Michel Stassart
A 1:8th scale scratch built resin and alloy bodied model of the Ferrari 333 SP Toshiba No.12, as raced at the 24 Hour Le Mans in 1998.
As driven by Velez, Taylor & Van De Poele
This is probably one of the most successful Ferrari racing car ever build. On demand from Pierro Ferrari this Sports Prototype was developed and a serie of 40 cars were made over the years 1994 to 2001. The first 9 frames were called “standard”, the frames n°010 to 014 were called “Evoluzione” and the remaining chassis were the “Michelotto” as they were build by this company.
Though not every car ever raced, most of these 333SP raced at every important circuit, with the ever symbolic victory in Daytona 24h in 1998 with 3 cars at the crossing line, like the famous Ferrari P4’s ever did. The chassis n°30 was also SRWC (Sports Racing World Champion) for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000.
This 1/8 scale model of the 1998 No 12 as raced at Le Mans was developed on demand of an owner of an actual Ferrari 333SP car. After photographing and measuring the real car in all its details and receiving technical sheets, the model was build, fabricating every single piece by hand, using brass, aluminum, tin and silver for the different components.
Michel’s work is all encompassing in its detail, with every section of the model being treated as individual components and then built to that high standard. On top of that the finish of the model is beautiful with various liveries to suit the wishes of the buyer.
The car body was vacuum molded and cut to the precise dimensions to fit the aluminum chassis finished with faux Kevlar. The body of the car is made from a synthetic material and has a true scale thickness of only 1 mm – reflecting the lightweight aspect of the original car. This solid aluminum plate frame is made for strengthening the model car rigidity.
The development took over a year for the prototype. To make such a model car, with so many individual pieces, it takes about 6 months.
The front and rear body sections can be removed, thereby allowing a full and uninterrupted view of the interior to include the cockpit, engine bay and nose section. Even the wheels can be removed, allowing a close view of the suspension, steering and brake set up.
Each model that has been build is somewhat different, such as; the front spoiler, the air outlets over the front wheels, the seat, steering wheel and dashboard or the rear of the body. More so are the different wheels, as used in the real car.
The model car is 22 inches long x 10 inches wide, 57 cm x 25 cm.
