Five of the best single-seaters at 77MM

Challenger-ERA

The Challenger-ERA was a one-off voiturette built by Reg Parnell, who later went on to become one of Goodwood Motor Circuit's first dominant drivers, particularly at the wheel of his San Remo Maserati. But before all that, he was building the Challenger, the assmebly of which was halted at the outbreak of World War Two. It made its racing debut in July 1939, by which time plans to have a one-off engine were dropped in favour of ERA power and its appearance was inspired by the Mercedes-Benz W145/63.

Ferrari 340 F1

The 340 was part of Ferrari's evolution of its V12 grand prix cars that took place from 1950 onwards, once the team had decided to move away from the class for smaller capacity supercharged cars. The V12 grew in capacity to 4.1-litres compared to the earlier 275's 3.3-litres, and the car also gained a longer wheelbase, four-speed gearbox and a De Dion tube rear suspension. The 340 proved competitive – Alberto Ascari was able to keep pace with the dominant Alfa Romeo 158 of Juan Manuel Fangio – but would soon be upgraded again with the arrival of the 4.5-litre 375 F1.

OSCA Tipo G 4500

OSCA, l'Officine Specialzate Construzione Automobili, was established in 1947 by the Maserati brothers after selling their eponymous car-making company. While the OSCA V12 engine looked simple, it was hugely advanced for its time with twin overhead camshafts and triple Webers. The Tipo G made its competition debut at its home Italian Grand Prix in 1950 but, like many cars of the time, it couldn't hold a candle to the Alfa Romeo. Franco Rol qualified 18th out of 22 and finished ninth (which was also last), 13 laps behind the winning Ferrari.

CTA Arsenal

At its debut in the 1947 French Grand Prix, the CTA Arsenel qualified last and failed to finish... and its career didn't really pick up from there. The car was devised by the Centre d'Étude Technique de l'Automobile et du Cycle (CTA for short) and was built to pre-war voiturette regulations, complete with a supercharged 1.5-litre V8 engine. The bodywork had a resemblance to the fighter planes that Arsenal had been building during the war, with its fuselage-like appearance. Three CTA Arsenals were built, and rumour has it that when their ill-fated careers were over Anthony Lago bought them to show his workers at the Talbot-Lago factory how not to make racing cars. 

Lotus 41X

John Miles drove the Lotus 41X early in his single-seater career, clocking up no fewer than four Formula Three victories during the 1968 season. That was no doubt a key influence in his progression to Formula One the following season, leaving the Gold Leaf liveried F3 car with its place in history.

Photography by Jochen Van Cauwenberge and Motorsport Images.