Ferrari built the racing (Corsa) version of its 166 model to attract wealthy customers who wished to race their vehicles.
Based on the aluminum tubular chassis from the 159, the 166 Corsa version was a lighter model with a more powerful engine under the hood. The engineers bolted an additional X-type brace system under the cabin to strengthen the chassis. Ferrari built the 166 to win races, and that’s what it did. Even though there were only nine vehicles produced, all of them were covered in glory at races.

Ferrari reshaped the bodywork by removing all the unnecessary elements, such as the wider fenders and the greenhouse. In the end, its designers made an enclosed engine bay with two removable headlights attached to the nose and removable wheel fenders for all the wheels. With all these removed, the car looked like a torpedo on wheels, fit for racing in Formula 2. Even the regular windshield could have been removed and replaced with a windscreen in front of the driver only.

The cockpit was fit for a pilot and a co-pilot. In front of the driver, the carmaker installed a big tachometer with a white needle and a red line at the 7000 rpm mark. A pair of leather bucket seats supported the occupants.

Under the hood, Ferrari installed an updated version of its 1.5-liter Colombo V12 engine. Its displacement was increased to 2.0 liters due to a larger bore. To increase its power, Ferrari installed three dual-barrel Webber carburetors. There was only one transmission available, with five gears.