While Porsche is synonymous to its air-cooled horizontally opposed flat-6, GM to its small block V8, and BMW to its inline-6, Ferrari's definitive powerplant has got to be the Colombo V12.
The roots of Colombo started with the 1947 Ferrari 125S, then a humble 1.5 liter V12 producing 118 horsepower. When the 125S won its first race in Rome '47, history was written and the engine would become the heart of Ferraris all the way until 1963 in the Ferrari 330 America. However, even after Aurelio Lampredi had replaced Gioacchino Colombo as engine designer, the Lampredi V12 was not a revolution, but an evolution to the original Colombo.
It truly is incredible how everything from the 1956 Ferrari Testa Rossa, 250GT California, 250GTO, 365 GTB/4 Daytona to the 512BB are motivated by Colombo's spirit within. Check out eGarage's awesome clip and have a listen as Colombo's classic 60° V12 contributions accelerate away, headed for Laguna Seca's Parc fermé.
Have a great weekend!
Thanks for this post. The video is great, with the accelerating sounds of the classic V12. Very interesting how Colombo's design roots are still incorporated.
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