Although the 330 denomination previously existed, in 1964 appears the first racing prototype named Ferrari 330 P. In its presentation at the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Ferrari 330 P won a third place by drivers John Surtees and Lorenzo Bandini.
The 1964 Ferrari 330 P had a V12 engine at 60° of 4,000 cm3. The main innovation was the use of three valves per cylinder, two for intake and one for exhaust, whose ducts were almost vertical. The second major development was the replacement of Weber carburetors with an indirect injection system.
Positive results continued to arrive in 1964. The Ferrari 330 P placed second and third in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, another won the Tourist Trophy and pilots Graham Hill and Jo Bonnier drove a 330 P to victory in the 1,000 Kilometers of Paris. The points obtained by this prototype plus the Ferrari 275 ensured the leadership of the Championship for Ferrari.
In 1965 Porsche and Ford posed a major threat to Ferrari, which responded by optimizing their prototype now called Ferrari 330 P2. The renewed prototype contained its rivals at the FIA World Brand Championship and won the Prototype Championship. But the concern persisted, since in the GT category the champion was the Shelby Cobra.
For the 1966 season Ferrari continued the development of his car. The upgraded Ferrari 330 P3 featured a lighter, more rigid V12 engine delivering more power and coupled to a new five-speed ZF box. P3 was lighter thanks to adoption of fiberglass panels
The Ferrari 330 P3 debuted unsuccessfully in the 12 Hours of Sebring. He subsequently won two 1,000 Kilometres races at Monza and Spa. A number of considerable dropouts, including Le Mans, caused Ferrari to be defeated in all categories of the Championship by Ford and Porsche in 1966.
The 7,000 cm3-cylinder Ford GT 40 Mk IV looked unbeatable for reliability and performance. That's why Ferrari focused on further developing the prototype. The new 1967 Ferrari 330 P4 adopted a 3L F1 derived engine, although enlarged to 4,000 cm3. The new 450-hp 8200 rpm impeller maintained the Lucas fuel injection system.
To complement the official efforts of the team, Ferrari modified some 330 P3 and endowed them with the body of the P4. Those cars were sold to private teams to increase the chances of success. Some were named 412 P, similar to 330 P4 but distinguishable by technical details of the engine and subtle differences in the body parts.
The beginning of 1967 was very good for Ferrari, who defeated Ford in the USA. Two prototypes Ferrari 330 P4 won the 24 Hours of Daytona, completing the podium with a third Ferrari 330 P3/4. The continuous dominance in the 1,000 Kilometers in Monza with a 1-2.
Porsche won some races and then Ferrari suffered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where the 330 P4 worked very well but there was no way to catch Ford, who won the race with the Mk IV. A second place in the 6 Hours of Brands Hatch was the best Ferrari could achieve later in 1967.
Finally, thanks to the huge number of Ferrari cars put on track, the Brand Championship was won by Ferrari by two points over Porsche. Although it was clear that Ferrari had lost its superiority.
The FIA's regulatory changes set aside the Ferrari 330 P4, which were modified and sold to US teams for the “CanAm series”. The competitions would remain in the control of Porsche for a long time, until in 1972 Ferrari returned to success with the Ferrari 312 PBprototype.
© Adrián Blanco 2007 - No full or partial reproduction of text and/or images without explicit written consent of the author. —
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