{"id":405944,"date":"2022-01-14T16:23:15","date_gmt":"2022-01-14T16:23:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.supercars.net\/blog\/?p=405944"},"modified":"2024-12-02T00:02:52","modified_gmt":"2024-12-02T00:02:52","slug":"book-review-ferrari-75-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.supercars.net\/blog\/book-review-ferrari-75-years\/","title":{"rendered":"[Book Review] Ferrari: 75 Years by Dennis Adler"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s Note: <\/b>In Dennis Adler\u2019s new book, Ferrari: 75 Years<\/i>, he tells the story of nearly a century of motorsports history from the perspective of one of the industry\u2019s most famous automakers. Martin Raffauf reviewed this exhaustive and thorough chronicle below, providing a summary of key points and a closer look at some of the iconic cars it features.<\/p>\n

75 Years of Ferrari History Summarized<\/h2>\n

Ferrari<\/a> is an iconic company\u2014one of the most recognized brand names in the world. It was started in 1947 by Enzo Ferrari<\/a> when he built the first car with the Ferrari name on it. He had spent the pre-war (World War II) years racing Alfa Romeos<\/a> and preparing cars for various people under the banner of Scuderia Ferrari<\/a>, his racing team. Post war, he decided to form his own organization.<\/p>\n

Upon his return to Modena after World War 2, Ferrari explained his decision to start his own firm:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy Return to Modena [\u2026] represented [\u2026] an attempt to prove to myself and others that, during the twenty years I was with Alfa Romeo, not all my reputation was second-hand and gained by the efforts of others. The time had come for me to see how far I could get by my own efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the beginning, he focused mainly on racing\u2014only building road cars for sale to generate revenue for racing. Eventually, he would prove the axiom, \u201cwin on Sunday, sell on Monday.\u201d<\/p>\n

The racing successes generated increased demand for road cars. Over the years, much of it just could not be met by the limited production facilities available. Even today, reported large deposits still generate long lead times to actually get a Ferrari car.<\/p>\n

\"Black<\/a>
Enzo Ferrari in the 1920s raced Alfa Romeos with some success, then formed a team to race Alfas for customers. The team was Scuderia Ferrari.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Enzo<\/a>
Enzo Ferrari supervising V12 engine assembly in the 1950s.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Enzo was a smart and cagey businessman. Over the years, he hired the best people he could, including the likes of Carlo Chiti, Vittorio Jano, Mauro Forghieri, Gioachino Colombo and others.<\/p>\n

It was the same when hiring drivers. Throughout the years, many champions have driven Ferrari cars, including Alberto Ascari, Juan Manuel Fangio, Mike Hawthorn, Phil Hill, Dan Gurney, John Surtees, Jacky Ickx, Mario Andretti, Niki Lauda, Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, and Sebastian Vettel.<\/p>\n

\"Black<\/a>
Luigi Villoresi wins the 1951 Mille Miglia in a Ferrari 340 America. The Mille was a 1000-mile open road race through Italy. It was banned in 1957 after a bad accident killed spectators.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The history was, at times, turbulent. During the 1950s, racing produced quite a number of fatalities at the track via accidents. Enzo reportedly told drivers, \u201cwin or die, you will become immortal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ferrari was a master at getting the most out of his people. Many drivers and employees did in fact become immortal in the 75-year history of the company.<\/p>\n

In the 1960s, monetary issues forced Enzo to look into the potential sale of Ferrari. There was the famous interlude with Ford in the 1960\u2019s, made famous by the recent film, \u201cFord vs Ferrari<\/a>\u201d. 1969 saw a partial sale of 50% of the company to Fiat<\/a>. Fiat in later years, increased their stake to 90%.<\/p>\n

Ferrari\u2019s early racing success was complimented by a succession of stunning road cars:<\/p>\n