Two big manufacturers did decide to prepare cars, and part of both companies' plans was the gaining of experience in post war motor sport by entering production based machinery in important sports car races. One company was Mercedes Benz with their successful history in motor sport who with their successful history in motor sport decided to return with a big effort German industry still rebuilding after the war.

The second team to make the decision was the Lancia Factory. Vincenzo Lancia, the founder, raced for FIAT before the 1914-18 war and his company produced many outstanding models during the 1920s-30s, although they did not compete in the sport during this period. After the Second World War, the founder's son, Gianni Lancia decided to boost sales with favourable publicity and hopefully build up the family concern into a mass production empire to rival the big manufacturers. To achieve this he organised a techinical team, under the great engineer Vittorio Jano and set out to design a Formula one challenger. Meanwhile the works team entered Lancia Aurelias in Sports events with limited success. The programme was then expanded by designing the D20 and D24 sports cars first as a coupe, then as an open two seater with engine sizes ranging from 2.6 to 3.3 V-sixes.

As 1954 approached, reigning world champion Alberto Ascari and veteran Luigi Villoresi signed contracts for the season and in early January the car was wheeled out at Caselle Aerodrome and testing began.

The overall bodywork was painted deep crimson with white competition numbers in all cases. Sixteen inch wire wheels were used all round, SlAin. at the front and 7in. at the rear and shod with Pirelli Stevio racing tyres. The wheelbase was 7ft. 6in. (2.286m) and the track, front and rear was 4ft. 2in. (1.270mm). The D 50 had a dry weight of 13671b (620Kg) and an estimated top speed of around 180mph. (290Km/h).

The Lancia D 50's introduction wasa longwinded, long promised affair with entries for all the European GPs. Testing and development problems delayed its debut until the last race of the season.

1954 Spanish GP: Ascari, No. 34 was fastest in practice and led the race from the third lap until he retired with clutch problems on the tenth lap. Team mate Villoresi qualified in fifth place but retired on the second lap. The cars next appeared in South America for the Argentine GP of 1955 - three cars appeared with Eugenio Castellotti joining the team. The cars were as the Spanish GP versions but the bars across the front grille were removed and an extra louvre was made

in each side of the bonnet to aid cooling during the hot race conditiO(ls. The race numbers were 32, 34 and 36 (Ascari. Villoresi and CastelloW). All three failed to finish.

Turin GP: Non-championship event but Lancia's home town. Three all new cars entered with revised 55 style bodywork and heavily riveted alloy side tanks. Theoil cooler was also removed from the left hand pannier the oil being cooled in large pipes running along the inside of the side tanks. Four shoe drum brakes were also tried. Race numbers were 6, 22 and 30 (Ascari, CastelioW and Villoresi). Theyfinished first, third and fourth with only Mieres Maserati splitting the team.

The front suspension was by equal length welded tubular wishbones with the wheel uprights mounted on ball joints. The outer end of the lower wishbone also carried a roller mounting for the transverse leaf spring. Inboard dampers operating adjustable rubber bump fed the suspension loadings back into the chassis. The rear suspension was based on a very lightde Dion tube which was mounted behind the gearbox final drive unit and curved forward to bolt to the wheel uprights and located by twin trailing radius rods. At the base of the hubs, steel plates carried the transverse leaf spring which was centrally mounted within the chassis and linked rocker arms operated inboard mounted telescopic dampers. All four brakes were mounted outboard and were Lancia manufactured hydraulically operated finned drum brakes located on the front and rear hubs.

Vittorio Jano's 90° V8 engine had a capacity of 2487cc and was derived from the D 24 sports V6. Twin overhead camshafts operated the valves on each bank of the engine and two spark plugs per cylinderwere fed by magnetos mounted on the bulkhead. In the centre of the vee, four double choke downdraught carburettors were mounted and they were fed by a neat air entry sunk into the front body moulding. The exhaust pipes, four each side, converged into two long sections which ran along the body sides to the rear of the car. This engine reputedly produced 260bhp at 8200rpm.

The engine was postitioned at an angle in the chassis with the prop shaft running across the cockpit floor to the nearside rear where the twin plate clutch was situated alongside the five speed and reverse gear Pau GP: A further non-championship event with all cars repainted a lightershadeof crimson and four shoe disc brakes dicarded in favour of the earlier two shoe arrange­ment.