Hot on the heels of its creation of the World Drivers’ Championship in 1950, the FIA turned its attention to sportscar racing. Endurance races like Le Mans and the Mille Miglia were acknowledged as great classics, but no championship linked them in a manner that might excite both racing fans and participants. That changed for the better in 1953 with the FIA’s establishment of the World Sportscar Championship. Rightly enough it was for car makers, not drivers.
Here was fresh inspiration for the world’s builders of sports racing cars: Jaguar, Aston Martin, Cunningham and Mercedes-Benz took notice. In the new trophy’s first season, 1953, points were awarded for finishes in the Sebring 12 Hours, Mille Miglia, Le Mans 24 Hours, Spa 24 Hours, Nürburgring 1000 Kilometres, Tourist Trophy and Carrera Panamericana. While the races in Florida and Mexico were newcomers, the others were already great international events. Success in the new championship would surely bring major kudos and act as a spur to sales. How would Ferrari respond to this new challenge and opportunity?
By the end of 1953, Maranello had its answer ready. Having benefited from chief engineer, Aurelio Lampredi’s, punchy four-cylinder engines in his grand prix cars, Enzo Ferrari approved Lampredi’s plan to extend the technology to larger dimensions for a new 3.0-litre sports racer. This continued the gradual enlargement that began in 1952 with a 2.5-litre four for the Type 625, in preparation for the new grand prix formula coming in 1954. Such engines were installed in two Vignale-bodied spyders that had brief racing careers in Europe in 1953 before being sold to South America.
Type 735S
An even bigger four, nearing three litres, was installed in an open sports racer bodied by Modena’s Autodromo to a design by Lampredi. Making a transition to Lampredi’s definitive four, still using the original architecture, this was known as the Type 735S. It had 102 x 90 mm dimensions for
