Video: Onboard Alpine battles Ferrari Daytona at Le Mans

31st March 2021

Ben Miles

The Alpine A220 was not, really, a very good racing car. It struggled to finish ahead of its predecessor (the A210) at Le Mans and led to Alpine pulling out of sportscar racing to focus efforts on rallying.

So why do we bring you a video of the A220? Well, first we should all marvel at the fact that it was recorded doing around 167mph (270km/h) at Le Mans in the 1960s, despite its engine basically being two 1.5-litre units fused together. But mostly we bring you the video for the surroundings.

This is the Le Mans Classic in 2008 and we run onboard chassis #1736 in a class for cars from the ‘60s and ‘70s. The best thing really about this camera is the opposition. We start by dispatching a Ferrari Daytona, which seems unlikely in an A220, but really happens. Later we get swamped by a much faster Corvette, and then much later, heartbreakingly, we see what appears to be a Ferrari P3 expiring in dramatic fashion at the edge of the track.

Sadly the Le Mans Classic has had to be postponed again to 2022, so we won’t get to watch any classic racers thrashing around the Loire in July, but this clip serves as something whet the appetite for when the great event returns.

Welcome to Goodwood Elevenses, a mid-morning helping of motoring-related amusement to help break up your day. Watch the last video: How a Honda S2000 tortures its tyres