1920 Ballot 3/8 LC Grand Prix & Indianapolis car

1920 Ballot 3/8 LC Indianapolis and Grand Prix Car, Retromobile 2017

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Ballot engine in a sister car.

Ballot, Paris, France.  Having built car engines pre WW1 and aero engines during WW1, Edouard Ballot decided to produce cars after the war and to publicise them through racing.  He employed the great Peugeot engineer Ernest Henri to design the Ballot cars and engines.  The first cars competed in the 1919 Indy 500 and proved to be fast but hit troubles during the race.   For the 1920 Indianapolis 500, Ernest Henri designed a car for the new 3 litre regulations.  This car was the Ballot 3/8 LC.  It has a classic Henri engine, a straight eight with four valves per cylinder and a twin overhead camshaft.   The car was a two seater as this was the era of riding mechanics and had a streamlined body with spare wheel in the tail.  Another modern feature was the servo assisted brakes, both front and rear.  It was the fastest racing car of its era and could reach over 110mph.  The car was also reliable.   In the 1920 Indianapolis 500, all three cars finished with the best one in second place and another having led most of the race.   In the 1921 French GP the best they could do was again a second place behind the winning Duesenberg.  Victory did, however, come in the 1921 Italian GP against the Fiats.  Drivers included Ralph De Palma, Jules Goux and René Thomas.  When they were sold by the works team, Malcolm Campbell drove one at Brooklands.   The car pictured above is the ex-Malcolm Campbell car.  It also was the car that won the Italian GP in the hands of Jules Goux and had finished third in the 1922 Indy 500.  A superb car!

1954 Mercedes-Benz W196

Petersen Automotive Museum, Los Angeles, 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 Grand prix car.

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Mercedes-Benz, Stuttgart, Germany.  This streamliner F1 car won the 1954 Italian Grand Prix in the hands of Juan-Manuel Fangio.  It had a top speed of about 186 mph.   15 W196 were built to contest the F1 World Championship in 1954 and 1955.  Fangio was champion in both years.