Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa

Development

Enzo Ferrari demanded absolute reliability from every component, resulting in a rather conservative design: endurance was meant to take precedence over outright speed. As chief designer, Carlo Chiti provided a counterbalance through constant experimentation, and his numerous revisions kept the car competitive. Giotto Bizzarrini contributed aerodynamic improvements in 1961. The Scuderia campaigned the Testa Rossa and continually developed it further.

The engine

The foundation was the Colombo V12 from the 250 GT line, a 1953-style block with a 73 mm bore and 58.8 mm stroke. Six twin-choke Weber 38 DCN carburetors replaced the three carburetors of the 250 GT engines. The cylinder heads each had a single overhead camshaft, two valves per cylinder, and, for the first time at Ferrari, dual helical valve springs. The spark plug sat outside the V between the exhaust ports, and the connecting rods were machined from steel rather than forged. Red-painted camshaft covers gave the car its name.

Customer versions and production volume

Of the Testa Rossas built, 19 were customer versions for independent teams, succeeding the 500 TRC in that market. While they did not benefit from the continuous improvements made to the works cars, many teams upgraded them or acquired ex-works cars. Depending on the source, a total of 33 or 34 units were produced.

Summarized from the cited sources; every figure was automatically verified against the sources.