Alfa Romeo P3
Encyclopedia
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| Category | Grand Prix Grand Prix motor racing Grand Prix motor racing has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as far back as 1894. It quickly evolved from a simple road race from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and driver... 750 kg |
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| Constructor | Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo in motorsport During its history, Alfa Romeo has competed successfully in many different categories of motorsport, including Grand Prix motor racing, Formula One, sportscar racing, touring car racing and rallies. They have competed both as a constructor and an engine supplier, via works entries and private... |
| Team/s | 1932 - Alfa Corse Alfa Corse Alfa Corse is the name of Alfa Romeo's factory racing team. Throughout the years, Alfa Corse has competed in various forms of motorsport, from Grand Prix motor racing to touring car racing.... 1933/1935 - Scuderia Ferrari Scuderia Ferrari Scuderia Ferrari is the racing team division of the Ferrari automobile marque. The team currently only races in Formula One but has competed in numerous classes of motorsport since its formation in 1929, including sportscar racing.... |
| Designer | Vittorio Jano Vittorio Jano Vittorio Jano was an Italian automobile designer of Hungarian descent from the 1920s through 1960s.Jano was born Viktor János in San Giorgio Canavese, in Piedmont, to Hungarian immigrants, who arrived there several years before the birth of Jano. He began his career at the car and truck company... |
| Drivers | 1932 + Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari was an Italian motorcycle and racecar driver, known as Il Mantovano Volante or Nivola. He was the 1932 European Champion in Grand Prix motor racing... , Rudolf Caracciola Rudolf Caracciola Otto Wilhelm Rudolf Caracciola , more commonly Rudolf Caracciola , was a racing driver from Remagen, Germany. He won the European Drivers' Championship, the pre-1950 equivalent of the modern Formula One World Championship, an unsurpassed three times... , Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari was an Italian opera singer and Grand Prix motor racing driver.-Racing career:Born Giuseppe Campari near the city of Lodi southwest of Milan, as a teenager he went to work for the Alfa Romeo automobile company... , Baconin Borzacchini Baconin Borzacchini Baconin Borzacchini was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver often referred to as Mario Umberto Borzacchini.-Biography:... 1933 + Louis Chiron Louis Chiron Louis Alexandre Chiron was a Grand Prix driver.-Career:As a teenager, Louis Chiron fell in love with cars and racing. He learned to drive at a young age and joined the Grand Prix circuit after World War I where he had been requisitioned from the artillery section to serve as a chauffeur... , Luigi Fagioli Luigi Fagioli Luigi Fagioli , nicknamed "the Abruzzi robber", was an Italian motor racing driver.-Career:Born in the small city of Osimo, Ancona Province in the Marche region of central Italy, as a boy Luigi Fagioli was fascinated by the relatively new invention of the automobile and the ensuing racing... , 1934 + Guy Moll Guy Moll Guillaume Laurent "Guy" Moll was a French racing driver.Moll was the son of a French father and Spanish mother who had emigrated to Algeria, then a French colony. He had only started racing in 1930, running a Lorraine-Dietrich in sporadic local events in Algeria... , Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... , Brian E. Lewis, Carlo Felice Trossi Carlo Felice Trossi Count Carlo Felice Trossi was an Italian racecar driver and auto constructor. During his career, he raced for two teams, Mercedes-Benz and Alfa Romeo. He won the 1947 Italian Grand Prix and the 1948 Swiss Grand Prix... , Gianfranco Comotti 1935 + Raymond Sommer Raymond Sommer Raymond Sommer was a Grand Prix motor racing driver.... , Comte George de Montbressieux, Richard Shuttleworth Shuttleworth Collection The Shuttleworth Collection is an aeronautical and automotive museum located at the Old Warden airfield in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of the most prestigious in the world due to the variety of old and well-preserved aircraft.- History :... , René Dreyfus René Dreyfus René Dreyfus was a French driver who raced automobiles for 14 years in the 1920s and 1930s, the Golden Era of Grand Prix motor racing.-Early life:... , Vittorio Belmondo, Mario Tadini, Antonio Brivio Antonio Brivio Antonio Brivio was an Italian bobsledder and racing driver.-Auto racing career:... , Guido Barbieri, Pietro Ghersi Pietro Ghersi Pietro Ghersi was an Italian motorcycle racer and, since 1927, also a racecar driver from Genoa.With his brother Mario Ghersi and Luigi Arcangeli he biked in the 1926 Isle of Man TT and 1930 Isle of Man TT in Moto Guzzi.... , Renato Balestrero Renato Balestrero Renato Balestrero was an Italian racecar driver from Genoa, winning 54 out of 217 races between 1922 to 1947.Born in Lucca, he lived in Genoa and was active in the first world war.... , 1936 + "Charlie" Martin, Comte José María de Villapadierna, Giovanni Battaglia, Clemente Biondetti Clemente Biondetti Clemente Biondetti was an Italian auto racing driver.-Biography:Born in Buddusò, Sardinia, into a working class family, Biondetti began racing motorcycles in 1923 but in 1927 turned to automobiles... , Austin Dobson Austin Dobson Austin Dobson was an auto driver from England.Brother of auto racer Arthur Charles, he participated at first edition, in 1936, of the Hungarian Grand Prix with Alfa Romeo.... |
| Chassis | channel section side members |
| Suspension (front) | Semi elliptic leaf springs, friction dampers 1935 independent Dubonnett system with trailing links |
| Suspension (rear) | Semi elliptic leaf springs, friction dampers 1935 reversed quarter elliptic leaf springs |
| Engine | Front mounted, Alfa Romeo, Straight-8 Straight-8 The straight-eight engine or inline-eight engine is an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine with all eight cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase... (two straight 4 blocks), Twin Roots Roots type supercharger The Roots type supercharger or Roots blower is a positive displacement lobe pump which operates by pumping fluids with a pair of meshing lobes not unlike a set of stretched gears. Fluid is trapped in pockets surrounding the lobes and carried from the intake side to the exhaust... Superchargers 1932 - 2654 cc, 1934 - 2905 cc, 1935 - 3165 cc, bored out for German Grand Prix |
| Gearbox | Alfa Romeo 4 speed manual Manual transmission A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications... c.1934 Alfa Romeo 3 speed manual |
| Wheelbase | 104 in (2,642 mm) |
| Track | Front 55 in (1,397 mm), Rear 53 in (1,346 mm) |
| Dry Weight | 1,545 lb (700 kg) |
| Fuel | |
| Tyres | 1932 - Dunlop Dunlop Tyres Dunlop Tyres is a British company owned 75% by Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and 25% by Sumitomo Rubber Industries, which bought the right to sell Dunlop-branded road tyres.... 1933/35 - Englebert Englebert (tyre manufacturer) Englebert was a Belgian tyre manufacturing company founded by Oscar Englebert at Liège in 1877.-History:In 1898 Oscar Englebert, who till then had worked with rubberised coatings and mats, set up a tyre factory in Belgium, manufacturing pneumatic tyres for bicycles and automobiles, and by 1912 the... |
| Debut | 1932 Italian Grand Prix Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix is one of the longest running events on the motor racing calendar. The first Italian Grand Prix motor racing championship took place on 4 September 1921 at Brescia... , Tazio Nuvolari, 1st |
| Races competed | |
| Constructors' Championships | Not applicable before 1958 |
| Drivers' Championships | Not applicable before 1950 |
| Race victories | 46 1932 Italian Grand Prix Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix is one of the longest running events on the motor racing calendar. The first Italian Grand Prix motor racing championship took place on 4 September 1921 at Brescia... , Tazio Nuvolari 1932 French Grand Prix French Grand Prix The French Grand Prix was a race held as part of Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One automobile racing championships.... , Tazio Nuvolari 1932 German Grand Prix German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix is an annual automobile race.Because Germany was banned from taking part in international events after World War II, the German GP only became part of the Formula One World Championship in 1951... , Rudolf Caracciola 1932 Coppa Ciano Coppa Ciano The Coppa Ciano was an automobile race held in Italy. Originally referred to as Coppa Montenero or Circuito Montenero, the Coppa Ciano name being used between 1927 and 1939.... , Tazio Nuvolari 1932 Coppa Acerbo Coppa Acerbo The Coppa Acerbo was an automobile race held in Italy, named after Tito Acerbo, the brother of Giacomo Acerbo, a prominent fascist politician. Following Italy's defeat in World War II, and the consequent demise of fascism, the race was renamed the Circuito di Pescara, and in some years was also... , Tazio Nuvolari 1932 Monza Grand Prix Monza Grand Prix The Monza Grand Prix was an automobile race held at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza at Monza, Italy.Following the terrible accident during the 1928 Italian Grand Prix, where Emilio Materassi and 27 spectators lost their lives, the Italian Grand Prix was cancelled in 1929 and 1930... , Rudolf Caracciola 1933 Coppa Acerbo Coppa Acerbo The Coppa Acerbo was an automobile race held in Italy, named after Tito Acerbo, the brother of Giacomo Acerbo, a prominent fascist politician. Following Italy's defeat in World War II, and the consequent demise of fascism, the race was renamed the Circuito di Pescara, and in some years was also... Luigi Fagioli, 1933 Grand Prix du Comminges Grand Prix du Comminges The Grand Prix du Comminges was an automobile race held in France.The race was named after the Comminges, one of the former Provinces of France in ancient Gascony in what is now the Haute-Garonne department of the Midi-Pyrénées region of France... Luigi Fagioli 1933 Marseille Grand Prix Louis Chiron, 1933 Italian Grand Prix Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix is one of the longest running events on the motor racing calendar. The first Italian Grand Prix motor racing championship took place on 4 September 1921 at Brescia... Luigi Fagioli 1933 Masaryk Circuit Masaryk Circuit The Masaryk circuit or Masarykring, now referred to as the Brno Circuit, refers two Czech racing circuits located close to the city of Brno.The original circuit was made up of public roads, and at its longest measured nearly... Louis Chiron 1933 Spanish Grand Prix Spanish Grand Prix The Spanish Grand Prix is a Formula One race currently held at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain, as part of the annual Formula One championship season.-History:... Louis Chiron 1934 Monaco Grand Prix Monaco Grand Prix The Monaco Grand Prix is a Formula One race held each year on the Circuit de Monaco. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the world, alongside the Daytona 500, Indianapolis 500, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans... , Guy Moll Guy Moll Guillaume Laurent "Guy" Moll was a French racing driver.Moll was the son of a French father and Spanish mother who had emigrated to Algeria, then a French colony. He had only started racing in 1930, running a Lorraine-Dietrich in sporadic local events in Algeria... , 1934 Alessandria Grand Prix Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... , 1934 Tripoli Grand Prix Tripoli Grand Prix The Tripoli Grand Prix was a motor racing event first held in 1925 on a racing circuit outside Tripoli, the capital of what was then Italian Tripolitania... Achille Varzi, 1934 Casablanca Grand Prix Moroccan Grand Prix The Moroccan Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor racing event begun in 1925 in Casablanca, Morocco with the official denomination of "Casablanca Grand Prix".... , Louis Chiron, 1934 Targa Florio Targa Florio The Targa Florio was an open road endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near Palermo. Founded in 1906, it was the oldest sports car racing event, part of the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1973... , Achille Varzi, 1934 Internationale Avus Rennen AVUS The Automobil-Verkehrs- und Übungs-Straße, better known as AVUS, is a public road that was also used as a motor racing circuit. It is located in the south-western districts of Berlin, Germany, between Charlottenburg and Nikolassee, and is nowadays an important part of the public highway system, as... , Guy Moll, 1934 Mannin Moar, Hon. Brian Lewis 1934 Montreux Grand Prix, Comte Trossi 1934 Penya Rhin GP, Achille Varzi, 1934 Grand Prix de France French Grand Prix The French Grand Prix was a race held as part of Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One automobile racing championships.... , Louis Chiron, 1934 Grand Prix de la Marne Grand Prix de la Marne The Grand Prix de la Marne was a Grand Prix motor racing event staged at the Reims-Gueux racecourse, near the city of Reims in the Marne département of north-east France. First held in 1925, it proved to be one of the fastest road races in Europe... , Louis Chiron 1934 GP de Vichy, Comte Carlo Trossi, 1934 German Grand Prix German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix is an annual automobile race.Because Germany was banned from taking part in international events after World War II, the German GP only became part of the Formula One World Championship in 1951... Tazio Nuvolari 1934 Coppa Ciano Coppa Ciano The Coppa Ciano was an automobile race held in Italy. Originally referred to as Coppa Montenero or Circuito Montenero, the Coppa Ciano name being used between 1927 and 1939.... , Achille Varzi, 1934 Grand Prix de Nice, Achille Varzi, 1934 GP du Comminge Grand Prix du Comminges The Grand Prix du Comminges was an automobile race held in France.The race was named after the Comminges, one of the former Provinces of France in ancient Gascony in what is now the Haute-Garonne department of the Midi-Pyrénées region of France... , Gianfranco Comotti, 1934 Circuito di Biella, Comte Trossi, 1935 Grand Prix du Pau, Tazio Nuvolari 1935 Bergamo Circuit, Tazio Nuvolari 1935 GP de France French Grand Prix The French Grand Prix was a race held as part of Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One automobile racing championships.... , Raymond Sommer 1935 Biella Circuit, Tazio Nuvolari 1935 Lorraine GP, Louis Chiron 1935 Marne GP Grand Prix de la Marne The Grand Prix de la Marne was a Grand Prix motor racing event staged at the Reims-Gueux racecourse, near the city of Reims in the Marne département of north-east France. First held in 1925, it proved to be one of the fastest road races in Europe... , René Dreyfus 1935 Dieppe GP, René Dreyfus 1935 Varese Circuit, Vittorio Belmondo 1935 German GP, Tazio Nuvolari 1935 GP du Comminges Grand Prix du Comminges The Grand Prix du Comminges was an automobile race held in France.The race was named after the Comminges, one of the former Provinces of France in ancient Gascony in what is now the Haute-Garonne department of the Midi-Pyrénées region of France... , Raymond Sommer 1935 Coppa Ciano Coppa Ciano The Coppa Ciano was an automobile race held in Italy. Originally referred to as Coppa Montenero or Circuito Montenero, the Coppa Ciano name being used between 1927 and 1939.... , Tazio Nuvolari 1935 Nice GP, Tazio Nuvolari 1935 Coppa Edda Ciano Coppa Ciano The Coppa Ciano was an automobile race held in Italy. Originally referred to as Coppa Montenero or Circuito Montenero, the Coppa Ciano name being used between 1927 and 1939.... , Mario Tadini 1935 Donington GP Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship... , Richard Shuttleworth 1935 Coppa della Sila, Antonio Brivio 1935 Brooklands Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue, as well as one of Britain's first airfields... Mountain Championship, Richard Shuttleworth |
| Last season | 1935 |
The Alfa Romeo P3, P3 monoposto or Tipo B was a classic Grand Prix car designed by Vittorio Jano
Vittorio Jano
Vittorio Jano was an Italian automobile designer of Hungarian descent from the 1920s through 1960s.Jano was born Viktor János in San Giorgio Canavese, in Piedmont, to Hungarian immigrants, who arrived there several years before the birth of Jano. He began his career at the car and truck company...
, one of the Alfa Romeo 8C
Alfa Romeo 8C
-1935 Monoposto 8C 35 Type C:Eight 3.8 litre versions, sharing no castings with the earlier blocks, were individually built for racing in five months, most being used in the Alfa Romeo Monoposto 8C 35 Type C, as raced by Scuderia Ferrari. The 3.8 produced at 5500 rpm, and had from...
models. The P3 was first genuine single-seat Grand Prix racing car and Alfa Romeo's second monoposto
Open wheel car
Open-wheel car, formula car, or often single-seater car in British English, describes cars with the wheels outside the car's main body and, in most cases, one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or fenders...
after Tipo A monoposto (1931). It was based on the earlier successful Alfa Romeo P2
Alfa Romeo P2
The Alfa Romeo P2 won the inaugural Automobile World Championship in 1925, taking victory in two of the four championship rounds when Antonio Ascari drove it in the European Grand Prix at Spa and Gastone Brilli-Peri won the Italian Grand Prix at Monza after Ascari died while leading the intervening...
. Taking lessons learned from that car, Jano went back to the drawing board to design a car that could last longer race distances. The P3 was the first genuine single seater racing car, and was powered by a supercharged eight cylinder engine. The car was very light for the period, weighing just over 1,500 lb (680 kg) despite using a cast iron engine block.
The P3 was introduced in June, halfway through the 1932 Grand Prix season
1932 Grand Prix season
The 1932 Grand Prix season was the second AIACR European Championship season. The championship was won by Tazio Nuvolari, driving for the Alfa Corse team. Nuvolari won two of the three events that counted towards the championship...
in Europe, winning its first race at the hands of Tazio Nuvolari
Tazio Nuvolari
Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari was an Italian motorcycle and racecar driver, known as Il Mantovano Volante or Nivola. He was the 1932 European Champion in Grand Prix motor racing...
, and going on to win 6 races that year driven by both Nuvolari and Rudolf Caracciola
Rudolf Caracciola
Otto Wilhelm Rudolf Caracciola , more commonly Rudolf Caracciola , was a racing driver from Remagen, Germany. He won the European Drivers' Championship, the pre-1950 equivalent of the modern Formula One World Championship, an unsurpassed three times...
, including all 3 major Grands Prix in Italy, France and Germany.
The 1933 Grand Prix season
1933 Grand Prix season
The 1933 Grand Prix season was the first year of a two-year hiatus for the European Championship. Tazio Nuvolari proved to be the most successful driver, winning seven Grands Prix. Alfa Romeo's cars proved difficult to beat, winning 19 of the season's 36 Grands Prix.-Grandes Épreuves:-Other Grands...
brought financial difficulties to Alfa Corse so the cars were simply locked away and Alfa attempted to rest on their laurels. Enzo Ferrari had to run his breakaway 'works' Alfa team as Scuderia Ferrari, using the older, less effective Alfa Monzas. Alfa prevaricated until August and missed the first 25 events, and only after much wrangling was the P3 finally handed over to Scuderia Ferrari
Scuderia Ferrari
Scuderia Ferrari is the racing team division of the Ferrari automobile marque. The team currently only races in Formula One but has competed in numerous classes of motorsport since its formation in 1929, including sportscar racing....
. P3s then won six of the final 11 events of the season including the final 2 major Grands Prix in Italy and Spain.
The regulations for the 1934 Grand Prix season
1934 Grand Prix season
The 1934 Grand Prix season was the final year of a two-year hiatus for the European Championship. Achille Varzi proved to be the most successful driver, winning six Grands Prix. Alfa Romeo's cars proved difficult to beat, winning 18 of the season's 35 Grands Prix.-Grandes Épreuves:-Other Grands...
brought larger bodywork requirements, so to counteract this the engine was bored out to 2.9 litres. Louis Chiron won the French Grand Prix at Montlhery, whilst the German Silver Arrows
Silver Arrows
Silver Arrows was the name given by the press to Germany's dominant Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union Grand Prix motor racing cars between 1934 and 1939, and also later applied to the Mercedes-Benz Formula One and sports cars in 1954/55.For decades until the introduction of sponsorship liveries, each...
dominated the other four rounds of the European Championship. However the P3s won 18 of all the 35 Grands Prix held throughout Europe.
1935 Grand Prix season
The 1935 Grand Prix season was the third AIACR European Championship season. The championship was won by Rudolf Caracciola, driving for the Mercedes-Benz team.-Teams:-Works teams:-Independent teams:-Private entries:...
the P3 was hopelessly uncompetitive against the superior German cars in 6 rounds of the European Championship, but that didn't stop one final, legendary works victory. The P3 was bored out to 3.2 litres for Nuvolari for the 1935 German Grand Prix
1935 German Grand Prix
The 1935 German Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at the Nürburgring on July 28, 1935.- Race :- Starting grid positions :-Notes:*Ernst von Delius destroyed his car during practice, so shared Mays' car in the race....
at the Nürburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
, in the heartland of the Mercedes
Mercedes-Benz in motorsport
Throughout its long history, Mercedes-Benz has been involved in a range of motorsport activities, including sportscar racing and rallying, and is currently active in Formula Three, DTM and Formula One.-Early history:...
and Auto-Union empire. In the race, Nuvolari punctured a tyre early on while leading, but after the pitstop he carved through the field until the last lap when Manfred von Brauchitsch
Manfred von Brauchitsch
Manfred Georg Rudolf von Brauchitsch was a German auto racing driver who drove for Mercedes-Benz in the famous "Silver Arrows" of Grand Prix motor racing in the 1930s....
, driving the far superior Mercedes Benz W25 suffered a puncture, leaving Nuvolari to win the race in front of 300,000 stunned Germans.
The P3's agility and versatility enabled it to win 16 of the 39 Grands Prix in 1935. The P3 had earned its place as a truly great racing car.