Ferrari 512 BB LeMans - Hood

The Ferrari 512 BB Le Mans hood is an original, one-off front bonnet from the Ferrari 512 BB LM raced by Luigi Chinetti's North American Racing Team (NART) at the 1978 24 Hours of Le Mans. A single, race-scarred piece of Ferrari endurance history.

The Story

Luigi Chinetti Sr. was the American who won Le Mans three times and then imported Ferrari into the United States, founding NART in 1958. Two decades later, in 1978, the team returned to the Circuit de la Sarthe with the works-supported Ferrari 512 BB LM, the endurance racing evolution of the 512 BB road car. Only a handful of these cars were ever built to compete against the Porsche 935s and Group 5 machinery that dominated the era. This hood came off one of those Le Mans campaign cars.

Materials

The bonnet is moulded from fiberglass, the material Ferrari used to trim weight from the endurance version of the 512 BB. It has been preserved in its as-raced original condition: the original livery paint, the wear from bugs and stones at Mulsanne straight speeds, the mounting points shaped for quick pit access. Acquired at auction in France, it comes with the provenance that only a single-race, single-team hood from a NART Ferrari can carry.

Specifications

• Car: Ferrari 512 BB LM
• Team: North American Racing Team (NART), Luigi Chinetti
• Race: 1978 24 Hours of Le Mans
• Part: Complete front hood / bonnet
• Material: Fiberglass
• Condition: Original, as-raced
• Provenance: Acquired at auction, France

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