(07) 1948: Ferrari 166 S Allemano

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It was in 1948 that Ferrari debuted its 12-cylinder engine, a two-liter (1995.02 cc) engine with a bore and stroke of 60 x 58.8 mm. Both the Sport and Formula Two categories used the 166. Ferrari car numbers at the time were derived from their cubic capacity, which was divided by the number of cylinders into their total cubic capacity: 1995.02 divided by 12 = 166.25, rounded down. The 166 S was almost always entered as a works entry, while the Sport was usually entered under the private Scuderia Inter banner, which entered Allemano-bodied 166 S barchetta number 36 for the Giro di Sicilia on 4 April 1948. Given the presence of Alberto Ascari and Gigi Villoresi's works Maserati A6G.CSs, the chances of this rather clumsy and ungainly looking car doing well were pretty slim. But in the talented hands of great road racer Clemente Biondetti, who had already won the 1938 and 1947 Mille Miglias and was accompanied at the last minute by the less experienced Igor Troubetzkoy, it beat its powerful opposition and won the Sicilian race, giving Ferrari another important win. It wasn't so lucky in this year's Mille Miglia, driven by Bruno Sterzi and Fernando Righetti, who retired it with a broken engine. It was the start of a long and successful line of Rosse: the Tipo 166 earned Ferrari international fame.