In the 1950s, car racing was nowhere near what it has become today. The majority of the cars on road circuits were more about how good the driver was and how well the car was tuned. This meant that the majority of the cars were lightweight and only had between 200 and 250 horsepower. Having said that, there always has to be some sort of exception and the exception here is the 1953 Ferrari 375 MM Spider and RM Auctions has one set to go to auction on May 12th, 2012.

The Ferrari->ke252 375 MM Spider managed to completely dominate the World Sports Car Championship between 1954 and 1957, winning a total of 11 races and having seven more podium appearances (top 3 or 4 places). It also won two national championships in Argentina in 1954 and 1955.

In 1957, the car was retired following a crash. Post-retirement someone managed to get a hold of this storied racer, pulled out the Italian V-12 and dropped in a U.S.-built V-8 engine, which really seems pointless to us. After the V-8 muscle went into it, this once famed roadster just disappeared from automotive history.

In 1983, this American-powered Ferrari resurfaced and made its way back to home. In Italy, Count Zanon di Valsiurata repaired the image of this car by reinstalling its Italian power plant and restoring it to an acceptable condition.

How does this one-time powerhouse of the WSC and 1 of 15 Pininfarina examples ever built stand up to 2012 standards?

Click past the jump to find out.

1953 Ferrari 375 MM Spider by Pininfarina

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 1953 Ferrari 375 MM Spider by Pininfarina
  • Engine/Motor: V12
  • Horsepower: 340
  • Transmission: Four-speed manual
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior

Enzo Ferrari knew he had something special as the 375 MM Spider was becoming a reality, but lacked just one thing. This one thing was a body to match up with its impressive mechanical capabilities. Knowing that he needed a knockout, Mr. Ferrari sublet the designing phase to famed car designer and builder Carrozzeria Pininfarina, more appropriately his company, Pininfarina.

Pininfarina did not disappoint, as if that was a surprise. The famed designer and builder turned out a car for the ages, featuring sexy, yet functional, curves all over the place.

Starting up front, you have the obligatory 1950s Ferrari rounded headlights with clear covers to help increase it aerodynamics. The grille is a standard, yet rather large, rectangle to allow loads of airflow into the engine compartment. The nose features a sleek downward slope to help nudge the airflow up and over the rest of the car.

The front fenders are a thing of beauty. Not only do they seem to go on forever, but they also feature a sleek rounded top that allows air to just slip right over them. Add in the fact that they almost contrast the hood with their shape and you have one of the prettiest faces, short of Danica, to ever grace the world of racing.

On its derrière, it features equally stunning fenders, just slightly shorter and more pronounced than the front. In the center of what would be the trunk lid on most cars is an oddly placed bump and on the rearmost part of this bump is the metal fuel door. We don’t know exactly what this bump is for, but we can assume it is either there to make additional room for the fuel cell or simply there to make the backend look good.

The taillights are simple rounded assemblies, as to not interfere with the overall sleekness of the car. Under the rear of this beautiful Ferrari is a set of dual exhaust pipes that are simple and not overly designed, just the way we like it.

The entire body of this 375 MM Spider has been painted three times, per documentation. The first was the initial color, which we are uncertain of. The second painting was following a crash in 1954. At this time, it was repainted in a red basecoat with a black hood and a white nose. The final paint job occurred when the vehicle was rediscovered and restored by Count Vittorio Zanon di Valgiurata between 1984 and 1986. This color scheme features a red basecoat with the entire center of the car – hood and trunk areas – being black.

On each corner of this aging legend, you get a 16 inch x 5-1/2 inch wire wheel with two-ear center spinners.

The condition of the car is pretty good, overall. There are several flaws that we picked out. The biggest and most difficult flaw to fix are the worn out Ferrari emblems. These are tough to come by and often times require a premium to purchase. If you can find a reputable trim guy, he might be able to restore them. The second flaw is that either the paint has cracked or the patchwork is cracking just above the left taillight. A third flaw is that there is some paint chipping on the front end. A fourth flaw is that the rims are starting to flake, so they will need to be recoated. The final flaw is that some of the chrome is oxidized.

Overall, for a car running around with a 26-year-old restoration job, it doesn’t look bad. None of the flaws are major nor would they require a ton of money to repair.

Interior

The inside is what you would expect of a racecar. You get two seats, donning tan leather, a wood and chrome steering wheel, a very basic gear shifter, and five gauges. These gauges include: speedometer, tachometer, oil pressure, water temperature, and fuel. In the center of the dashboard, you get a rearview mirror, which is something of a luxury for a `50s racer.

A cool feature is that it appears that there is a removable, body-colored cover for the passenger’s side seat. This is to help reduce aerodynamic drag when there is no co-driver, of course.

Engine and Drivetrain

The engine is what really made the Ferrari 375 MM Spider by Pininfarina a feared competitor in the WSC. This roadster features a 4,522 cc (4.5-liter) V-12 engine that pumps out a massive 340 horsepower, which is a good 100 horsepower more than your average WSC racer in the `50s. This engine achieved this feat with three Weber 40 mm 1F/4C carburetors feeding it fuel. Though we don’t know exactly what type of exhaust system this car features, we can say that it sounds awesome. You can see for yourself in the above video.

All that we know about the transmission is that it is a four-speed, which is a little depressing, but pretty much standard across the board in the 1950s.

All of this adds up to an impressive o to 100 mph time of just 11.5 seconds. What’s more impressive is the fact that even with just four speeds, this Ferrari can hit a top speed of 180 mph. We are willing to bet that was pretty unbearable, given the fact that the V-12 engine would be screaming and you’d have a face full of 180 mph winds, thanks to its puny windscreen.

Suspension and Braking

There is very little to offer up about the suspension system on this Ferrari. What we do know is that the front end features a rather modern double wishbone design independent suspension with coil springs. The rear end has the traditional live axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs and trailing arms.

Wrapped around the flaking wire wheels are a set of 6.50/16 Englebert Competition P tires by Michelin and 6.00/16 of the same tires on the front. If you are seriously considering buying this car, we suggest picking up some new rubber, like now. These front and rear tires have the date code 2500 and 0200, respectively. To the untrained eye this means nothing, but to a tire expert this means these tires were built in the year 2000. Yeah, 12-year-old tires, regardless of how they appear, are never safe to drive on.

The brakes are pretty basic in today’s automotive world, but were top of the line in the 1950s. This Ferrari features four-wheel drum brakes that are hydraulic powered. There is no mention of them being power-assisted brakes, but that’s pretty doubtful.

Pricing

Well, we were all giddy up until this point. The estimated €3,300,000 ($4,277,128) to €4,100,000 ($5,314,007) absolutely killed this one for us. Really, $5 million for a car that needs a second restoration job to put it back into top condition. Phew, that’s a buzz killer right there.

Competition

The only competition that comes to our mind when thinking about it is the 1957 Ferrari 625 TRC Spider.

The 625 TRC is relatively close to the 375 MM Spider by Pininfarina in power output, as its 2,953 cc V-12 puts down 320 ponies. The overall appearance of the 625 blows away the 375, not in beauty, but in condition. The 375 MM will require several thousands of dollars in restoration, whereas the 625 TRC is a turnkey deal.

To boot, the 625 TRC is rarer than the 375 MM, as there were only two examples ever built, but the 625 does not have a famed car builder, like Carrozzeria Pinin Farina behind it. Lastly, according to estimates, the 625 TRC will come in about $400,000 cheaper than the 375 MM. The kicker here is that these cars are both going up for auction on May 12th in Monaco!

Conclusion

Don’t get us wrong here, we love this 375 MM, but we honestly think that for our money the 625 TRC is the best bet, especially since they are getting sold at the same exact auction. Neither car will likely fetch what the estimates say, but they will be close.

However, if you really have to have this 375 MM, we cannot fault you, as it is an awesome car. Just be prepared to throw down some extra cash to restore it.