The further you go back in time, the harder it becomes to uncover and found information about unraced projects. While the 1930s sounds in my mind as 70 years ago, it is practically 90 years ago. It is a deep dive into my own archive, online archives, old magazines and what not. Therefore, the lists will consist out of multiple years. For example, so far I could not uncover unraced projects in 1936 and 1930. While I’m pretty sure there should be some in existing. From the 1920s on towards the early beginning will have their own era article.
It could be that from some projects not all the information is complete, from some projects there isn’t even information about. Such as cars that entered, a Grand Prix though never arrived or did not start. That usually is all the info that is available.
ERA E-Type / GP1 Prototype (1938)
In an attempt to break the domination of German, Italian and somewhat French Grand Prix teams the British ERA developed their first “modern” Grand Prix car. You might say that this was Britain’s first Grand Prix car. Peter Berthon started in late 1937 with the design of the car. It seems that in the spring of 1938 the car was ready to be build. There were three chassis made (only one survived), one of them was only a spare, and the cars were ready in June 1938.
A month later in July 1938, the ERA E-Type had its maiden test at Donington and seemed promising, though was far from developed. As the 1938 season was almost over, the focus went to next season. The E-Type seems to have been tested a couple of times before it became the GP1 prototype. The first appearance was during the International Trophy at Brooklands. Soon after the war started.
Mercedes-Benz T80 Six wheeler (1938)
Nope Tyrrell nor March nor Ferrari were the first to experiment with six wheels. The earliest attempts date back to the 1900s. Interestingly is that Mercedes-Benz was looking into the concept. Ferdinand Porsche started in 1937 with the design of this interesting Mercedes-Benz. The car was originally developed to break the speed record on land; Hans Stuck was to drive the car which would have reached over 700km/h. The date was set in early January 1940. At that time, the war broke out and was stored in safety in a garage in Kärnten. It still exists today in Mercedes-Benz their museum.
However, the story does not stop here. It seems that a variation on the T80 was planned or in development as well to appear at the start during Grand Prix’s. Little to none information is known about it. I hope that more information can be uncovered. Because it is was the second Mercedes that would be unraced in the 1930s.
Mercedes-Benz T90 Streamliner (1938)
A new Formula regulation would be introduced for 1938. The 3-4/5 litre Formula would replace the 750KG Formula. Therefore, Ferdinand Porsche was looking closely to design a fully enclosed streamliner. It seems that he was not the only one in 1937 thinking about it. In March 1937, the design crew showed the executives of the company two designs for the 1938 season. Ferdinand Porsche designed the T90 streamliner. While Daimler-Benz designers came up with a more cigar shaped Grand Prix car. Eventually, the Mercedes-Benz W154 would appear in 1938 on the grid.
Monaco Trossi (1935)
The 1930s were an interesting ERA, the technical development happened every month. Constructors like Mercedes-Ben went further and further to find speed and to dominate the sport. This era brought also some exotic cars on the grid. One of them is the unraced Monaco Trossi or Trossi Monaco. The car was fitted with an aircraft type radial engine, which produced 250HP and had a top of 240km/h.
Augusto Monaco was the mastermind behind the car and convinced Italian driver Felice Trossi to partner him in this project. The car was presented in early July 1935, after Aymini and Trossi tested it. The car appeared on the entry list for the 1935 Italian Grand Prix. It did appear on the track though only did the free practice before they withdrew. The car had a massive oversteering problem and spark plugs shoot out of the engine. The story is already covered on the website.
Auto Union Type D Six wheeler (1935)
To be honest I’m not sure if this car belongs in the unraced lists. The first Six Wheeler that appeared at the start of races. Especially for hill-climbs, Auto Union fitted one of their Type D’s with four wheels at the rear axle. The reason, to gain more grip, which is something you need for hill-climbs. While there is nothing shocking about this, it was rumoured that this car would also appear at the start of Grand Prix’s. As far as I know it never did, neither am i sure how serious the rumours were.
Bugatti T53 4WD (1932)
Believe it or not the early 1930s there was no German domination on the track. Mercedes appeared with a modified SSKL every now and then while Bugatti, Alfa Romeo and Maserati were the dominating factors in those days. Especially Bugatti was keen to have more success. In 1932, Maserati and Alfa Romeo overclassed them. Therefore, the company appeared with a new car in Monaco the Bugatti T53. The car that would become notorious for the difficult steering. The original design was a four-wheel drive racing car. Alberto Divo drove in the free practice of the Grand Prix with the car. However, he gave up after exhausting himself due to the steering issue. Eventually Bugatti would drove the 4WD on the car.
Maserati 8C 2500 Trazione Anteriore (1931/1932)
This is one of the unraced projects i sadly lack information on. The info I have states that the front wheel drive car was designed in 1931, tested, and ready to be raced in 1932. If you have more information on this one, let me know!
