The Formula One regulations for 1954–1960 limited naturally aspirated engines to 2500 cc. For the 1958 season, there was a change from alcohol fuels to avgas, which influenced engine development. The 246 F1 used a 2,417.34 cc (2.4 L) Dino V6 engine with a 65° angle between the cylinder banks. This was the first use of a V6 engine in a Formula One car. Bore and stroke measured 85 mm × 71 mm, and the engine produced 280 PS (206 kW; 276 hp) at 8500 rpm. The car had a 9.8:1 compression ratio. Aside from this novel powerplant, the 246 F1 was a conventional front-engine design.
The 246 F1 was good enough to win a World Championship for Mike Hawthorn and a second place in the Constructors' Championship for Ferrari in 1958. The car competed in the 1959 and 1960 seasons as well. It was the first V6-engined car to win a Formula One Grand Prix, taking victory at the French Grand Prix at Reims in 1958. It also achieved the last win by a front-engined car in Formula One history, at the 1960 Italian Grand Prix at Monza; the major British teams boycotted that race.
In 1959, to make full use of the allowed capacity regulations, Ferrari enlarged the bore of the Dino V6 engine of the 246 F1 by 1 mm to 86 mm. This increased the total displacement to 2474.54 cc. The resulting power output was 295 PS (217 kW; 291 hp) at 8600 rpm. The revised car, designated the 256 F1, also received disc brakes as standard and a five-speed gearbox. Only Tony Brooks raced this model, winning in the French Grand Prix and the German Grand Prix, but he was generally outpaced by the mid-engined British cars.
In 1960, the Ferrari 246 designation was also used for the first mid-/rear-engined Formula One car, the 246 P, which used the same 2,417.34 cc Dino V6 engine. The designation reappeared in 1966 for Ferrari's first three-litre era Formula One car, the 246 F1-66. The 246 F1-66 was a Ferrari 158 chassis fitted with a 2.4-litre (2404.74 cc) Dino V6 engine, updated with fuel-injection. Lorenzo Bandini used the 246 F1-66 for the first two races in 1966, achieving second place and fastest lap at the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix, and third place in Belgium. Ludovico Scarfiotti drove it at the German Grand Prix, and Giancarlo Baghetti drove it for Reg Parnell Racing at the 1966 Italian Grand Prix.
This article is based solely on the supplied corpus. No external sources were consulted; claims that could not be substantiated against the corpus were omitted under the drop-the-claim rule.
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