The Ferrari 375 MM Plus, specifically made by Ferrari to compete during 1954 World Sportscar championship, was the most powerful car they had ever built, with its V12 engine and a displacement of almost 5 litres. It was given the name 'Plus' because it was an evolution of the 375 MM that had been so successful for them during the 1953 season, helping to secure the constructors title.
The version here is chassis #0392AM, which had bodywork supplied by Pininfarina. It looked almost identical to the 375 MM, but had a cowling behind the drivers seat, and to accommodate the bigger fuel tank and a spare tyre, the rear body had a distinctive ’hump’.
Despite a lack of success at the 1954 Mille Miglia and Le Mans races, chassis #0392AM won the 1954 Carrera Panamericana. It was driven by Ferrari driver, Umberto Maglioli, who virtually led the race from start to finish, establishing not just a new record with an average speed of 173 km per hour, but also winning more stages of this gruelling race than anyone else.
The car was sponsored by Mexican petroleum company, Industrias 1-2-3, and glimpses of its famous 'Escuadron 1-2-3' livery, and race number #19 can be seen on the piece of coachwork on the model.
Shown here is a two-model display ("coffret") of a 'wood' model and a wire model. This display was presented for the first time at Retromobile 2015. The models included the chassis and a piece of bodywork as shown.
Please note that this display is no longer available.
Although no longer available, you can see photos of the separate wire and 'wood' 'bodybuck' models by clicking on the different links:
Display of Hand-built, 1:43-Scale, ’Bodybuck’ Models
Display of Hand-built, 1:43-Scale, ’Bodybuck’ Models