A H I S T O R Y O F E X C E L L E N C E
The origins of Larini’s evolution are tied to that classic automotive era of the postwar years, and the image of the young freelance engineer Piero Larini in this period was significantly influenced by the sport of motor racing.
Spurring opportunities to work exclusively for one of the re-emerging outfits during the late 1940’s, the free-spirited Larini chose to work for those offering the greatest engineering challenges. Ferrari and Maserati were just some of the Italian names pushing the limits of performance on both road and track. His personal interest focused around the expedition of expelled exhaust gasses - namely, manifold and exhaust design. By focusing solely on this area his expertise grew, curiosity turned into specialty, which ultimately led to success.
Not only professional automobile racing drivers but amateurs, too, secured meaningful successes for Larini. These private drivers, however, were of a kind that would be unimaginable in modern-day Formula 1 races. Many industrialists, affluent publishers, and a large number of noblemen (as well as the occasional gigolo) cultivated motor racing as a costly and very hazardous hobby.
Because of his strict work ethic and shunning of the limelight, Larini was most appreciated by that small handful of private industrialists and racers who were patient, ardent students of the sport, and who were willing to pay for his time and craft. He often worked in private, in a self-imposed isolation away from the media, and rarely touched the mainstream glitz of the racecar world. He instead preferred the quiet company of creative entrepreneurs who intuitively understood his deep dedication to harmonizing scientific technique with artisanship.
As the economic hardship of the postwar years receded, the ‘privileged few’ who sought to use the products of the likes of Ferrari grew in number. As the cars on the racetrack grew faster, and the dangers increased in parallel, Larini recognized the need to enhance the thrill of driving on the road without introducing the dangers of the racetrack. But while Enzo Ferrari recognized the mass production of road-going sporting cars as a necessary evil to fund the exploits of the race team, Larini regarded this as a purer expression - a need to satisfy and please the need of every driver in touch with their emotions. For while the roadcars of Ferrari appeared and drove fantastically well compared to the competition, the aural experience was often somewhat lacking, with the acoustical notes being overtaken by the induction roar of the massive carburetors. The acoustic challenge was set: the day was to be devoted to achieving horsepower assistance for the various race teams of Italy, but every spare moment was to be dedicated to the construction of the finest hand-built acoustically-tuned exhaust systems for road-going exotic supercars. The sound of the racetrack would come to the road.
Inspiration was drawn from the likes of Ascari, Fangio, and Rodriguez who were amassing successes on the great European road and race courses. From the Mille Miglia to Pescara, and the Targa Florio to Le Mans, with components tested to destruction, the inquisitive and independent character of Larini was reflected in his work. Larini in motor racing was the embodiment of everything motor racing stood for - speed, style, excitement, and above all excellence.
With an unfettered international vision, Larini’s head was regularly turned by any exotic vehicle that could cause the heart to beat faster and evoke a deep-seated passion in its drivers. Not only Ferrari and Maserati, but also Aston Martin would delight and inspire. This progressive mentality eventually took Larini to England during the 1960’s, where his passion for the cars of the road and track proved boundless. Never far from his wife Francesca, the freelance engineer chose to sample the genius of the likes of David Brown (Aston Martin) and Colin Chapman (Lotus) - choosing, as always, to work with those presenting the greatest challenges of the day. Once again, his designs were tested to the limits of performance, by multi-skilled driving talents the par of Hill and Clark. It was also at this time that Larini's passion for beating the clock through racing and precision engineering took a new form: in the collecting of antique chronometres, a fascination he cultivated with Francesca for many decades.
On his permanent return to Italy in the late 1960’s, Larini decided to regulate time on racecar engineering. The mounting death toll of friends and colleagues was beginning to disquiet, and the reckless quest for outright speed was starting to leave a bitter taste. Visits to the track were modulated, and the Larini Design Works was established offering engineering design and consultancy to the powers of the Italian exotic car manufacturing and racing industry. Where Ferrari and Maserati once stood proudest, De Tomaso, Iso and Lamborghini, would also stand proud. The burgeoning industry provided boundless challenges and the need for solutions. Once again, the day was devoted to race-bred horsepower assistance solutions for the great engines of Italy, whereas acoustic race-tuned perfection was occupying all of his free time.
As the supercar market reached its peak in the late 1980’s, Larini’s company was attracting the interest of admirers. Demand for Supercars was soaring in the heat of an over-inflated market. Further investment was needed to keep abreast of developments as materials and manufacturing techniques from the aerospace arena were being embraced. A deal was initialized for the company to be sold to one of the larger manufacturers, but news of plans to turn the outfit into solely a racing engineering works scuppered the deal, as Larini’s insistence on the road-going division remaining intact proved off-putting to potential suitors. The market crash at the dawn of the 1990’s brought some respite but also a drastic reduction in work, as the world cooled down after the supercar frenzy that was the F40 and its corollaries.
By the end of the 1990’s, Larini’s ability to fend off the financial interests of the powerful potential suitors was dwindling. His stance of manufacturer-free independence had taken the company bearing his name as far as it could realistically go. Illness was now taking its toll. Yet still the manufacturers came, and still he refused. However, in early 2003 there was to finally be a change - and a new challenge. A chance meeting with a young British engineer reminded the ailing Larini of an era when torque and power, as well as acoustic perfection, were as sought after on the road as horsepower was on the track. The discreet elder statesman saw that there were still those whose honour and passion surpassed any financial clout. A deal was set in place, and the company became Larini Systems in 2003. Later that year Larini arranged for all machinery, jigs, patterns, schematics and resources to be moved to a dedicated state-of-the-art facility in the spiritual home of motorsport: the South of England. The love affair between Larini and England was seemingly re-ignited.
Key strategic and technical partnerships and continued financial assistance for computer aided machinery and equipment ensures that the great legacy of road-going supercar solutions, as epitomized by Larini himself, continues for the foreseeable future. The lessons learned by Larini from racing are still applied to the construction of road car systems. Though systems are still carefully assembled by hand, production techniques incorporate the most advanced technology and materials possible.
Post-2003, the re-emergence and growth of Larini Systems has coincided with that of the other superpowers to which it has always had a close association, namely Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Aston Martin and Lotus. Like Larini, changes in ownership/management has seen a changing of the old guard to the younger mavericks, resulting in a return to the glory days of yesteryear.
The passing of Piero Larini in 2005, peacefully in his hometown in Sicily, marked the end of an era of the gentlemen privateer engineers. More than just the founder of Larini Systems, Piero Larini was also a natural leader, whose singular genius inspired those who worked around him. The elegant, individual, and independent character of Piero Larini is to this day reflected in the brand.
