Published on: 26/09/2024 Updated on: 20/02/2025
The experienced driver and the Mafra Head of Marketing & Communication were stopped by a broken steering arm already in the first stage of the Gran Premio Nuvolari. An unfortunate experience, but it did not cool the enthusiasm with which the crew faced this challenging test
It was a Nuvolari Grand Prix unfortunate for Mario Passanante, forced to retire due to a completely unpredictable mechanical problem. And to say that he had started with all the enthusiasm that Franceso Di Florio, Head of Marketing & Communication Mafra and, for the occasion, his co-driver had been able to instill in him in this race with a special flavor.
In motor racing, however, the unexpected is always lurking, and this time it struck our champion's 1937 Fiat 508 C.
An arm breaks and goodbye Nuvolari Grand Prix
"We were almost at the beginning of the first stage," Passanante says, "having covered about ninety kilometers, tackling 13 time trials and one average stage; we had gotten off to a quiet start and were getting into the right rhythm."
In fact, Mario recounts that with Di Florio, despite his modest experience in regularity races, the chemistry was immediate: "The role of the navigator in this specialty is crucial, but we, despite being a new pair, were already functioning well, and Francesco quickly learned to juggle the road book."
Around Riva del Garda, however, the improbable happened. "We were on an uphill road, with a straight section preceding a tight hairpin bend," Mario explains, "and we were traveling at about 55 km/h; as we approached the bend, I released the accelerator and downshifted to second gear, widening the trajectory as one does in such cases."
Suddenly, there was a grinding noise and the steering wheel spinning: "An arm that connects the steering box to the steering column had broken... I braked, put on first gear, avoiding the wall and going to stop in a safe position."
The piece in question, an iron rod connecting the wheels to the steering column, had sheared cleanly off. "Something I've never seen before," says Mario, "but which, unfortunately, can happen in an old car with almost ninety years like my 508. I am very sorry for Francesco, for whom it was too short an experience: I hope to have another chance in the future to partner with him, to let him fully experience the emotions of the most beautiful regularity races."
The episode caused a few chills for the crew competing in Mafra colors. "In the bad luck," Di Florio commented, "we were lucky, because at that moment there were no other vehicles passing by, neither in front of us, nor behind us, nor downhill, in the opposite direction to ours.
A lot of motorcyclists also pass on these roads, and the curve was very narrow, the kind where a mirror is installed so that you can see if someone is coming. No one was coming down at the time, and this was providential because, braking, we went straight and stopped in a small space on the outside of the bend.
It also helped that we didn't go downhill, because downhill, at higher speeds (60-70 km/h), we would have had less time to react; and on those roads the route is not always entirely protected by guard-rails. With a cool mind, we realized how serious the consequences of the breakdown could have been and how, in the end, we were lucky."
"Despite this mishap," adds Francesco, "it was still a wonderful experience, and I want to thank Mario for introducing me to the secrets of regularity, a discipline in which he is a master; the atmosphere of the event, in which more than 300 historic cars participate, is beautiful, and I hope to have the opportunity again in the future to work alongside Mario in this type of event."
At first, the adrenaline of the race had prompted Mario and Francesco to try to continue the competition, hoping to make it to the end of the stage, perhaps thanks to a temporary weld: "The mechanics in our wake were great as always," Mario emphasized, "but in a case like this there was unfortunately nothing they could do." All that remained was to load the Fiat sedan onto a tow truck and take it to the workshop.
The secrets of preparation for the Nuvolari Grand Prix
"We had prepared scrupulously," Passanante says with a hint of regret, "even spending the minutes waiting for the departure, in the square in Mantua, thoroughly cleaning the bodywork with Waterless, the Mafra product that allows this to be done at any time and place because it requires no water. Francesco also explained to me how to use Waterless with the Mafra cloth, folded in four so as to create a double layer, recommending that I never make circular motions!"
Mario then took the opportunity to reveal in a video with Francesco on Instagram one of his secrets as an experienced racing driver: "I never attach race numbers directly to the bodywork," he says, "because then, when you have to take them off at the end of the race, you risk ruining the paint: I prefer to use specially made magnetized round discs to which I apply the number sticker. Magnetic discs are strong enough not to come off even at high speeds, but easy to remove without leaving marks on the door."
The door, however, must be perfectly smooth and have no moldings-the Fiat 508 C is perfect, but other cars have this problem. How is it done in such cases? "Simple," Mario replies, "just use Split, the Mafra multi-surface cleaner that gently cleans windows, plastic and bodywork, removing residual traces of the adhesive used on the back of the racing numbers."
Upcoming goals
Having archived the experience of the Gran Premio Nuvolari with some bitterness, Passanante looks forward confidently to upcoming engagements, the most important of which is the Targa Florio Classica (October 10-13), valid for the Italian Great Events Championship of which Mario is currently the leader. "I will take the 508 to the workshop in Palermo," he concludes, "to try to understand the reasons for this sudden failure, have the broken arm replaced and tighten all the nuts and bolts." Thus the little Fiat will be ready to face a new and challenging adventure.
