Ferrari 125 F1

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Ferrari 125 F1
Overview
Manufacturer	Ferrari
Also called	Ferrari 125 GPC
Production	1948–1950
Designer	Gioacchino Colombo, Valerio Colotti
Body and chassis
Class	Formula One car
Powertrain
Engine	1.5 L Colombo s/c V12
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,160 mm (85.0 in) 2,320 mm (91.3 in)
Length	3,685 mm (145.1 in)
Width	1,400 mm (55.1 in)
Height	1,025 mm (40.4 in)
Curb weight	710 kg (1,565.3 lb)
Chronology
Successor	Ferrari 275 F1

See also the 125 S, a sports racer sharing the same engine

The 125 F1 was Ferrari's first Formula One car. It shared its engine with the 125 S sports racer which preceded it by a year, but was developed at the same time by Enzo Ferrari, Valerio Colotti and designer, Gioacchino Colombo. Initially the racer was called 125 GPC for Gran Premio Città or Grand Prix Compressore before the Formula One era.^[1][2]

Mechanical details[]

The 125 F1 used a supercharged 1.5-litre V12 engine and sported a steel tube-frame chassis with longitudinal and cross members.^[1] It had a double wishbone suspension with a transverse leaf spring in front and a torsion bar in the rear which was upgraded to a de Dion tube for 1950. Worm and sector steering and four-wheel drum brakes were the norm for the time. The 2,160 mm (85 in) wheelbase was uprated to 2,320 mm (91 in) in the 1949 redesign. The chassis and transmission design was by Valerio Colotti.

The 125 F1 was powered by Colombo's 1.5-litre (1497 cc/91 in³) V12. It had a single overhead camshaft on each bank of cylinders with a 60° angle between the two banks. The engine had two valves per cylinder fed through one Weber 40DOC3 or 50WCF carburettor. With just a 6.5:1 compression ratio, the supercharged engine still produced 230 PS (169 kW; 227 hp) at 7000 rpm.^[3] However, the Roots-type single-stage supercharger was incapable of producing the high-end power required to compete with the strong eight-cylinder Alfa Romeo 158 and four-cylinder Maserati 4CLT. Strong driving and a nimble chassis, however, allowed the company to place third in its first outing, at the on September 5, 1948 and the company persevered in racing.

For 1949, the engine was further modified with dual overhead camshafts (though still two valves per cylinder) and a two-stage supercharger. This combination gave the car better top-end performance and the resulting 260–280 PS (191–206 kW; 256–276 hp) gave it five Grand Prix wins.^[4] Development continued the following year, but the problematic superchargers were dropped in favor of larger displacement and Lampredi's 275 engine superseded the original Colombo engine.

The original chassis have been lost (used for Ferrari 275 F1), but an exact replica with the original Colombo engine currently resides in Museo Ferrari in Maranello alongside newer Ferrari F1 machines.

• 

  An early 125 F1 engine

• 

  Museo Ferrari

Racing[]

The 125 F1 debuted at the Valentino Grand Prix on September 5, 1948. Three cars were fielded, with drivers Prince Bira of Siam, Nino Farina, and Raymond Sommer who placed third in the race.

Complete Formula One World Championship results[]

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position, results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Engine	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1950	Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12	D		GBR	MON	500	SUI	BEL	FRA	ITA
			Peter Whitehead		DNS				3	7
		P	Luigi Villoresi		Ret		Ret	6
			Alberto Ascari		2		Ret
			Raymond Sommer		4
1951	Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12	D		SUI	500	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	ITA	ESP
			Peter Whitehead	Ret			Ret
		P								Ret
1952	Ferrari 166 F2 2.0 V12	D		SUI	500	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	NED	ITA
			Peter Whitehead					10			DNQ
Source:[5]

Post-WWII Grandes Épreuves results[]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Engine	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5
1948	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12		MON	SUI	FRA	ITA	GBR
			Raymond Sommer				3	DNA
			B. Bira				NC
			Giuseppe Farina				Ret	DNA
1949	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 125 F1 1.5 V12		GBR	BEL	SUI	FRA	ITA
			Alberto Ascari		3	1	WD	1
			Luigi Villoresi		2	2	Ret	Ret
			Felice Bonetto					Ret
			Raymond Sommer					5
				8*
			Peter Whitehead	8*		9
	private				4		3	Ret

* Indicates shared drive with Dorino Serafini

References[]

• Acerbi, Leonardo (2012). Ferrari: All The Cars. Haynes Publishing. ISBN 978 1 84425 581 8.