Luigi Chinetti facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Luigi Chinetti
Born	(1901-07-17)July 17, 1901 Jerago con Orago, Italy
Died	August 17, 1994(1994-08-17) (aged 93) Greenwich, Connecticut
Nationality	Italian (to 1946) American (from 1946 on)
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	1932–1935, 1937–1939, 1949–1953
Teams	Raymond Sommer Alfa Romeo Private Lord Selsdon
Best finish	1st (1932, 1934, 1949)
Class wins	3 (1932, 1934, 1949)

Luigi Chinetti (born July 17, 1901 – died August 17, 1994) was a famous Italian-born racecar driver. He moved to the United States during World War II.

Luigi was a champion driver, winning the tough 24 Hours of Le Mans race three times. He also won the Spa 24 Hours race twice. Later, he owned the North American Racing Team (N.A.R.T.), which raced Ferrari cars successfully. For many years, he was also the only person who could bring new Ferrari cars into the United States.

Luigi Chinetti's Life Story

Luigi Chinetti was born in Jerago con Orago, a small town near Milan, Italy. His father was a gunsmith, and Luigi started learning about mechanics very young. By age 12, he could operate a lathe, and by 14, he was a skilled mechanic.

In 1917, when he was 16, Luigi started working for Alfa Romeo as a mechanic. This is where he first met another young worker named Enzo Ferrari, who would later create the famous Ferrari car company. Because of difficult times in Italy, Luigi moved to Paris, France, where he continued to work for Alfa Romeo as a salesperson.

Becoming a Race Car Driver

In Paris, Luigi began racing sports cars. He became very good at long-distance races, especially the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He raced cars from Alfa Romeo, Talbot, and Ferrari. Luigi competed in every Le Mans race from 1932 to 1953. In 1954, he entered a car as a sponsor, not as a driver.

When World War II started in Europe, Luigi moved to the United States. He arrived with a racing team for the 1940 Indianapolis 500 race. Luigi stayed in New York and helped with the war effort by working on Rolls-Royce engines. He became an American citizen in 1950.

Working with Enzo Ferrari

After the war ended, Luigi went back to Europe in 1949. He met with Enzo Ferrari, whose car factory had been making tools for the war. Luigi encouraged Enzo to start building racing cars again. He even offered to sell the new Ferrari road cars in America to help pay for the race cars.

Luigi left the meeting with an agreement to be Ferrari's main agent in France and the United States. This was a huge step for Ferrari, helping them become known around the world.

Building a Racing Legacy

Luigi Chinetti was not just a great driver; he also helped many other talented drivers. Through his own team and N.A.R.T., he supported famous racers like Stirling Moss, Mario Andretti, Phil Hill, and Graham Hill. He also tried to help women drivers, like journalist Denise McCluggage, race at Le Mans, though her application was not approved. However, he did sponsor Yvonne Simon in the 1950 and 1951 Le Mans races.

Luigi sold his business in 1977 and lived in Greenwich, Connecticut, until he passed away in 1994 at age 93.

Ferrari Dealership

Enzo Ferrari chose Luigi Chinetti to be his official Ferrari agent in the United States. Luigi opened the very first Ferrari dealership in the country. For a while, it was the only one! Later, his sales area covered all states east of the Mississippi River.

Luigi's reputation was so strong that people from all over the country came to him to buy Ferraris. His original showroom in Greenwich, Connecticut, is no longer there, but the business continues today under new ownership.

The very first Ferrari Luigi sold in the US was a Tipo 166 MM Touring Barchetta in early 1949. The second car, a Ferrari Tipo 166 Spyder Corsa, was sold to Briggs Cunningham, another famous racer. Luigi also sold a Ferrari to Jim Kimberly, an heir to a tissue-paper fortune.

Luigi also played a big role in Phil Hill's career. He sold Phil a Ferrari in 1952 and later hired him as a driver. Luigi even recommended Phil to Enzo Ferrari, who eventually put Phil on the Ferrari Formula One (F1) team.

North American Racing Team (N.A.R.T.)

Luigi Chinetti started the North American Racing Team (N.A.R.T.) with help from George Arents and Jan de Vroom. Because of Luigi's strong connection with Ferrari, N.A.R.T. always had access to great cars and support from the factory. The team had a lot of success in endurance races like Sebring and Le Mans, even into the 1970s.

N.A.R.T. also played a special role in Ferrari's history. In 1964, a disagreement between Enzo Ferrari and the racing authorities meant Ferrari's F1 cars raced in N.A.R.T.'s blue and white colors instead of the famous Ferrari red. This happened for two races, the 1964 United States Grand Prix and the 1964 Mexican Grand Prix. The problem was solved by 1965, and the cars went back to red.

N.A.R.T. also created special versions of Ferrari road cars. One famous example is the 275 GTS/4 NART Spyder. Luigi got permission from Ferrari to turn some 275GTB/4 coupes into open-top cars. Only 10 of these rare cars were built.

Luigi Chinetti's Racing Wins

Chinetti winning the 1932 24 Hours of Le Mans

Luigi Chinetti won his very first 24 hours of Le Mans race in 1932. He was driving an Alfa Romeo with his co-driver Raymond Sommer. The next year, he won the Spa 24 Hours endurance race in Belgium with Louis Chiron. In 1934, he teamed up with Philippe Étancelin to win his second 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In 1949, Luigi drove the first Ferrari ever to win the Le Mans race. This made him only the second driver to win the race three times. He drove most of the race himself, only handing the car over to Baron Selsdon for about twenty minutes.

Luigi also won the Spa 24 Hours twice: in 1933 with Phillipe Varent, and in 1949 with Jean Lucas. He won the Paris 12 Hours race twice as well, in 1948 and 1950.

In 1951, he was the riding mechanic (a helper in the car) when a Ferrari 212 won the very tough Carrera Panamericana race. This race was over 2,100 miles long across Mexico! Luigi raced in the Carrera Panamericana three more times, with his best finish being third place in 1952.

Racing Records

Here are some of Luigi Chinetti's racing results:

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1932	Raymond Sommer	Raymond Sommer	Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 LM	5.0*	218	1st	1st
1933	Soc. An. Alfa Romeo	Philippe de Gunzbourg	Alfa Romeo 8C 2300	5.0*	233	2nd	2nd
1934	Luigi Chinetti	Philippe Étancelin	Alfa Romeo 8C 2300	3.0	213	1st	1st
1935	Luigi Chinetti	Jacques Gastaud	Alfa Romeo 8C 2300	3.0	116	DNF
1937	Luigi Chinetti	Louis Chiron	Talbot T150C	5.0	7	DNF
1938	Luigi Chinetti	Philippe Étancelin	Talbot T1500 SS Coupé	5.0	66	DNF
1939	Luigi Chinetti	Taso Mathieson	Talbot T26	5.0	102	DNF (Contact)
1949	Lord Selsdon	Peter Mitchell-Thomson, Baron Selsdon	Ferrari 166MM	S2.0	235	1st	1st
1950	Luigi Chinetti	Pierre Louis-Dreyfus	Ferrari 195 Sport	S3.0	121	DNF (Transmission)
1951	Luigi Chinetti	Jean Lucas	Ferrari 340 America	S5.0	246	8th	5th
1952	Luigi Chinetti	Jean Lucas	Ferrari 340 America	S5.0	250	DSQ (Early refuel)
1953	Luigi Chinetti	Tom Cole	Ferrari 340MM Spider	S5.0	175	DNF (Fatal accident - Cole)

• Note *: equivalent class for supercharging, with x1.4 modifier to engine capacity.

Complete 12 Hours of Sebring results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1950	Briggs Cunningham	Alfredo Momo	Ferrari 195 S	S3.0	104	7th	1st

Complete Carrera Panamericana results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers/Navigator	Car	Class	Pos.	Class Pos.
1951	Centro Deportivo Italiano	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari 212 Inter Vignale	-	1st
1952	Industrias 1-2-3	Jean Lucas	Ferrari 340 Mexico Vignale Berlinetta	S	3rd	3rd
1953	Scuderia Guastalla	Alfonso de Portago	Ferrari 375 MM Vignale Spyder	S+1.6	DNF (Over time limit; engine)
1954	John Shakespeare	John Shakespeare	Ferrari 375 MM Pinin Farina	S+1.5	6th	4th

World Sportscar Championship results