Gottfried Köchert, Mille Miglia, Le Mans 24 Hours, Sebring ... - Kidston

Private Portfolio No. 117
1957 Ferrari 500 TRC
Named 500 TRC for their Testa Rossa power and adherence to the CSI’s Appendix C regulations, the 1957 2-
litre Ferraris bodied by Scaglietti are believed by many to be the most beautiful, sleek, svelte open Ferrari sportsracers
ever, regardless of the number of cylinders.
The eleventh of nineteen built, ‘0686 MD/TR’ was completed on 9th May, sold a day later to Austrian gentleman
driver Gottfried Köchert and at 4:58 the next morning took the starting flag for the 26th (and last open road)
Mille Miglia where it finished 10th overall and 2nd in class, only 17 minutes behind Gino Munaron’s 2000cc
Sports class winner in a similar 500 TRC
Just two weeks later, on 26th May, Köchert and Erwin Bauer drove the TRC to a class win and 13th overall in
the ADAC 1000km at the Nürburgring. They then partnered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 22nd June but
dropped out early with fuel system problems. In February 1958 the car was entered in the Cuban Grand Prix
by Manolo Perez de la Mesa and a month later was a reserve entry in the Sebring 12 Hours to be driven by
Perez de la Mesa and Modesto Bolanos. In December Perez de la Mesa took part in the Nassau Speed Weeks
in ‘0686 MD/TR’.
The car was subsequently sold to a U.S. buyer and raced by Ross Durant and Bill Redeker in SCCA events in
Florida. In 1961-63 it competed in the infamous Nassau Speed Weeks driven by Captain Anson Johnson,
finishing 2nd in Class E in 1961. Captain Johnson apparently wasn’t satisfied with that performance and in
1962 and 1963 appeared in ‘0686 MD/TR’ with a Chevrolet V8 under the bonnet at Nassau and in SCCA
events. He also started in two USRRC races, Daytona in February 1963 and Mid-Ohio in September 1963.
It was a not uncommon fate for the Testa Rossas, now feeling the heat of competition from the likes of Maserati
Birdcages and Coventry Climax powered mid-engined sports-racers from the U.K. It is no small tribute to their
robust construction and benign, predicable handling that ‘0686 MD/TR’ and its counterparts were able both to
cope with more than double the horsepower and to withstand its pounding.
In 1980 chassis ‘0686 MD/TR’ was discovered and acquired by Ferrari historian Dick Merritt in Florida with its
Chevy motor, flared wheel arches, enlarged air intake and bulged bonnet. The original engine had gone
missing but the original gearbox, grille, brakes and other parts were still with it. David Cottingham, founder of
British firm DK Engineering, tracked down the original engine in the mid-‘80s and with Merritt re-united chassis
and engine. A second, 2.4 litre, TRC spec engine was built up by DK for racing. The body was reskinned (DK
still hold the remains of the original body) and liveried in Kochert’s distinctive and attractive red and white livery.
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Following completion the TRC was sold to Ferrari collector and historic racer Lord Cowdray, latter passing to
Mody Enav of Geneva and from him, via Simon Kidston at Bonhams, to the current American ownership in
2001 where it has been regularly exercised and professionally maintained in race- and show-ready condition.