1971 Ferrari 512M Pilots: S. Posey, T. Adamowicz Team: North American Racing Team Race: 3rd overall (S3000 class) at Le Mans in 1971 pw (Eaglemoss) - ? (diecast)
Published 03/20/17
In 1968, FIA announced new rules for sports car prototype racing. Starting in 1969, engines would be limited to 5 liters. Furthermore, and just as important, only a minimum of 50 examples of the car were necessary for homologation. But subsequently, FIA revised that number and demanded a minimum of only 25 cars! Ferrari already had the 312P, with its 3 liter V12. But the possibility of using a bigger engine and the low homologation numbers were hard to pass. With that, Maranello ditched the 312P and in 1969 started to work on a brand new 5 liter prototype: the 512S. The new car had an aluminum space frame front section and a rear sub-frame to support the engine and the rear suspension. The new engine was the Tipo 261C, a V12 with 4993 cm3, 48 valves and DOHC.
The 512S was ready in January 1970, and proved to be a reliable car. Nevertheless, it was no match for Porsche’s 917, and the best result at La Sarthe was a fourth place. So for 1971 the 512S was further developed into the 512M (“Modificato“) . Basically it was slightly more powerful and lighter, with better aerodynamics. At Le Mans however, the best a 512M could do was third place.
As you can see, this 512M is a pw model. It’s from a newsstand collection from Eaglemoss called “Ferrari Collection”. Dirt cheap, but you get what you paid for. However, better options for the 512M (or 512S) are in resin and terribly expensive. Therefore, I’ll have to content myself with this one.