ATS (Automobili Turismo e Sport) was an Italian automotive constructor and racing team that operated between 1963 and 1965, formed after the famous "Palace Revolution" at Ferrari.
The company was formed by Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini, among others - intending for it to be a direct competitor to Ferrari both on the race track and on the street. Chiti and Bizzarrini built, with sponsorship from the Scuderia Serenissima's Count Giovanni Volpi, a road-going sports car and a Formula One car.
The sports car was the 2500 GT, a small coupé developed by Chiti and Bizzarrini with a bodywork built by Michelotti. The engine was a mid-mounted 2.5 L V8 engineered by Chiti, capable of achieving 245 hp (180 kW) and accelerating to 257 km/h (160 mph). Only 12 cars were reportedly built, and few exist today.
The engine had a capacity of 2.5 liters; the GT sported two 42mm Webers, the GTS four 42 mm Webers. The GT was rated at about 210 bhp and 250 bhp for the GTS. A ZF all syncro five speed transmission was available on the street car, and a Colotti designed crash box was fitted to the GTS.
The body, designed by the great Franco Scaglione and built by Allemano was very aerodynamic. The car was very light: 810 kilos for the road version and only 750 for the GTS. The top speed was of 240 km/h and 250 km/h respectively.
Formula One
The F1 car was the Tipo 100, a 1.5 L V8 engine powering a chassis that was a virtual copy of the outdated Ferrari 156. Drivers Phil Hill and Giancarlo Baghetti, also fleeing from Ferrari, were signed to driver the new car, but a dismal season forced to Chiti to close the door on the racing team. The ATS would later be used in the Derrington-Francis F1 project spearheaded by Stirling Moss' former mechanic, Alf Francis.
Chiti arrived at ATS and in a very short time was able to design and produce a nice formula one car with a new 90 degree V8 engine, making sure that the design was much different than the 60 degree V6 he had already designed for Ferrari. Chiti told Graham Gauld that took five months to design and build the first prototype. The GT car would boast a 2.5 liter variant of the F1 engine. According to Gauld Chiti stayed under 3 liters because he didn’t want to compete directly with Ferrari in that class.
After the demise of ATS, Bizzarrini moved to Lamborghini before building his own cars as Bizzarrini, while Chiti founded Autodelta, which would work closely with Alfa Romeo for the following decades.
A German team called ATS (Auto Technisches Spezialzubehör), owned by alloy wheels magnate Hans Gunther Schmid and not related to the original Italian team, raced in Formula One from 1977 to 1984.
