(01) 1940: Ferrari Auto Avio Costruzioni 815

In 1939, Enzo Ferrari left Portello after working for Alfa Romeo for ten years and running the company's racing department under the Scuderia Ferrari banner. He was constantly in disagreement with the directorship, particularly theSpanish technical boss Wifredo Ricart. Due to that tough situation, Ferrari signed an agreement not to race with the Scuderia brand for at least four years. Thankfully, that obstacle was quickly overcome. In 1940, he formed a newcompany called Auto Avio Costruzioni in Modena with the money he got in the settlement for leaving Alfa Romeo and leaving the Scuderia. In the workshops of the new organization, two roadsters were built almost exclusively from Fiat parts. There's a 1496 cc eight-cylinder in-line engine and longitudinal and cross members from the Fiat 508 C Balilla 1100. In that adventurous undertaking, Ferrari had a few people working with him, including Alberto Massimino and Vittorio Bellentani. Those two two-seaters built by Ferrari and called the 815 were designed by Carrozzeria Touring of Milan, which competed in the Grand Prix of Brescia - the 13th Mille Miglia - on 28 April 1940. With Lotario Rangoni Machiavelli and Enrico Nardi in the cockpit, and Alberto Ascari and Giuseppe Minozzi driving, both cars dominated up to 1500 cc Sport until Ascari's car broke a rocker arm and the Rangoni 815 had a transmission failure. After the war, Ascari sold his car to Enrico Beltrachini, who raced it eight times. During the Second World War, Lotario Rangoni was killed, and his brother Rolando got the car, which he scrapped in 1958.