The Alfa Romeo Tipo 308 or 8C-308 is a

Grand Prix racing Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition, has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as early as 1894. It quickly evolved from simple road races from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and ...

car made for the 3 litre class in 1938. Only four cars were produced, actually modified from Tipo C with the engine mounted lower into the chassis and a slimmer body. The chassis was derived from the Tipo C and the engine from the 8C 2900. The 308 was engineered by

Gioacchino Colombo Gioacchino Colombo (9 January 1903 – 24 April 1988) was an Italian automobile engine designer. Biography Born in Legnano, Colombo began work as an apprentice to Vittorio Jano at Alfa Romeo. In 1937, he designed the 158 engine for the Alfet ...

under the control of

Enzo Ferrari Enzo Anselmo Giuseppe Maria Ferrari (; ; 18 February 1898 – 14 August 1988) was an Italian racing driver and entrepreneur, the founder of Scuderia Ferrari in Grand Prix motor racing, and subsequently of the Ferrari automobile marque. Under h ...

who was then in charge of Alfa's racing team,

Alfa Corse Alfa Corse is 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. Alfa Corse was officially formed in the beginning of 1938, after th ...

. The car debuted at the

Pau Grand Prix The Pau Grand Prix () is a motor race held in Pau, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department of southwestern France. The French Grand Prix was held at Pau in 1930, leading to the annual Pau Grand Prix being inaugurated in 1933. It was not r ...

in 1938, where two cars were entered to race, one for

Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari (; 16 November 1892 – 11 August 1953) was an Italian racing driver. He first raced motorcycles and then concentrated on sports cars and Grand Prix racing. Originally of Mantua, he was nicknamed ("the Flying Mantuan") ...

and the other for

Luigi Villoresi Luigi "Gigi" Villoresi (16 May 1909 – 24 August 1997) was an Italian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Villoresi contested 34 Formula One Grands Prix across seven seasons for Italian teams Ferrari, Maserati, Lancia, and C ...

. Both drivers had to withdraw from competition, however Nuvolari had by then set a lap record. The next race was the

Tripoli Grand Prix The Tripoli Grand Prix (Italian: ''Gran Premio di Tripoli'') was a motor racing event first held in 1925 on a racing circuit outside Tripoli, the capital of what was then Italian Tripolitania, now Libya. It lasted until 1940. Background Moto ...

. The new

312 __NOTOC__ Year 312 (Roman numerals, CCCXII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus (or, less frequently, year 1065 ''Ab urbe co ...

(3-litre, 12 cylinders) and

316 __NOTOC__ Year 316 ( CCCXVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sabinus and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 1069 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 316 f ...

(3-litre, 16 cylinders) were entered, but they had engine trouble during practice and

Clemente Biondetti Clemente Biondetti (18 October 1898 – 24 February 1955) was an Italian auto racing driver. Born into a working-class family, Biondetti raced motorcycles before turning to automobiles where he had greater success. Biography Born in Buddusò, S ...

took the start at the wheel of the 308 held in reserve. He failed to finish, while

Hermann Lang Hermann Albert Lang (6 April 1909 – 19 October 1987) was a German racing driver who raced motorcycles, Grand Prix cars, and sports cars. Prewar racing Born in Cannstatt near Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, Hermann Lang had to go to wo ...

, driving a

Mercedes-Benz W154 The Mercedes-Benz W154 was a Grand Prix racing car designed by Rudolf Uhlenhaut. The W154 competed in the 1938 and 1939 Grand Prix seasons and was used by Rudolf Caracciola to win the 1938 European Championship. The W154 was created as a result ...

, was the winner. In this race,

Eugenio Siena Eugenio Siena (1 April 1905 - 15 May 1938) was an Italian racecar driver from Milan. A cousin of Giuseppe Campari, he was a mechanic and testdriver for Alfa Romeo (assistant to Enzo Ferrari). Next, he joined Scuderia Ferrari 1930–34. Siena wo ...

, driving a 312, was killed after hitting a wall. In the 1938

Mille Miglia The Mille Miglia (, ''Thousand Miles'') was an open-road, motorsport Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race established in 1927 by the young Counts :it:Franco Mazzotti, Francesco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi. It took place in Italy 24 times f ...

, Clemente Biondetti and Carlo Pintacuda took the first two places. Biondetti's car used a Tipo 308 engine, while Pintacuda's used a 2900B.Title:"Classic and Sportscar" magazine, Published: April 2007, Article: "Alfa 8C-2900B MM", Page 192, In 1938 and 1939, Raymond Sommer won a couple of hillclimb competitions at

La Turbie La Turbie (; ; ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. History La Turbie was famous in Roman times for the large monument, the Trophy of Augustus, that Augustus made to celebrate his victory over the Ligur ...

with 308;

Jean-Pierre Wimille Jean-Pierre Wimille (; 26 February 1908 – 28 January 1949) was a French racing driver and a member of the French Resistance during World War II. He was a two-time victor of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning in 1937 and 1939. He is generally re ...

won a couple of races in Europe in the 1940s. One of the cars was brought to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

where it gathered some success and victories in the hands of

Óscar Alfredo Gálvez Oscar or Oskar is a masculine given name of English and Irish origin. Etymology The name is derived from two elements in Irish: the first, ''os'', means "deer"; the second element, ''car'', means "loving" or "friend", thus "deer-loving one" or "f ...

. The car that Gálvez used in Argentina is now in the Juan Manuel Fangio museum. One of the cars was sold to the US after World War II and Louis Durant drove it to 6th place in the

1946 Indianapolis 500 The 30th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Thursday, May 30, 1946. This was the first Indianapolis 500 presided over by new track owner Tony Hulman. The track had closed in late 1941 due to World ...

; the next year it placed 7th with Walt Brown. In 1948, Johnny Mauro drove the car to 8th place; this car is now located in the

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, and and formerly the home of the U ...

Hall of Fame Museum. It is probably the same car that was also used in the

1940 Indianapolis 500 The 28th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 30, 1940. The winner was Wilbur Shaw in the same Maserati 8CTF he had driven to victory in 1939. Shaw became the first driver in the history of ...

, which was Raymond Sommer's ex car. Overall Alfa Romeo's 3 litre formula cars (Tipo 308,

and

) were not a great success. Instead, the new car for the 1500 cc class, the 158 voiturette, designed in 1937 and first raced at the Coppa Ciano in August 1938, proved much more successful.

Technical Information

Main victories

*1938 Grand Prix Rio de Janeiro,

Carlo Maria Pintacuda Carlo Maria Pintacuda (18 September 1900 – 8 March 1971) was a motor-racing driver from Italy. Pintacuda was born in Florence on 18 September 1900. He was one of the greatest drivers from the "Florentine School" alongside Emilio Materassi, G ...

*1939 Circuit des Remparts - Angoulême,

Raymond Sommer Pierre Raymond Sommer (31 August 1906 – 10 September 1950) was a French racing driver. He raced both before and after WWII with some success, particularly in endurance racing. He won the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race in both and , and al ...

*1946 Grand Prix de Bourgogne,

*1946 Grand Prix du Roussillon - Circuit des Platanes - Perpignan,

*1947 Grand Prix de Rosario,

Achille Varzi Achille Varzi (8 August 1904 – 1 July 1948) was an Italian racing driver. He is remembered as the winner of the 1933 Monaco Grand Prix, as well as the winner of the first Formula One Grand Prix at the 1946 Turin Grand Prix, and as the chief ...

*1948 Grand Prix São Paulo,

*1949 Buenos Aires Grand Prix,

Indianapolis 500

*1940

Chet Miller Chester Joseph Miller (July 19, 1902 – May 15, 1953) was an American racing driver. He was killed in a crash in the south turn of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during practice for the 1953 Indianapolis 500. Yates, Brock W. "The Indianapolis 5 ...

, 17th *1946 Louis Durant, 6th *1947 Walt Brown, 7th *1948 Johnny Mauro, 8th

Notes

{{Alfa Romeo Pre War Timeline Tipo 308 Grand Prix cars

Technical Information

Main victories

Indianapolis 500

See also

Notes