One of the short-lived prancing horse' hard rivals

Unique ONES - As the Ferrari flag increasingly flying in the automotive world, of course this cannot be separated from the reliability of these prancing horse logo cars that capable outperform their rivals on the racing tracks and roads. Related this, it could be said reasonable as a logical consequence of the emergence of many rivals whose at first inspired by Ferrari success stories, and then also produce similar sports cars that are projected as rivals to the prancing horse emblem sports cars, but unfortunately many of them were not last long.

1963 ATS 2500 GT previously known as the first Italian mid-engined supercar and became inspiring sources of All-new ATS GT of 2017. (Picture from: Mad4Wheels)

One of them was ATS (Automobili Turismo e Sport) which once produced a potential sports car called the ATS 2500 GT. Uniquely, this Bologna-based automotive company was founded back in the 1962 by a group of former Ferrari engineers and designers such as Carlo Chiti, Romolo Tavoni and Giotto Bizzarrini under financial support from Count Giovanni Volpi di Misurata, a Venetian wealthy nobleman whose initially known as Ferrari customer, and the owner of Scuderia Serenissima racing team as well.

1963 ATS 2500 GT is built with a steel body and is powered by a 2.5-liter V8 engine derived from F1 so that it can generate up to 220 ponies. (Picture from: ConceptCarz)

In 1963 ATS started its work in the world of racing by making two ATS Tipo 100 racing cars for Scuderia Serenissima raced in the Grand Prix of Belgium racing event, and piloted by reliable racers at that time such as Phil Hill and Giancarlo Baghetti. Unfortunately both of them had to stop halfway due to transmission problems, and off course this is not the best achievement due to the lack of funds for the development of the car, but it is arguably the first step to its sporting glory for the years to come.

1963 ATS 2500 GT was born as an engineering result of Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini, then designed by Franco Scagliione, and built by coachbuilder company Allemano. (Picture from: Mad4Wheels)

Shortly after that in March of the same year, ATS unveiled its new road going car prototypes named ATS 2500 GT in two versions at the Geneva Motor Show. The car was born as an engineering result of Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini, then designed by Franco Scagliione, and built by coachbuilder company Allemano.

1963 ATS 2500 GT produced in limited numbers of only around 15 cars ever completed. (Picture from: Mad4Wheels)

And all these cars were built in a sporty coupe style, in which the 2500 GT is built with a steel body and is powered by a 2.5-liter V8 engine derived from F1 so that it can generate up to 220 ponies, while its sibling the 2500 GTS is a lighter version weighing around 750 kg because it has a body made of aluminum and is powered by a machine capable of spitting out more power up to 245 ponies. Both versions have a tubular steel frame and can be said to be the first sports car in the world to apply the rear middle positioned engines.

1963 ATS 2500 GTS is a lighter version weighing around 750 kg because it has a body made of aluminum, while on display at the Geneva Motor Show. (Picture from: Supercars.net)

Then the 2500 GT produced to be a rival to the prancing horse sports car emblem, which at that time still used only the front engine. Apart from its attractive design lines with a dynamic quality, while offering a unique futuristic layout to its mechanical heart. However, due to the limited supply of funds from Count Volpi at that time, production stagnated with only around 15 cars ever completed. This amount is still being disputed amongst car collectors all over the world.

1963 ATS 2500 GTS is powered by a machine capable of spitting out more power up to 245 ponies. (Picture from: Wikipedia)

It's a shame that after only running for about two years, this company was forced to swallow a bitter pill after a disagreement between investors and technicians led to its closure in 1964. Although in historical records, ATS only a short-lived small automaker, it has contributed to help and change the history of Italian sports cars through several Italian automotive big names which born after it, ranging from Lamborghini to Autodelta, from Iso to Bizzarrini, from Alfa Romeo to the stables of the 80 F1.

And it seems that in the 2000s, a number of activists in the automotive world were still curious and at the same time harboring hope to revive the ATS brand through a gorgeous modern supercar called the ATS GT back in 2017. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | PRIMOTIPO | GTSUPREME ]

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