Engineering success

Dallara Automobili is a major player in global motorsport. Racecar spends an hour discussing the present and future with the company’s founding father

- DIETER RENCKEN

Travel from Milan to Modena, both famous for their contributions to automotive history, and roughly midway along the two-hour journey the E45 bypasses Parma. Head due west along rural roads for 40 minutes and the sand-coloured Castello di Varano De’ Melegari signifies your arrival in the small village (population 2500) of the same name.

Renowned for its imposing 10th century castle, Varano De’ Melegari is better known in motorsport circles as home to the world’s largest producer of racecars, Dallara, founded by the region’s most famous engineer, Gian Paolo Dallara, born locally in 1936.

In 1959, Dallara graduated in aeronautical engineering at the Milano Politecnico University, then immediately joined Ferrari and worked his way through various technical departments, before moving to Maserati to join its sportscar racing operation full time.

Next stop was the nascent Lamborghini company, where Dallara formed part of the 350 GT design team before formulating the running gear for the groundbreaking, midengined Miura, generally accepted as the world’s first supercar. Thereafter, he accepted an appointment at De Tomaso, a brief which included designing the company’s Formula 1 car raced by the Frank Williams team.