ISO bizzarrini AC/3

For the automotive aesthete, 1965’s 24 Hours of Le Mans was a near-unrivalled visual, acoustic and sensory feast. True, sports car enduro events from any year of the ’60s were hardly short on eye candy, but ’65 with its grid of striking primary colours over sleek, exotic bodywork was something extraordinary.

Lining up at a hot and sunny La Sarthe that year were six Ford GT40S (not one of which finished), five Ferrari 250 LMS, five AC Cobra Daytona Coupes and seven Porsche 904s with a mix of flat four-, six- or eightcylinder powerplants. Ferrari’s armada was strengthened by racing 275s, 330s and 365s, while smaller-capacity classes were flush with curvaceousness including Alpine A110s, Austin-healey Sebring Sprites and Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ2S.

Even the drivers looked good: minimal sponsorship on simple race suits and fresh, handsome faces including Jochen Rindt, Bruce Mclaren, Pedro Rodriguez, Jackie Stewart, Peter Revson and a chainsmoking, bespectacled, and ultimately victorious Masten Gregory. On the podium, the American’s two-finger salute alongside co-driver Rindt – both sporting boyish grins – highlighted what a surprise victory it was.

There was a surprise further down the finishing order too. Back in ninth place, and first in the 5000cc+ Prototype class was the Bizzarrini Automobili-entered Iso Grifo A3C, the very car seen here. The fact its only other class competition were the expired 7.0-litre GT40S can be glossed over: a Le Mans class winner is still a Le Mans class winner.

That Le Mans history is a key reason California’s Bruce Meyer – car enthusiast par excellence and founding chairman of the incomparable Petersen Auto Museum in Los Angeles – bought this bright red Italian racer. History shows its creator, Giotto Bizzarrini, personally drove it from its birthplace of Livorno on Italy’s Tuscan coast to the ’65 Le Mans race, and after 303 laps of day-night competition, promptly drove it home again. Properly usable race cars. That’s of huge appeal to Bruce, and why he says he regularly drives it on his local roads, and occasionally stretches its legs at the track.

‘Its design is extraordinary, but its race record completes the package,’ its owner said. ‘It walked the walk. Le Mans is the most important race in the world. It’s the World Cup, Olympic Games and Super Bowl of motorsport. Knowing this car finished in the top 10 and won its category outright makes the drive experience all the more meaningful.’

LEFT:

The Bizzarrini is still sporting its original Italian registration plate.

HAD BIZZARRINI STAYED AT FERRARI THIS IS WHAT THE NEXT GENERATION GTO WOULD HAVE LOOKED LIKE

Bruce is one of those car guys whose enthusiasm and genuine joy of sharing such cars make him instantly relatable, it’s just his toys are worth several million apiece. Like most of us he loves a car story, and his Bizzarrini isn’t short on those. ‘Its rarity and Le Mans history moved me to action (to buy it),’ he said. ‘For me it’s all about the story, and the Ferrari “Palace Revolt” and winning Le Mans meant I had to have it.’ So, the Bizzarrini story. Giotto Bizzarrini (with a name like that, you’re not going to create ugly cars) is well into his 90s today, and is one of few survivors from Ferrari’s glorious design and engineering days of the 1950s and 60s. A legendary ingegnere and test driver, Bizzarrini was Ferrari’s chief engineer after being head-hunted from Alfa Romeo. His engine, chassis and aerodynamic work drove success for the 250 Tour de France and the 250GT SWB amongst others, but he’ll be forever remembered as father of the 1962-64 250 GTO – now, as we know, among the most revered and valuable machines ever created.

Ferrari’s 1961 ‘Palace Revolt’ Bruce speaks of can be boiled down to good old fashioned Italian hot-headedness, politics and pride.

Be it Enzo’s wife Laura’s meddling, the letter from staff demanding her removal, poor pay or the Old Man’s stubbornness for compromise – probably a combination of all – a lot of engineering talent was shown the door, race engineer Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini included.

For all the 250 GTO’S brilliance it was a conservative effort – a leaf sprung rear and engine designed in the 1940s – whereas Bizzarrini was hungry for innovation. Now away from Ferrari he helped found the ultimately unsuccessful ATS F1 team, engineered the one-off Ferrari 250 GT SWB Breadvan for Count Volpi to challenge Ferrari’s 250 GTO (Enzo wouldn’t sell him one), and in just four months designed Lamborghini’s V12 engine – first used in 1964’s 350GT – and whose basic design was used in every V12 Lambo until 2010. Quite the resume.

In 1962 Bizzarrini was hired by Renzo Rivolta to work for Italian firm Iso – famed for the Isetta bubble car – to produce performance GT cars. Bizzarrini had by then had his first taste of a Chevy V8 engine, was smitten, and used the 5.3-litre (mated to Chevy’s four-speed gearbox) to power what became the Iso Rivolta. Itching

LEFT:

Utterly Italian in every detail: how about these gorgeous wheels!

to get back racing, by 1963 another model, the Iso Grifo, was born. Bizzarrini had insisted on a ‘Corsa’ or competition version – the A3C to go with the A3L super coupe road car.

Long story short, the Bizzarrini-rivolta relationship failed to last more than a few years, race results were patchy, but the Iso Bizzarrini AC3 Competition with Bruce today is arguably the most original product of the relationship, and unquestionably the most successful.

‘I think of the A3C as my 1965 250 GTO,’ Bruce explained. ‘Had Bizzarrini stayed at Ferrari this is what the next generation GTO would look like. The A3C was seriously advanced for 1965. Mid-front engine, slab sides for aero, in-board rear brakes and an uber-low profile. Like no other design of its day.’

Under the AC3’S aluminium bonnet its Chevy 327 – basically a fettled Corvette engine – lacks the exotic beauty and intimidation of a Maranello or Sant’agata V12, but the exposed quartet of 45 DCOE Webers and how the motor sits so far back in the engine bay is ample to feast upon. Besides, an Italian V12 can be as delicious at it likes, but most of us would have greater confidence returning from a Californian canyon drive sans dramas using a Chevy V8. Parts? Rebuilds? Tractability through town? Go USA.

An Iso AC3 Competition without Le Mans history sold earlier this year for Us$1.2million at a Mecum auction, so you can forgive Bruce saying he ‘doesn’t really drive it ten-tenths.’ But he doesn’t cottonwool it either. ‘It’s frisky with all the power and sound to excite; it’s always entertaining and creates excitement wherever it lights. I’ve done track days, Pebble Beach and tours and every trip is memorable.’

Back at Le Mans in ’65 things were a dash more balls-out when it was driven to ninth place by Frenchmen Jean de Mortmart and Regis Fraissinet. Bruce says the car was going just shy of 190mph on the Mulsanne straight – only the 7.0-litre GT40S were faster. The Chevy V8’s performance was aided by Bizzarrini’s quest for cuttingedge aerodynamics (hence the slab sides) and the body’s lightweight aluminium and fibreglass construction. Then there was the De Dion independent rear suspension – Ferrari still used cart springs on its 250 GTO remember – in-board brakes and eschewing the normal wire wheels for more solid – and stunning – Campagnolo cast rims.

HOW MANY OTHER RACERS THAT TOOK THE LE MANS START LINE IN ’65 STILL CIRCULATE A PUBLIC ROAD SOMEWHERE?

LEFT: Centrally mounted tacho not ideal for the Mulsanne straight, but aesthetically this is a beautiful interior. Note elegant thin-rimmed wooden wheel, a pure 1960s touch!

The body is as original, including its handpainted no.3 racing numbers and yellow dot on its flanks signifying it ran as a Prototype at Le Mans. Its survivor status was helped as after its 24-Hour success it saw minimal on-track action. It competed in World Sports Car events at Nürburgring and Reims, was piloted by Le Mans winners Chris Amon and Maurice Trintignant, and then went into retirement as personal and promotional transport for Italian-based American actor Remington Olmsted at his Rome café.

A three-decade stint in a museum followed to preserve its originality, before classic and race car dealer Gregor Fisken purchased it and had GTO Engineering re-commission it for racing. Its next owner died in a car accident, leading Bruce to buy it from his estate and bring the Italian with the American heart to California. ‘Its sound rivals that of a GTO,’ he said, and certainly the muscular burble turning to powerpacked roar as it loads up to the redline delivers enough aural pleasure to match the characteristically 1960s Italian body. ‘In its day it probably had 400hp, but there’s around 500hp today. The top end is where it’s at; it cries for more at the top end.’ Noise and performance aside, this Bizzarrini strikes you dumb just with its looks. Bruce has said ‘you don’t win Le Mans by looking pretty,’ but his A3C damn near could have done. So low-slung, so gloriously curved from head to toe. Period racing elements – the enclosed round headlights, the low-mount front fog lamps, swept-up rear end and, fittingly, retaining its impossibly stylish Italian registration plate. Vents for the in-board brakes plus the fuel-filler entry are flush in the lightweight rear screen: race car elements from a different age that must shock and awe those in their bore-box SUVS cruising the same LA streets as this Italian legend.

How many other racers that took the Le Mans start line in ’65 still circulate a public road somewhere? Values of anything that raced in this supremely stylish era are off the charts, so we can be grateful this Bizzarrini has ended up in Bruce’s enthusiast hands, eschewing trailer-queen life to be driven and enjoyed. Mr Bizzarrini, who 56 years ago crossed the Alps in this very car to make the Le Mans start line, would be very proud.

‘YOU DON’T WIN LE MANS BY LOOKING PRETTY’

LEFT: Note how far back engine sits in interests of weight distribution, now makes about 500 horsepower.