3765 SA And Its Four Liter Relatives
Brought To You With A Few Surprises By Michael T. Lynch.
 

Click on image to enlarge (31k) In the pits at Le Mans in 1962 before the race, s/n 3765 SA sports that classic GTO profile. It's hard to fault the purity of this concept; even the tacked on spoiler and the various vents and lights seem right at home. Michael Parkes and Lorenzo Bandini were the drivers, and the combination was expected to do well. But fate would take them out in the sixth hour.

From 1958 through 1961, sports racing cars were limited to three liters in World Championship sports car racing. Variations of Ferrari's Testa Rossa V-12 dominated the series, except for 1959 when Aston Martin won the Championship. In 1961, in an attempt to involve more manufacturers in racing, the FIA announced that the 1962 Constructors' Championship would be run for grand touring cars. Sports prototypes would still be allowed to compete to add spectator appeal, but all championship points would go to the GT cars. Ferrari was concerned that there would be new competitors in the prototype class for overall victories, and in the grand touring class for World Championship points. Freed from the three liter limit, he began a series of experiments with four liter engines.

In the winter of 1962, a race tuned 400 Superamerica engine of the Colombo series (type 163) was installed in a 1960 Testa Rossa chassis with independent rear suspension, s/n 0780 TR. That car had been updated throughout the 1960 and 1961 seasons when it was raced by the Factory, and modifications continued after the larger engine was installed. In the spring, after missing the first day of the Le Mans trials because a snowstorm delayed the transporter, this car set the fastest lap on the final day, April 10. By then, s/n 0780 TR had been modified to the point that it carried a new chassis number, s/n 0808. Our featured car, s/n 3765 SA, was the next four liter variant. Because of its bodywork, it is often described as a four liter GTO. The chassis is actually a modified version of the 400 SA measuring 2,400 mm and is unique to this car (type 538/566). Like s/n 0808, s/n3765 SA was fitted with a tuned 400 SA engine (type 163 LM) and a four speed gearbox rather than a GTO's five. The car was finished in early May and made an impressive debut at the Nurburgring 1000 km Championship event on May 27, 1962, where it finished second overall driven by Mike Parkes and Willy Mairesse. Parkes was an engineer at Ferrari at the time and had done much of the development work.

Click on image to enlarge (23k) Yes, it looks like a production car dash, what with extra switches and gauges, but it simply dresses up an out-and-out race car underneath. We doubt whether Messrs. Parkes or Bandini gave these gauges much notice, since race cars in those days were driven by the tach needle; but on reflection, the water temperature gauge certainly caused them no end of distress.

Click on image to enlarge (26k) Deep bucket seats were meant to keep you from thrashing around in the cockpit, while, presumably, you were thrashing the car around a race course. A single lap belt kept you from leaving the seat entirely. Remember, at this time, slipping and sliding through a corner was still the norm, and staying squarely in the seat was a priority.

There has been some confusion about s/n 3765 SA's participation at the Nurburgring because of information contained in Jess Pourret's classic book, "The Ferrari Legend: 250 GT Competition." Pourret claims that s/n 3673 SA, not s/n 3765 SA, was the Nurburgring car. Subsequent research has shown that to be incorrect. The assembly data sheets for s/n 3673 SA confirm that it was built as a standard 400 Superamerica and bodied in the style of a 1962 short wheelbase berlinetta. Visual inspection of the car by the author and other historians confirmed this. Completion dates for major parts such as the engine (10/10/62), rear axle (10/10/62), and gearbox (10/22/62), as well as the consignment date of 11/19/62 prove that s/n 3673 SA was not built in time to have been at the Nurburgring. 3673's carburetors, camshafts, shocks, radiator, Bosch distributor and 20 x 1 steering are all standard 400 SA items. Except for the body, the specification of s/n 3673 SA is the same as any other street 400 SA. The data sheets show no indication of any competition parts. Factory correspondence corroborates s/n 3673's origins. A further complication is that s/n 3673 SA has been rebodied as a GTO in the last several years.

Encouraged by the four liter engine's results at the Nurburgring, both s/n 0808 and 3765 SA were taken to Le Mans in 1962. Since their appearances at the Le Mans trials and the Nurburgring, respectively, the engines in both had been modified from three carburetor to six carburetor configuration. Further evidence that s/n 3765 SA was the Nurburgring car are notations in the build sheets that s/n 3765 SA had its engine and gearbox rebuilt immediately before Le Mans. Foreman Taddei tested the engine on June 10th and 17th. The rebuild included polished rods, new Vandervell bearings, and a lowered compression ratio. The latter was most likely for a combination of reliability over the twenty four hours and survival on the notorious low octane French gasoline delivered by the organizers at Le Mans. Higher gears were installed for the French circuit's long Hunaudieres straight. Had s/n 3765 SA not raced before, it is unlikely that such a rebuild would have been necessary. The lowered compression ration, different gears and higher carburetor capacity are in keeping with the differences in car set up between the Nurburgring and Le Mans. At Le Mans, Olivier Gendebien did not care for his ride, s/n 0808, which he referred to as having "…the unpleasant feeling of driving a (Citroen) 2CV fitted with a powerful Mercedes or Ferrari engine." He also complained about the clutch, gearbox and brakes. Nonetheless, he and Phil Hill used s/n 0808 to win the 1962 edition of Le Mans. Providing a grand finale to six front engine V-12 Ferrari victories at Le Mans, beginning in 1949, the first post war running.

Click on image to enlarge (28k) A bit fuzzy perhaps, but a good photo nonetheless of the "four liter GTO", s/n 3754 SA, at Le Mans in 1962. Although the chassis was based on the 400 Superamerica, the body was pure GTO. This was Ferrari's intent, of course, to lead everyone to believe that this was an ordinary three liter GTO. Only the sharp of eye and ear would pick out the important, and indeed, major addition-the four liter motor.

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3765 SA did not fare as well. Again driven by Parkes, the Englishman put it into the Mulsanne sand bank on the first lap. After digging out, the car had various overheating problems and Parkes, paired by Lorenzo Bandini, retired in the sixth hour. Although the Factory did not race the car further, their experience with the car led to the use of the engine in the 1963-64 330 P, and the design of the 1963 330 LM"B" (Le Mans Berlinetta). LM"B" is a designation created by historians, as the Factory simply called the car a 330 LM. Related four liter coupes are discussed in the section below. After further testing, s/n 3765 SA was sold later in 1962 to Timavo, a regular Ferrari customer. When he traded it in on a 330 LM"B", s/n 4619 SA, in 1964, the Factory fitted s/n 3765 SA with a three liter V-12 numbered 0796 TR and a five speed gearbox. That engine had replaced the V-6 in a 246 S, s/n 0796, in tests leading to the creation of the 250 P in 1963. Latteri bought s/n 3765 SA in three liter form and ran it in Italian events as a homologated GTO. In place of the usual three nose ducts with removable covers, the car acquired a letterbox cooling slot across the nose which detracted somewhat from the classic droop snout GTO look. It then went to Tossi and on to long time Ferraristi Jack Reuter in St. Louis. In 1974 it was sold to Fred Leydorf, who had it for almost twenty years.

When present owner Jim Jaeger acquired the car, it was still in three liter form. Jaeger enjoyed the car immensely, driving it to the office every day as well as racing and showing it. Then he made the decision to bring the car back to its original four liter specification. Paul Pappalardo had recently sold a type 163 block but he was able to retrieve it from the buyer and supply it to Jaeger. Pappalardo also assisted in other phases of the restoration. The late Gianni Diena at Sport Auto Modena in Modena assembled the engine and found or machined many of the internals. More work was done by Al Roberts at a Shelton Ferrari who fine tuned and detailed the car, which has placed well at various Concours including the FCA National Meet. Jim Jaeger now likes the extra power but says the carburetors still need adjustments as the huge carburetors don't like low speed running. 3765 SA is unique in the proper sense of the word. It is a true one off with a Factory racing history, albeit short, It inspired several more racing and road four liter coupes and the legacy of its engine continued in 330 and 365 LP car variants for the next few years. That's a lot more significant than the usual dismissal of s/n 3765 SA as simply a "Four liter GTO".

Click on image to enlarge (32k)  Jim Jaeger has had s/n 3765 SA restored to its Le Mans configuration. Even today, some thirty four years later, the design of the GTO series still engages our intellect and captures our emotions. This particular car had a short racing career, but the lessons learned from its four liter motor led to several successful variants, including the engines of the 330 P and the 330 LM"B".

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This was only the beginning. The normally conservative Michael Parkes goes wide on a corner at Le Mans in 1962 in the "four liter GTO", s/n 3765 SA, and places himself and the car firmly onto a sand bank. This rudimentary barrier would catch other cars during the race- Parkes was only the first. There was no traction, se he spent a great deal of time digging himself out, and of course, help from spectators or marshals was not allowed. He later rejoined the race, but by the sixth hour, the car was out because of overheating. This was attributed to the excursion into the sand bank, but no official reason was ever given. This did not hurt Parkes' relationship with Ferrari, however; he went on to take several first places, and many other good finishes, in the following years in sports and GT Ferraris. Ferrari also valued his expertise as a development engineer for the factory. Off to the left in the first photo, by the way, is the winning Ferrari, the 330 TR/LM, s/n 0808.

3673 SA: Chassis 538, Engine 163. A standard 400 Superamerica supplied with a SWB style body. Acquired a GTO body in the last decade. FIMA, Kirk White, Wetson, Halpern, Nowak, Colombo, Bellancauto, Vestey, Matsuda. 3765 SA: Our feature car. Chassis 538/566, Engine 163 LM. A 400SA engine in a modified 400 SA chassis. SEFAC, Nurburgring & Le Mans, 1962. Timavo, Latteri (with three liter engine, s/n 0796), Tossi, Reuter, Leydorf, Jaeger. 4381 SA: 330 LM"B". Chassis 574 (2,500 mm), Engine 163 LM. SEFAC car in 1963. Press Conference, Sebring, Le Mans trials, Le Mans. Sold to an unknown film producer, Violanti, had a spyder body, rebodied properly by Fantuzzi, David Morrison, M. Leventis. 4453 SA: 330LM"B". Chassis 574, Engine 163 LM. Consigned to NART. Le Mans & Bridgehampton, 1963. Fong, Bross, Martino, Carmack, Silver, Mecom, Rubin, Wang. 4561 SA: Chassis 538, Engine 163. Right hand drive. A standard 400 Superamerica built with a GTO style body for Jean-Paul Cavallier, Chairman of the French Pont-a-Musson transmission company, who was on Ferrari's board. Maranello Concessionaires, Hilton brothers, Bixler, Stieger. 4619 SA: 330 LM"B". Chassis 574, Engine 163. Only LM"B" with three carburetors. Not raced when new. Timavo, Paris, Tom Meade, South Africa, Connecticut, Frey, Fong, Hajduk, Weschler, Mark Smith, Hugenholtz, Shutz & Wada, Nucklin Bank, Blackhawk, Lee. 4725 SA: 330 LM"B". Chassis 574, Engine 163 LM. Right hand drive. Maranello Concessionaires, Le Mans, 1963. Ferrari France, Bardinon, Kato, Estate of Baron Mayr-Melnhof-Faurau.

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