Due to Jano’s suspension modifications over the ’31-’32 season, the 8C enjoys surprisingly flat handling for a car of its era. When this superior handling is coupled with the 8C’s remarkable grunt from it’s straight-8, supercharged engine, it’s no wonder it proved so dominant. Photo: James Lipman/Fiskens Archive
He is probably not everyone’s perception of an Italian, but Vittorio Jano—who almost single-handedly made Alfa Romeo’s name during his time with the company—was an exceptional organizer and disciplinarian. Enzo Ferrari recalled that he “took command in Milan (and) established an iron military discipline…” but, how did he get there and what did he do?
On April 22, 1891, Jano was born in the small town of San Giorgio Canavese, northeast of Turin in the direction of Ivrea. He always said that he thought his surname was derived from the middle-European “Janos” and that his family was the result of Hungarian soldiers being in Italy in the wars of the first half of the 18th century and electing to stay on after they were over.
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