The P538 or P538S was a rear mid-engined

RR layout

In automotive design, a RR, or Rear-engine, Rear-wheel drive layout places both the engine and drive wheels at the rear of the vehicle. In contrast to the RMR layout, the center of mass of the engine is between the rear axle and the rear bumper....

 race car launched in late 1965 or early 1966 by Scuderia Bizzarrini of Livorno, Italy. At least two P538s were built with Chevrolet Corvette

Chevrolet Corvette

The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car by the Chevrolet division of General Motors that has been produced in six generations. The first model, a convertible, was designed by Harley Earl and introduced at the GM Motorama in 1953 as a concept show car. Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after...

 327-cu.in. V-8s, and two more with 4.0- and 3.5-liter Lamborghini

Lamborghini

Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., commonly referred to as Lamborghini , is an Italian car manufacturer. The company was founded by manufacturing magnate Ferruccio Lamborghini in 1963, with the objective of producing a refined grand touring car to compete with established offerings from marques like...

 V12

V12 engine

A V12 engine is a V engine with 12 cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of six cylinders, usually but not always at a 60° angle to each other, with all 12 pistons driving a common crankshaft....

 engines. Five-speed manual transaxle

Transaxle

In the automotive field, a transaxle is a major mechanical component that combines the functionality of the transmission, the differential, and associated components of the driven axle into one integrated assembly....

s were used, with gearing specific to the race for which each car was constructed. Braking was via inboard four wheel disc brake

Disc brake

The disc brake or disk brake is a device for slowing or stopping the rotation of a wheel while it is in motion.A brake disc is usually made of cast iron, but may in some cases be made of composites such as reinforced carbon–carbon or ceramic matrix composites. This is connected to the wheel and/or...

s, with a fully independent suspension

Independent suspension

Independent suspension is a broad term for any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel on the same axle to move vertically independently of each other. This is contrasted with a beam axle, live axle or deDion axle system in which the wheels are linked – movement on one side affects...

. The body was made of fiberglass

Fiberglass

Glass fiber is a material consisting of numerous extremely fine fibers of glass.Glassmakers throughout history have experimented with glass fibers, but mass manufacture of glass fiber was only made possible with the invention of finer machine tooling...

 over a tubular steel chassis.

The first V-8 powered car debuted at Le Mans

Le Mans

Le Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...

 in 1966, with Swiss drivers Edgar Berney and Andre Wicky

André Wicky

André Wicky is a Swiss former racing driver, active from the late 1950s to the late 1970s. He was mainly involved in sports car racing, as an entrant and team owner as well as a driver, but also took part in several non-championship Formula One races during the 1960s.Wicky entered the 24 Hours of...

, but records indicate that the team retired after three hours with a cooling problem. A second team in a production-based Bizzarrini A3/C, driven by Sam Posey

Sam Posey

Sam Posey is a retired American racecar driver and sports broadcast journalist.-Driving career:...

 and Massimo Natili

Massimo Natili

Massimo Natili is a former racing driver from Italy. He participated in 2 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on July 15, 1961. He scored no championship points....

, was disqualified after a pit lane violation, possibly while returning with serious frame damage.

American Ferrari driver Mike Gammino then commissioned a Lamborghini 4.0-liter V-12 powered car, which he raced once. Bizzarrini attempted to build a second, 3.5-liter V-12 car for Le Mans, but was unable to complete it before bankruptcy.

Continuation P538s

Beginning in the mid-1970s and continuing at least through the 1990s, former Bizzarrini engineer Salvatore Diomante

Salvatore Diomante

Salvatore Diomante is an automobile engineer and restorer, best known as Bizzarrini's factory manager in the 1960s.Diomante resides in Nichelino, Italy and operates Autocostruzioni S.D., where he keeps parts, special tools and original moulds from Bizzarrini P538s and Bizzarrini 5300s...

 at Autocostruzione SD, Torino, began building continuation P538s on commission for private buyers. These may be distinguished from 1960s-built cars by the use of square as opposed to round tubing. The first two cars of this series using square-tube construction bear serial numbers #002 and #003; 3.5-liter V-12 Van Horneff car also uses serial #002 (see below), and was last known to be located in England. Engines vary, but include Chevrolet V-8s, Lamborghini V-12s and possibly a six-cylinder Fiat. He constructed an unknown number, using original fiberglass body molds, probably fewer than 8. Giotto Bizzarrini and his wife likely assisted in construction of the early cars, and they were built using some original Sixties Bizzarrini components as available.

The surviving P538s

Even Bizzarrini’s “production” A3/C and 5300 GT road cars are often obscure in origin; today, neither Bizzarrini nor Gammino are entirely clear on what happened more than 40 years ago. However, both agree that there has been no correct accounting of the P538s. There are definitely two surviving V-8 and two V-12 cars; there may be as many as four more V-8 cars.

Chevrolet V-8 powered cars:

Bizzarrini used the first P538 built for development work in the beginning of 1966, and it probably crashed that winter. The car that appeared at Le Mans four months later may have been this car; it may have been a second car; or more likely, it reused any and all salvageable parts of the original car, whatever those were.

In 1967, Bizzarrini rebodied at least one V-8 as a coupe and sold it to the Duke of Aosta

Duke of Aosta

In the mid-13th century the Hohenstaufen Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II made the County of Aosta a duchy; its arms were carried in the Savoyard coat-of-arms until the unification of Italy in 1870. The region remained part of Savoy lands, with the exception of a French occupation, 1539—1563...

 (it is known as the Duca d’Aosta coupe). Some sources suggest this was a third V-8 car, possibly constructed as a second 1967 Le Mans entry. Another, possibly the 1966 Le Mans car, was also rebodied; it ended up in the hands of Giugiaro at ItalDesign; he rebodied it a third time (at least) as his Manta show car. Both the Duca d’Aosta and ItalDesign cars have remained in those configurations, and are the only V-8s that can be reliably confirmed as Bizzarrinis built in the 1960s.

Lamborghini V-12 powered cars:

Mike Gammino’s 4.0-liter car, often called 001 but actually un-numbered, was completed in 1965, after which he imported it into the US. He ran it once at Bridgehampton

Bridgehampton Race Circuit

Bridgehampton Race Circuit was a race track located near Sag Harbor, New York, United States. The circuit opened in 1957, following a series of road races held from 1949 until 1953...

, where “we had some problems with it.” He gave it to his mechanic Libero Gerardi, and after his death, it passed through a series of owners until it landed at the San Diego Automotive Museum

San Diego Automotive Museum

The San Diego Automotive Museum in San Diego, California is a museum that features a collection of cars and motorcycles that highlight automotive culture throughout history...

.

The other V-12 P538 uses a Lamborghini 3.5-liter engine and is stamped P538 002 on a front stabilizer. It was built for the 1967 Le Mans 24h but never completed. According to an interview with Sir Stirling Moss, the transaxle casing appears to be identical to an Alfa Romeo Tipo. Disassembled by Bizzarrini by 1970, he finished it as a commission in 1974 or 1975. It is currently owned by American Van Horneff.