American Ferraris Once Powered by Chevrolet V8s

Today, the idea of a Chevrolet V8 powered a Ferrari seems a bit impossible. Back in the 1950s, when Ferrari racing was just starting to take off in the United States, some of those cars ended up with Chevrolet V8s in them.

If you were racing a Ferrari back in the day, and something failed on that engine, you’d have difficult time finding replacement parts. So racing teams and drivers were forced to improvise. One V8 was available pretty much everywhere, and it came from Chevrolet. Then the Chevrolet-powered Ferrari was born.

The Chevy V8 was just as easy to find then as it is today, and they were historically quite reliable. If something were to break, finding replacement parts was easy. Less specialized training means people could focus on what’s important; winning the race.

Hemmings Daily has a nice piece on their website detailing some of the various cars that were powered by Chevy V8s, and ultimately how much they eventually sold for at auction. Despite not having an Italian heart, these cars are still worthwhile and collector’s items, bringing in big cash.

Some would probably say a Chevy-powered Ferrari is a bit sacrilegious, but we think it’s pretty cool. Let us know what you think in the forums!

via [Hemmings Daily]

photos via [Hemmings Daily]