in) |
| Height | 1025 mm (40 in) |
| Curb weight | 710 kg (1565 lb) |
| Chronology | |
| Successor | Ferrari 275 F1 |
- See also the 125 S, a sports racer sharing the same engine
The 125 F1 was Ferrari's first Formula One car. It shared its engine with the 125 S sports racer which preceded it by a year, but was developed at the same time by Enzo Ferrari, Valerio Colotti and designer, Gioacchino Colombo.
Mechanical details
The 125 F1 used a supercharged 1.5-litre V12 engine and sported a steel tube-frame chassis with longitudinal and cross members.[1] It had a double wishbone suspension with a transverse leaf spring in front and a torsion bar in the rear which was upgraded to a de Dion tube for 1950. Worm and sector steering and four-wheel drum brakes were the norm for the time. The 2,160 mm (85 in) wheelbase was uprated to 2,320 mm (91 in) in the 1949 redesign. The chassis and transmission design was by Valerio Colotti.
The 125 F1 was powered by Colombo's 1.5-litre (1497 cc/91 in³) 60° V12. It had a single overhead camshaft on each bank of cylinders with a 60° angle between the two banks. The engine had two valves per cylinder fed through one Weber 40DOC3 or 50WCF carburettor. With just a 6.5:1 compression ratio, the supercharged engine still produced 230 hp (172 kW) at 7000 rpm.[citation needed] However, the Roots-type single-stage supercharger was incapable of producing the high-end power required to compete with the strong eight-cylinder Alfa Romeo 158 and four-cylinder Maserati 4CLT. Strong driving and a nimble chassis, however, allowed the company to place third in its first outing, at the Valentino Grand Prix on September 5, 1948 and the company persevered in racing.
For 1949, the engine was further modified with dual overhead camshafts (though still two valves per cylinder) and a two-stage supercharger. This combination gave the car better top-end performance and the resulting 280 hp (209 kW) gave it five Grand Prix wins. Development continued the following year, but the problematic superchargers were dropped in favor of larger displacement and Lampredi's 275 engine superseded the original Colombo engine.
The original chassis have been lost (used for Ferrari 275), but an exact replica with the original Colombo engine currently resides in Museo Ferrari in Maranello alongside newer Ferrari F1 machines.
Racing
The 125 F1 debuted at the Valentino Grand Prix on September 5, 1948. Three cars were fielded, with drivers Prince Bira of Siam, Nino Farina, and Raymond Sommer who placed third in the race.
| Date | Location | Driver |
|---|---|---|
| October 24, 1948 | Garda Circuit, Salò | Giuseppe Farina |
| July 3, 1949 | Switzerland Grand Prix, Bern | Alberto Ascari |
| July 31, 1949 | Zandvoort Grand Prix | Luigi Villoresi |
| August 20, 1949 | Daily Express Trophy, Silverstone | Alberto Ascari |
| September 11, 1949 | Italian Grand Prix, Monza | Alberto Ascari |
| September 25, 1949 | Masaryk Circuit, Brno | Peter Whitehead |
| July 13, 1950 | Jersey Road Race | Peter Whitehead |
| August 12, 1950 | Ulster Trophy, Dundrod | Peter Whitehead |
| October 1, 1950 | Interstate Race, Interlagos | Francisco Landi |
| January 27, 1951 | São Paulo Grand Prix | Francisco Landi |
| May 20, 1951 | Governador Noguera Garcez Race, Interlagos | Francisco Landi |
| June 28, 1951 | Bõa Vista Grand Prix, Rio de Janeiro | Francisco Landi |
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(key) (results in bold indicate pole position, results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12 | D | GBR | MON | 500 | SUI | BEL | FRA | ITA | ||
| Peter Whitehead | DNS | 3 | 7 | ||||||||
| P | Luigi Villoresi | Ret | Ret | 6 | |||||||
| Alberto Ascari | 2 | Ret | |||||||||
| Raymond Sommer | 4 | ||||||||||
| 1951 | Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12 | D | SUI | 500 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | ITA | ESP | |
| Peter Whitehead | Ret | Ret | |||||||||
| P | Ret | ||||||||||
| 1952 | Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12 | D | SUI | 500 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | NED | ITA | |
| Peter Whitehead | 10 | DNQ | |||||||||
Source:[2]
| |||||||||||
References
- Footnotes
- ^ "GILCO ferrari 125 GP chassis". Gilco Design. Retrieved August 10, 2006.
- ^ Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. pp. 37, 357, 388 and 400. ISBN 0851127029.
- Sources
- Ascerbi, Leonardo (2006). Ferrari: A Complete Guide to All Models. Motorbooks. ISBN 0-7603-2550-2.
