Ferrari 125 S: the first car to wear the Ferrari name

The Ferrari 125 S is the car with which Enzo Ferrari’s company began: a 1.5-litre sports racer built in Modena in 1947, of which only two examples were made. It was the first vehicle to carry the Ferrari name, and it won Ferrari’s first race two weeks after its debut.

Ferrari 125 S at a glance

based on one source (English Wikipedia).

History of the Ferrari 125 S

Enzo Ferrari had built racing cars before, under the Auto Avio Costruzioni name, but the 815 of 1940 was a different proposition: it used Fiat-derived engine components. The 125 S, by contrast, was built around an engine designed and made by Ferrari itself, the 1.5-litre V12 drawn up by Gioacchino Colombo. That engine, known simply as the “125”, set the pattern for most Ferrari road and racing cars of the following two decades.

Chassis and engine

The car used a steel tube-frame chassis with double wishbone suspension and transverse leaf springs at the front, a live axle at the rear, and hydraulic drum brakes all round. The 60° V12 had a single overhead camshaft per bank, two valves per cylinder and three double-choke Weber 30DCF carburettors; with a compression ratio of 9.5:1 it produced 118 bhp at 6,800 rpm. A five-speed gearbox was chosen instead of the usual four-speed because it exploited the high-revving engine’s power curve better.

Racing record

The 125 S made its debut at the Circuito di Piacenza on 11 May 1947 with Franco Cortese at the wheel. It failed to finish, though it had shown well against the Maserati 6CS 1500s. Two weeks later, at the Grand Prix of Rome on the Terme di Caracalla circuit and again driven by Cortese, it gave Ferrari its first victory — after spinning a bearing in practice and being repaired in the workshop of Tino Martinoli. The 125 S won six of the fourteen races it entered in 1947, although Clemente Biondetti and Giuseppe Navone could not win the Mille Miglia with it. Later that year it was replaced by the 159 S.

Surviving cars and the 010I question

One of the two 125 S examples is kept in the “Vault”, the lowest level of the Petersen Automotive Museum in California. The other has a complicated history: the chassis stamped 010I, still in 166 Spyder Corsa form, is widely believed to be the car originally numbered 01C, re-stamped and sold as new — the buyer is said to have exclaimed “muletto!” (test mule) on seeing it. Ferrari issued a new invoice with a rebate. The car later passed through Symbolic Motors, was refitted with a body similar to the factory replica built by Michelotto in 1987, and appeared at Pebble Beach entered as a Ferrari 125 S. Historians still argue about it; recent findings suggest the re-stamping was a correction rather than an alteration.

Design and features

• First Ferrari engine: the 1.5-litre Colombo V12 was designed and built in-house, unlike the Fiat-based unit of the earlier Auto Avio Costruzioni 815.
• Five-speed gearbox: unusual at the time, chosen to keep the high-revving V12 in its power band.
• Light tube frame: a steel chassis with double wishbones and a live rear axle, shared in concept with the later 166.
• Instant success: Ferrari’s first win came in only the car’s second race, and it took six victories in 1947.

Ferrari 125 S versions

• 125 S (1947): the original 1.5-litre car, two built.
• 159 S (1947): the enlarged successor that replaced the 125 S in the same year.
• 166 S and 166 MM (1948–1953): the two-litre evolution of the same line, which made Ferrari a serious competitor.
• Michelotto replica (1987): a factory-built replica whose body was later copied for the disputed chassis 010I.

The 125 S led directly to the Ferrari 166 S and, through it, to the whole 250 series. More Ferrari history is in the Ferrari collection.

Video: 1947 Ferrari 125S revving at the 2012 Cavallino, Breakers

Video by ftldrdl on YouTube.

Sources

• Ferrari 125 S, English Wikipedia: engine, chassis, racing record, surviving cars