Picture this: it’s 1986 and the majority of the F1 grid was using turbocharged engines, including Ferrari. The problem was that these tiny 1.5L engines were expensive and perhaps too powerful (BMW’s M12 engine, for instance, a piddling 1.5L 4-pot with a turbo developed up to 1450 BHP in qualifying trim). The FIA wanted to put a stop to this, and in 1986 they proposed a ban on forced induction for 1987 onwards.
Enzo Ferrari was furious about this rule change and made public his ambition of winning the Indy 500, at the cost of leaving F1. This was all just a plan to make the FIA reconsider, but Ferrari were still keen to develop their CART racer.
Developed in conjunction with the Truesports CART team, the Ferrari 637 was, at the end of the day just a bargaining tool, yet it was carefully thought out and properly engineered. The chassis was made from carbon fibre, with an aluminium body on top of it. The engine was the Tipo 034, a turbocharged, 32-valve 2.65L 90° V8, as mandated by CART regulations, with power around the 700 BHP range. It was mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox.
Seeing the 637 being thoroughly tested by Ferrari, the FIA eventually gave in and postponed the ban on turbocharged engines in F1 to 1989, meaning the 637 would remain unraced. It was passed on to Alfa Romeo though, for use in their IndyCar/CART project, including testing their own Indy V8 engine.
This is the unraced Ferrari 637 from 1986, built to CART specifications.
