Celebrating the highlights of Italian car culture in the spectacular setting of the Swiss Alps around St Moritz, the Passione Engadina is considered one of the finest regularity rallies in Europe. This year, the event is celebrating it’s 10th anniversary with another spectacular line-up of Italian sports and racing cars. Besides the rally around the Engadine mountains and a race on the runway at Samedan Airport, the most elegant cars will be awarded during a Concours judged, among others, design master Lorenzo Ramaciotti and our very own CEO, J. Philip Rathgen. This year’s brand of honour is Ferrari – and together with Ferrari specialist Niki Hasler, organizer Paolo Spalluto and the team behind the Passione Engadina has managed to attract some of the most iconic cars that ever raced in the sign of the prancing horse to star at their anniversary event from 27 to 29 August 2021.
Ferrari Dino 206 SP & S
The 1960s are considered to be the golden era in Ferrari’s impressive racing history – and it is almost impossible to decide which of the countless racing machines from Maranello is the most iconic. Still, we have a soft spot for the light and agile Dinos, especially the following two models. Imagine an open-top version of the Dino 166 P with a bigger engine – and you are standing in front of the Ferrari Dino 206 SP. Designed for hillclimbs in the European Mountain Championship, the one-off barchetta gave Ludovico Scarfiotti four wins in 1965 and allowed him to take the title. One year later, the Ferrari Dino 206 S took over the reign. The engineers had managed to reduce the kerb weight by another 50 kilograms, and equipped with a twin overhead camshaft 65° 2-litre V6 engine directly derived from Formula 1, the car proved extremely agile in the hands of its drivers and took home numerous class wins. Parked on the lawn of the legendary Kulm Country Club, one can only imagine what a thrill it must be to drive these two alpine racers across the local Julier or Flüela pass and have some serpentines for breakfast.
Ferrari 512 M
Fast forward to the early 1970s, and you can find us marvelling at some of Ferrari’s most dramatic racecars built for Group 5 prototype racing. After Ferrari had shaken up the scene with the five-litre, 12-cylinder engine 512 S, the Scuderia factory team took direct aim at the Porsche 917 with the improved Ferrari 512 M. Equipped with more powerful rear disc brakes, a new suspension, a more aerodynamic bodywork and a lighter, more powerful engine featuring more efficient cylinder heads, the Modificata was a direct result of the racing experience of the ongoing season. After its 1970 debut on the Zeltweg circuit, the 512 M took part in the Manufacturers’ World Championship in 1971. And while the Ferrari 512 M is certainly not the car you want to steer down the Maloja Pass on a wet autumn evening, just imagine revving it up to 9,000 rpm while flying past the cheering crowds at 300 kilometres an hour!
Ferrari 330 GTO
There are unicorn Ferraris – and then there is the GTO. Considered to be the most desirable and expensive car that ever roamed the racetracks of the Earth, the Ferrari 330 GTO is usually mentioned in a reverent whisper. The Passione Engadina team now did not only manage to source one of these ‘holy grails’ – for the photo shoot with our friend Fabrizio d’Aloisio, they dared to park the car in the lobby of the venerable Suvretta House. As we always knew: Some things are only possible in St. Moritz.
That’s not a Ferrari?!
Yes, there is one exception to our selection here, the all-new Kimera EVO37. We exclusively revealed the car in May and were the first to enjoy a passenger ride up the hill at Goodwood Festival of Speed in July. Restomodding is hugely popular at the moment, but it is also very easy to get it wrong. The Kimera is a fine example of how to do it right. Starting off by reverse engineering both a Delta S4 and 037 the team set about carefully reinterpreting the 037 for the modern day and I think you will agree it deserves its place amongst this trio of Ferraris.
Photos: Fabrizio d’Aloisio
