Ferrari 512 BBLM airboxes Thomson Le Mans 1978

Original airboxes for Ferrari 512 BB Le Mans.

24 Hours of Le Mans 1978; for the series I 512 BB/LM s/n 24127, 24129 and 24131.

Ferrari 512 BBLM Series I

In 1974, Luigi Chinetti’s North American Racing Team (NART) developed a racing variant of the 365 GT4 BB to replace the team’s Daytonas for use in sports car racing. NART’s car debuted at the 24 Hours of Daytona in 1975 before earning a sixth place finish at the 12 Hours of Sebring two months later. NART continued to use the car into 1978, by which time Ferrari had begun their own development of a racing variant of the updated 512 BB. Ferrari’s Customer Assistance Department extensively modified four 512s in 1978, adding wider wheel arches, a roof-mounted aerofoil, and reusing rear wings from Ferrari 312T2 Formula One cars. Power from the flat-12 was increased to 440 hp (328 kW) while the cars’ weight were decreased to approximately 1,200 kg (2,646 lb). The three cars, termed BB LM by Ferrari, were entered by Charles Pozzi and NART in the 1978 24 Hours of Le Mans, but none were able to complete the race.