The classic Ferrari 412 P racing car with chassis number #0844 that won the 1967 Daytona race has been revived by the Ferrari Classiche brand. The Ferrari Classiche brand celebrated its 15th anniversary in 2021 and they commemorated the occasion by restoring one of the brand’s most important racing cars.
This 412 P completed a unique Hat Trick for Ferrari at the 1967 24 Hours of Daytona, overcoming two strong opponents, Ford and Porsche, thereby restoring the honor of the racing team that had one season. difficult in 1966. Like many classic race cars, the 412 P race car with chassis #0844 was originally built as the 330 P3 for the 1966 race. This car competed at Sebring , Targa Florio and at Le Mans in 1966 before being converted into a 412 P Berlinetta for Luigi Chinetti’s NART dealership in the United States.
In 1967, this car raced at Monza for 1,000 km and continued to race again at Le Mans. However, the most impressive achievement of this car was in that year’s 24 Hours of Daytona, the car finished in third place with two drivers: Pedro Rodríguez and Jean Guichet at the wheel.
That same year back in Italy, the race car with chassis number #0844 was converted into a new Spider race car for Can-Am competition and continued to race in the United States until the early 70s. “Retired”, the car passed through the hands of several collectors before being rebuilt in the 1967 412 P Berlinetta body style in the late 1990s. In 2019, the Ferrari 412 P was brought to Ferrari Classiche for certification, inspection and full restoration.
“There are three main elements that need to be addressed for such a project,” explains Andrea Modena, Head of Technical Support for Ferrari and Ferrari Classiche. The first step is the Evaluation where our Certification Committee is comprised of experts independent of Ferrari to ensure objectivity. This team will analyze the authenticity of the vehicle so we can inform the customer what needs to be done.”
Mr. Modena said the next steps include a Technical Inspection, assessing whether mechanical components need repair or a complete rebuild. And finally for the body, the team asked for the help of Ferrari Centro Stile. They can 3D scan the car to compare it with the original image or with a surviving car to see if the details and proportions on the car are still the same as when it left the factory or have been repaired or tweaked.
Mr. Modena shared, this car with chassis number #0084 was originally built by Drogo and they had a general layout drawing but not the exact design. At that time, these cars were all handcrafted, so each one was different and inconsistent in details. Based on this drawing, the Ferrari Classiche team decided to modify some details on the car’s body. This was done by outside companies using a metal body shaping method similar to the original fabrication process of using a soft-faced hammer on a wooden bar. They were not allowed to use the “English Wheel” method to create curvature in the body panels because this method gave a different finish and lacked realism.
The car’s body is the only part that is not restored at Ferrari Classiche but must go through a third party. Ferrari engineers examined the chassis and powertrain of #0844 and found the components to be in good working order, complete with a numbers-matching engine. Furthermore, the intricate tubular chassis is virtually untouched and remains original. “It’s really difficult to modify the chassis because the system is tailored to components like the oil tank, fuel tank and coolant,” Modena explains. This also means that the chassis tubes must be in a very strong and solid condition.” He also added that one of the few parts the team had to re-produce was the radiator support frame, which is located very low in the car’s nose. Luckily, the part had drawings in the archives so the team was able to recreate it accurately.
The racing car with chassis number #0844 is one of 25 Ferrari Classiche cars fully restored in 2021. Since 2006, Ferrari Classiche has doubled its human resources to meet the restoration needs of many customers.
