Team story
Origins
The split between Ferrari and some of its managers and engineers at the end of 1961 made a new Italian project possible. Carlo Chiti, Romolo Tavoni and Giotto Bizzarrini were involved in the creation of Automobili Turismo e Sport, backed by Giorgio Billi and other investors. The ambition encompassed a Formula 1 single-seater and a road-going grand tourer, not simply a private team with purchased cars.
The Formula 1 journey
The Tipo 100 made its debut at Spa in 1963 with Phil Hill, already a World Champion for Ferrari, and Giancarlo Baghetti. Both retired. The programme was limited to five World Championship meetings; at Monza, Hill is listed eleventh, ATS's best placing.
Having two established drivers did not compensate for the car's immaturity and the project's problems.
Historical timeline
Three chapters in the story of ATS
Three episodes to revisit the people, cars and races that shaped this journey.
First appearance · Belgian Grand Prix
Phil Hill · Belgian Grand Prix 1963. The recorded outcome is DNF. This is the first recorded race start, or the first entry if the team never started a race.
Sporting landmark · Italian Grand Prix
Phil Hill · Italian Grand Prix 1963. The recorded position is P11; this number alone does not show whether the driver completed the race distance. This marks the first win or podium where one exists, otherwise the highest recorded placing for this constructor.
Latest recorded appearance · Mexican Grand Prix
Giancarlo Baghetti · Mexican Grand Prix 1963. The recorded outcome is DNF. This is the last race start attributed to this constructor in the archive, not necessarily the end of the organisation behind it.
A distinctive way of racing
Chiti also designed the 1.5-litre V8, positioned behind the cockpit in a tubular chassis. Building car and engine together distinguished ATS from the small British customer teams. The parallel 2500 GT project extended the same venture to the road, but its resources and organisation did not bring the single-seater to a consistently competitive level.
What remains
The 1963 championship ended the constructor's career under this identity. A modified chassis reappeared in the Derrington-Francis project, classified separately. Chiti would later work with Autodelta.
The Italian ATS, however, has no connection with Auto Technisches Spezialzubehör, the German alloy-wheel team's name: the same acronym conceals two businesses, two decades and two different technical programmes.