Ferrari 512 BB vs. Lamborghini Miura P 400 SV: back in the middle - Sportscars

Someone may wrinkle their nose when they see two sports cars together that actually represented two different decades of the best Italian sports car industry, the sixties of the last century. Miura and seventies for BB... But, looking at the details of these two stories, which do not intersect, but intersect, we understand how much wiser it is to combine them than it might seem at first glance.

To begin with, the two monsters in our service are the most significant evolutions of their respective models (I did not consider the 512 BBi compared to the 12-barrel Sant'Agata carburetors), but above all, the year in which the “Miura variants” ceased production The BB (not the 512, but the 365 GT4, or the first series of that wonderful Berlinetta Ferrari) started its journey in the sports market, causing a stir among the fans, as did the Miura. done seven years ago.

But in order. At the 1965 Turin Motor Show on the stand Lamborghini The innovative chassis with the PT 400 lettering (i.e. the 4-liter transverse rear) with a steel frame and metal structure and various illumination holes, similar at first glance to those used in racing cars, has worked well. This mechanical work of art (now owned by two American collectors Joe Saki and Gary Bobileff) was designed by an engineer Gian Paolo Dallara (the creator of the Veyron chassis today) to house a 12-liter 3.9-cylinder engine (3.929 cc, 350 hp @ 7.000 rpm) in a lateral center position designed by none other than an engineer. Giotto Bizzarrini.

This fleeting appearance, which caused a splash among sports car enthusiasts, anticipated a clear change in trend that a car with such a chassis (of course the Miura) would bring some fuss to the sports car world. The first Miura, the P400, was unveiled at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show and echoed the sensation and success of the chassis it was wearing. He made all the participants grow old in the blink of an eye with his futuristic lines (for those times), streamlined and lying on the ground, designed by a young man. Marcello Gandini, with an extravagant solution - two large hoods that open like a book, gutting the mechanical secrets of the car and leaving the interior structure in the center almost naked. The revolutionary mechanical approach we talked about also helped make it Martian.

Speaking about mechanics, it should be emphasized that in order to preserve the entire group engine inside the two axles (in this case the problem is the rear axle) Bizzarrini (who so much preferred this arrangement of engines that he also adopted it for the front engines, both on the legendary Ferrari 250 GTO and on "his" Bizzarrini 5300 GT Strada) Speed Miura P400 at the bottom of the cylinder block. After the production of the first three copies of the car, the engineer Dallara (assisted in the Miura project eng. Paolo Stanzani and New Zealand test pilot Bob wallace) realized that clockwise rotation of the engine (when looking at the car from the left) does not allow the engine to run smoothly. The direction of rotation was then reversed for a more regular power delivery. The choice of design to place the reservoir between the cab and the front hood, which initially appeared to be a Columbus egg to optimize weight distribution, actually created some problems for the Miura of the first series (475 units produced from 1966 to 1969), as the gradual emptying due to lightning the nose of the tank, which began to "float" at high speeds, due to which the front wheels lost the necessary grip and directional stability.

Le performance The high-quality Miura (top speed 280 km / h) made this problem obvious, given that the owners of the fastest road in the world at the time were certainly not limited to using it for walking. In this regard, another disadvantage of the first P400 Miura series was braking (which I was able to see for myself, much to my fear, during the trip from Milan to Sant'Agata): the system installed on the first version did not allow the full power of this beast to be used and the reaction to pressure on the pedals was limited and late. These early youth problems were partially addressed in the second edition of the Miura, the 400 P 1969 S, thanks to the adoption bus wider and equipping the brake system with new discs self-ventilated with large diameter. There power engine, thanks to a simple increase in the compression ratio (which increased from 9,5: 1 to 10,4: 1), increased from 350 to 370 hp, again at 7.000 rpm, and the speed increased to a good 287 km / h . Foursome carburetors The Weber 40 IDA 30 triple body, practically for competition, has been modified with a small unburned petrol tank to overcome the shortcomings found in the first series.

The P 400 S continued to be produced (140 units in total), even when the final version of the Miura was presented in 1971, the most perfect and perfect (and today also the most cited and sought after): P400SV... This rage finally lost eyebrows around the headlights (except on those rare occasions when the buyer still wanted these suggestive grilles, as happened with our service model, created by Ferruccio Lamborghini himself), wings The rear has been widened to accommodate new 235/15/60 tires, which give it even more sensational grain, and an engine capable of 385bhp. at 7.850 rpm, which allowed the SV to move at an amazing speed of 295 km / h (and we are talking about 1971).

Then, after a prestigious career that lasted almost seven years (in which many celebrities such as Claudio Villa, Little Tony, Bobby Solo, Gino Paoli, Elton John and Dean Martin, as well as monarchs such as King Hussein of Jordan or Mohammad Reza Pahlavi they used it as their personal car), the revolutionary Miura left the scene at the end of 72 (the last of the 150 P 400 SV models, chassis number 5018, was sold in the spring of 73), its ideal antagonist. Ferrari 365 GT4 BB, went into production.

Then it was time for a radical change in the mechanical approach of Maranello: after the first timid attempt with twelve cylinders From the 250 LM, which remained practically a sports car adapted to the road, on the 365 GT / 4 BB, Ferrari moved the engine again, this time with a much more "important" displacement (4.390,35 cc) than that. Le Mans and the previous 6-cylinder Dino 206 GT, behind the driver, to improve weight distribution and hence tuning and roadholding. Thus, the 365 GT4 BB was the first 12-cylinder road Ferrari to have the engine behind the driver.

It was a great breakthrough brought by the new Berlinette Boxer by Maranello, a passionate car with tight and sharp lines, low and aggressive, as if it were a low blade. But the news didn't stop there: the 365 GT4 BB was essentially also the first road-going Ferrari with a boxer engine. In fact, this revolutionary 12-cylinder engine was not a boxer engine, but rather a V-shaped (or boxer) 180-degree engine, as the connecting rods were mounted in pairs on the same shaft support, rather than on separate supports for each connecting rod. (as required by the boxing scheme). This innovative engine borrows directly from Ferrari's Formula 3 experience with a 1969 liter engine designed by Mauro Forghieri in 1964 (after Ferrari, the 512 F1 already hit the track in XNUMX with opposing cylinders). also allowed to significantly lower barycenter out of the car.

At its first public appearance at the 1971 Turin Motor Show, the new berlinetta came as a shock to the collective imagination of Ferrari enthusiasts and had everything it took to win the most rave reviews from customers in a short time who had already tested the high limits of the previous Daytona. The new car, however, did not go into production until early 1973. The power of the "flat twelve" Berlinetta Boxer, however, compensated for this delay: from 4,4 liters of displacement, Ferrari engineers managed to "squeeze" almost 400 horsepower (380 hp at 7.700 rpm). Thus, the 365 GT / 4 BB was preparing to meet the highest performance requirements of diehard Ferrari supporters. It is said that with the latest evolution of this supercar from Maranello, Gilles Villeneuve he was accustomed to moving "calmly" from his home in Montecarlo to Maranello, preferring the 512 BB to his helicopter, as he said the travel time was almost identical.

But mythology aside, BB is by far one of the most beloved Ferraris of today: its aggressiveness, which only the most experienced can handle, has made it a grumpy and admirable object that can cause anxiety and envy among most car enthusiasts. Its disturbing lines, the surface of the front hood and windshield are tilted to irritation, as if trying to hide from the air. retractable headlights so as not to disturb the ideal daytime aerodynamics, truncated tail with very little overhang compared to the rear axle (as opposed to the front), they made the Berlinetta Boxer something of a spaceship and made the hearts of those who saw it in the rearview mirror at star speeds beat. The 365 GT / 4 BB reached a stratospheric speed for those times: 295 km / h, having driven one kilometer from a standstill in just 25,2 seconds.

With a slightly longer wheelbase than the previous Daytona (2.500 mm instead of 2.400 mm) and better weight distribution guaranteed by the new chassis configuration, with the engine in a near-center position, this berlinetta had exceptional road properties that allowed it to grip well on the road. sincere behavior, predictable by the most experienced pilots, but with limitations that are truly difficult for mere mortals to achieve.

In 1976, a new engine with a volume of almost 5.000 cc. Cm (4.942,84 cc) was installed on the BB and its name became 512 BB. This new version of the Berlinetta from Maranello (our service car) has widened the roadways and fitted larger tires, benefiting an already significant road holding... From an aesthetic point of view, the livery has acquired a double color (black for the lower part of the body), one spoiler under the grille to improve nose stability and air intake A Naca profile at the bottom of the sidewall behind the doors, as well as two new large round taillights that replace the previous three.

However, despite the larger engine displacement, the power and performance of the new berlinetta has slightly decreased. With a power of 360 hp at 7.500 rpm, the top speed dropped to "only" 283 km / h, to the apparent disappointment of the most avid Ferrari fans. However, the new BB version, which was more flexible and manageable, made it available to an audience that was no longer exclusively "Formula XNUMX drivers".

In its latest version, in which it is installedelectronic injection Indirect Bosch K-Jetronic instead of a battery of four huge three-barrel Weber carburettors, the 512 BBi (introduced in 1981) had two additional side lights on the front grille, and a tiny “i” peeked out against a chrome background. nameplate with model designation.

This magnificent Ferrari berlinette genie can definitely be called the "mother" of an epochal turning point in the history of Maranello road cars, both in terms of moving the engine behind the driver and in terms of changing the V-shape configuration. cylinders (never remanufactured, however, after this mighty Ferrari went out of production). It was certainly one of the Ferraris that guaranteed emotions that only a few could afford. To see the 512 BB today, alongside perhaps the most beloved Lamborghini in the history of Sant'Agata, is a privilege that I have been able to afford only through my work as a photographer and journalist.

There is no doubt that Miura even today is an unconventional car, while despite its exceptional hardness and sharpness of lines, the 512 BB takes a more classic and refined path. The Miura has race car charm, and you can also tell that by the nearly ten centimeters that separate it in height from the more "comfortable" BB. But if they asked me point-blank to choose at least one of them, I would not be able to decide and would answer like this: “These are two masterpieces, unique in terms of design and sports mechanics. cars, can I take them both? “