Alfa Romeo P2
Encyclopedia
| 1924 P2 |
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| Category | Grand Prix Grand Prix motor racing Grand Prix motor racing has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as far back as 1894. It quickly evolved from a simple road race from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and driver... |
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| Constructor | Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo in motorsport During its history, Alfa Romeo has competed successfully in many different categories of motorsport, including Grand Prix motor racing, Formula One, sportscar racing, touring car racing and rallies. They have competed both as a constructor and an engine supplier, via works entries and private... |
| Team/s | Alfa Corse Alfa Corse Alfa Corse is the name of Alfa Romeo's factory racing team. Throughout the years, Alfa Corse has competed in various forms of motorsport, from Grand Prix motor racing to touring car racing.... |
| Designer | Vittorio Jano Vittorio Jano Vittorio Jano was an Italian automobile designer of Hungarian descent from the 1920s through 1960s.Jano was born Viktor János in San Giorgio Canavese, in Piedmont, to Hungarian immigrants, who arrived there several years before the birth of Jano. He began his career at the car and truck company... |
| Drivers | 1924 + Antonio Ascari Antonio Ascari Antonio Ascari was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing champion.Antonio Ascari was born near Mantua, in the Lombardy region of Italy, as the son of a corn dealer. He began racing cars at the top levels in Italy in 1919, using a modified 1914 Fiat... , Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari was an Italian opera singer and Grand Prix motor racing driver.-Racing career:Born Giuseppe Campari near the city of Lodi southwest of Milan, as a teenager he went to work for the Alfa Romeo automobile company... , Louis Wagner Louis Wagner Louis Wagner was a French race car driver who won the first ever United States and British Grands Prix. Wagner was also a pioneer aviator.Wagner was born in Le Pré-Saint-Gervais, Seine-Saint-Denis... , Ferdinando Minoia Ferdinando Minoia Ferdinando "Nando" Minoia was an Italian racing driver with an exceptionally long, distinguished and varied career. In 1907, he won the Coppa Florio driving an Isotta-Fraschini. In 1923, he drove the world’s first mid-engine Grand Prix car, the Benz Tropfenwagen. In 1927, he won the inaugural... , Gastone Brilli-Peri Gastone Brilli-Peri Count Gastone Brilli-Peri was a famous Italian racing driver, who won the 1925 Italian Grand Prix in an Alfa Romeo P2, securing the inaugural World Manufacturers' Championship title for Alfa Romeo. Known simply as “Brilli,” his face had been permanently scarred in an accident during a Tour of... |
| Chassis | |
| Suspension (front) | Rigid Axle, semi-elliptic leaf springs, friction shocks |
| Suspension (rear) | Live axle, semi-elliptic leaf springs, friction shocks |
| Engine | Front mounted, Alfa Romeo, Straight-8 Straight-8 The straight-eight engine or inline-eight engine is an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine with all eight cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase... (two straight 4 blocks), Twin Roots Roots type supercharger The Roots type supercharger or Roots blower is a positive displacement lobe pump which operates by pumping fluids with a pair of meshing lobes not unlike a set of stretched gears. Fluid is trapped in pockets surrounding the lobes and carried from the intake side to the exhaust... Superchargers 2 Memini carburettors, 1,987 cc, 140 bhp (104 kW) @ 5500 rpm (1924) 155 bhp (115 kW) @ 5500 rpm (1925) |
| Gearbox | Alfa Romeo 4 speed manual Manual transmission A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications... |
| Wheelbase | 103.5 inches (2623 mm) |
| Track | Front 51.2 inches (1300 mm), Rear 47.2 inches (1198 mm) |
| Dry weight | 614 kg (1,353.6 lb) |
| Fuel | |
| Tyres | |
| Debut | 1924 Cremona Circuit, Antonio Ascari, 1st |
| Races competed | |
| Constructors' Championships | 1925 Automobile World Championship |
| Drivers' Championships | Not applicable before 1950 |
| Race victories | 15 |
| Last season | 1930 |
The Alfa Romeo P2 won the inaugural Automobile World Championship in 1925, taking victory in two of the four championship rounds when Antonio Ascari
Antonio Ascari
Antonio Ascari was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing champion.Antonio Ascari was born near Mantua, in the Lombardy region of Italy, as the son of a corn dealer. He began racing cars at the top levels in Italy in 1919, using a modified 1914 Fiat...
drove it in the European Grand Prix
European Grand Prix
The European Grand Prix is a Formula One event that was reintroduced during the mid-1980s and has been held regularly since 1999. From 2008 it will take place for at least another 7 years...
at Spa
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is the venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix and the Spa 24 Hours endurance race. It is also home to the all Volkswagen club event, 25 Hours of Spa, run by the Uniroyal Fun Cup. It is one of the most challenging race tracks in the world, mainly due to its...
and Gastone Brilli-Peri
Gastone Brilli-Peri
Count Gastone Brilli-Peri was a famous Italian racing driver, who won the 1925 Italian Grand Prix in an Alfa Romeo P2, securing the inaugural World Manufacturers' Championship title for Alfa Romeo. Known simply as “Brilli,” his face had been permanently scarred in an accident during a Tour of...
won the Italian Grand Prix
Italian Grand Prix
The Italian Grand Prix is one of the longest running events on the motor racing calendar. The first Italian Grand Prix motor racing championship took place on 4 September 1921 at Brescia...
at Monza
Monza
Monza is a city and comune on the river Lambro, a tributary of the Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy some 15 km north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the Province of Monza and Brianza. It is best known for its Grand Prix motor racing circuit, the Autodromo Nazionale Monza.On June...
after Ascari died while leading the intervening race at Montlhery
Montlhéry
Montlhéry is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France. It is located from Paris.Inhabitants of Montlhéry are known as Montlhériens.-History:...
.
Although 1925 brought drastic changes of regulations, from 1924-1930 the P2 was victorious in 14 Grands Prix and major events including the Targa Florio. It was one of the iconic Grand Prix cars of the 1920s, along with the Bugatti Type 35
Bugatti Type 35
The Type 35 was the most successful of the Bugatti racing models. Its version of the Bugatti arch-shaped radiator that had evolved from the more architectural one of the Bugatti Type 13 Brescia, was to become the one that the marque is most known for though even in the ranks of the various Type 35s...
, and enabled Alfa Romeo, as world champions, to incorporate the laurel wreath
Laurel wreath
A laurel wreath is a circular wreath made of interlocking branches and leaves of the bay laurel , an aromatic broadleaf evergreen. In Greek mythology, Apollo is represented wearing a laurel wreath on his head...
into their logo.
The P2 was introduced by Alfa Romeo for the Circuit of Cremona in northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 1924, where Antonio Ascari won at over 158 km/h (98.2 mph), and then went on to win the speed trial at 195 km/h (121.2 mph). The car was the first creation of Alfa’s new designer Vittorio Jano
Vittorio Jano
Vittorio Jano was an Italian automobile designer of Hungarian descent from the 1920s through 1960s.Jano was born Viktor János in San Giorgio Canavese, in Piedmont, to Hungarian immigrants, who arrived there several years before the birth of Jano. He began his career at the car and truck company...
who had been recruited from Fiat by Enzo Ferrari
Enzo Ferrari
Enzo Anselmo Ferrari Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian race car driver and entrepreneur, the founder of the Scuderia Ferrari Grand Prix motor racing team, and subsequently of the Ferrari car manufacturer...
when Nicola Romeo scrapped the P1
Alfa Romeo P1
Alfa Romeo Tipo P1 was the first Grand Prix car made by Alfa Romeo in 1923. The car had a 2.0 L straight-6 engine and it produced at 5000 rpms. Two cars were entered in the Italian GP at Monza in 1923, one for Antonio Ascari and one for Ugo Sivocci. When Sivocci was practicing for the GP in...
after its poor performance in the 1923 Monza Grand Prix against Fiat
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
. The P2 was powered by Alfa’s first straight-8
Straight-8
The straight-eight engine or inline-eight engine is an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine with all eight cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase...
cylinder supercharged engine with 2 carburettors placed after the compressor.
Only 2 of the 6 original models survive, and they can be seen in the Alfa Romeo Museum
Alfa Romeo Museum
Alfa Romeo History Museum , which opened on December 18, 1976, is located in Arese, Milan, Italy. The museum is located in the now unused Alfa Romeo Arese factory area, which stopped manufacturing of cars in 2003 and engines in 2005, with the museum, left is only Alfa Romeo style centre.The whole...
in Arese
Arese
Arese is a comune in the Province of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northwest of Milan. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 19,333 and an area of ....
and the Turin Automobile Museum. The P2 had two body styles using either a cut off or long rear.
One of the P2s was featured on the main sculpture at the 2010 Goodwood Festival of Speed
Goodwood Festival of Speed
The Goodwood Festival of Speed, commonly abbreviated as FoS and referred within the United Kingdom as simply the Festival of Speed, is an annual hill climb featuring historic motor racing vehicles that is held in the grounds of Goodwood House, West Sussex, England.Typically held in late June or...
.
Major victories
| Year | Race | Driver | Report |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 1924 Grand Prix season The 1924 Grand Prix season again saw Grand Prix motor racing in Europe and North America. The Indianapolis 500 was again designated a Grand Épreuve by the International Sporting Commission of the AIACR, along with the French Grand Prix, held in Lyon and the Italian Grand Prix at Monza. The French... |
Cremona Grand Prix |  Antonio AscariAntonio Ascari Antonio Ascari was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing champion.Antonio Ascari was born near Mantua, in the Lombardy region of Italy, as the son of a corn dealer. He began racing cars at the top levels in Italy in 1919, using a modified 1914 Fiat... |
Report |
| French Grand Prix French Grand Prix The French Grand Prix was a race held as part of Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One automobile racing championships.... |
Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari was an Italian opera singer and Grand Prix motor racing driver.-Racing career:Born Giuseppe Campari near the city of Lodi southwest of Milan, as a teenager he went to work for the Alfa Romeo automobile company... |
Report 1924 French Grand Prix The 1924 French Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Lyon on August 3, 1924.- Classification :-References:... |
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| Italian Grand Prix Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix is one of the longest running events on the motor racing calendar. The first Italian Grand Prix motor racing championship took place on 4 September 1921 at Brescia... |
Antonio Ascari Antonio Ascari Antonio Ascari was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing champion.Antonio Ascari was born near Mantua, in the Lombardy region of Italy, as the son of a corn dealer. He began racing cars at the top levels in Italy in 1919, using a modified 1914 Fiat... |
Report | |
| 1925 1925 Grand Prix season The 1925 Grand Prix season was the first AIACR World Manufacturers' Championship season. The championship was won by Alfa Romeo, utilising the P2 model.-World Championship Grands Prix:-Other Grands Prix:-Championship Final Standings:... |
Belgian Grand Prix Belgian Grand Prix The Belgian Grand Prix is an automobile race, part of the Formula One World Championship.... |
 Antonio AscariAntonio Ascari Antonio Ascari was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing champion.Antonio Ascari was born near Mantua, in the Lombardy region of Italy, as the son of a corn dealer. He began racing cars at the top levels in Italy in 1919, using a modified 1914 Fiat... |
Report 1925 Belgian Grand Prix The 1925 Belgian Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Spa-Francorchamps on June 28, 1925.-Entries:-Race:- Starting Grid Positions :-Notes:... |
| Italian Grand Prix Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix is one of the longest running events on the motor racing calendar. The first Italian Grand Prix motor racing championship took place on 4 September 1921 at Brescia... |
Gastone Brilli-Peri Gastone Brilli-Peri Count Gastone Brilli-Peri was a famous Italian racing driver, who won the 1925 Italian Grand Prix in an Alfa Romeo P2, securing the inaugural World Manufacturers' Championship title for Alfa Romeo. Known simply as “Brilli,” his face had been permanently scarred in an accident during a Tour of... |
Report | |
| 1927 1927 Grand Prix season The 1927 Grand Prix season was the third AIACR World Manufacturers' Championship season. The championship was won by Delage.-World Championship Grands Prix:-Other Grands Prix:-Championship Final Standings:... |
Coppa Acerbo Coppa Acerbo The Coppa Acerbo was an automobile race held in Italy, named after Tito Acerbo, the brother of Giacomo Acerbo, a prominent fascist politician. Following Italy's defeat in World War II, and the consequent demise of fascism, the race was renamed the Circuito di Pescara, and in some years was also... |
Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari was an Italian opera singer and Grand Prix motor racing driver.-Racing career:Born Giuseppe Campari near the city of Lodi southwest of Milan, as a teenager he went to work for the Alfa Romeo automobile company... |
Report |
| 1928 1928 Grand Prix season The 1928 Grand Prix season saw the Monegasque driver Louis Chiron take seven Grand Prix victories whilst driving for the Bugatti team.During the 1928 Italian Grand Prix in Monza a serious accident involved the car of Emilio Materassi: his Talbot crashed at 200 km/h into the grandstand, killing... |
Coppa Acerbo Coppa Acerbo The Coppa Acerbo was an automobile race held in Italy, named after Tito Acerbo, the brother of Giacomo Acerbo, a prominent fascist politician. Following Italy's defeat in World War II, and the consequent demise of fascism, the race was renamed the Circuito di Pescara, and in some years was also... |
Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari was an Italian opera singer and Grand Prix motor racing driver.-Racing career:Born Giuseppe Campari near the city of Lodi southwest of Milan, as a teenager he went to work for the Alfa Romeo automobile company... |
Report |
| 1929 1929 Grand Prix season The 1929 Grand Prix season was dominated by Italian constructors. Both Alfa Romeo and Bugatti won races, with "W Williams" and Louis Chiron being the dominant drivers.-Grandes Épreuves:-Other Grands Prix:... |
Alessandria Grand Prix | Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... |
Report |
| Rome Grand Prix Rome Grand Prix The Rome Grand Prix was an automobile race held in Rome, Italy from 1925 until 1991.... |
Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... |
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| Coppa Montenero | Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... |
Report | |
| Monza Grand Prix Monza Grand Prix The Monza Grand Prix was an automobile race held at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza at Monza, Italy.Following the terrible accident during the 1928 Italian Grand Prix, where Emilio Materassi and 27 spectators lost their lives, the Italian Grand Prix was cancelled in 1929 and 1930... |
Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... |
Report | |
| Cremona Grand Prix | Gastone Brilli-Peri Gastone Brilli-Peri Count Gastone Brilli-Peri was a famous Italian racing driver, who won the 1925 Italian Grand Prix in an Alfa Romeo P2, securing the inaugural World Manufacturers' Championship title for Alfa Romeo. Known simply as “Brilli,” his face had been permanently scarred in an accident during a Tour of... |
Report | |
| Tunis Grand Prix | Gastone Brilli-Peri Gastone Brilli-Peri Count Gastone Brilli-Peri was a famous Italian racing driver, who won the 1925 Italian Grand Prix in an Alfa Romeo P2, securing the inaugural World Manufacturers' Championship title for Alfa Romeo. Known simply as “Brilli,” his face had been permanently scarred in an accident during a Tour of... |
Report | |
| 1930 1930 Grand Prix season The 1930 Grand Prix season was dominated by the Italian constructors Bugatti and Maserati. All six finishers at the Monaco Grand Prix were driving Bugattis. Achille Varzi won two races driving a Maserati.-Grandes Épreuves:-Other Grands Prix:... |
Alessandria Grand Prix | Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... |
Report |
| Targa Florio Targa Florio The Targa Florio was an open road endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near Palermo. Founded in 1906, it was the oldest sports car racing event, part of the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1973... |
Achille Varzi Achille Varzi Achille Varzi , was an Italian Grand Prix driver.-Career:Born in Galliate, province of Novara , Achille Varzi was the son of a prosperous textile manufacturer... |
Report |