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1962 FERRARI 330 GT 4.0 Litre Series 1. FIA Papers 330 GTO - Serial Number 7225 Rebodied as 250 GTO |
| Endurance racing around 1960 was
dominated by Ferrari's 3 litre 250 TR. When the displacement limits for
prototypes were raised to 4 litres, Ferrari revised one of the TR chassis
of 1961 to accommodate a larger engine. A modified version of the four litre
unit found the Superamerica was installed in the independently sprung chassis
and carefully piloted this one-off secured the final Le Mans victory for
the legendary Testa Rossa. A similar engine found its way into a small number
of GT cars produced in 1962 and 1963. |
| Let's take a closer look at the engine first. Most of Ferrari's large displacement engines followed the lines penned out by Lampredi and the smaller ones were based on the Colombo designed unit which powered the first Ferrari. Although a four litre version of the Lampredi was available, Ferrari decided to use a larger version of the Colombo engine used in the 250 GT for the 400 Superamerica (SA), launched in 1960. Both bore and stroke were increased, but overall the powerplant was only slightly taller and longer compared to the 250 GT engine. |
| Displacing only 330.62 cc per cylinder the
SA, in good Ferrari tradition, should have been called 330 SA. For competition use the engine was slightly modified. In standard form it was already fitted with many of the modifications carried through on the 250 GT engine to create the 250 TR unit. Dry-sump, competition camshafts and six twin-choke Webers were all standard equipment in the very exclusive 400 SA. Like the 250 TR engine, the 4 litre engine was good for 100 bhp in competition shape for a grand total of 400 bhp, an increase of 60 bhp compared to the street engine. |
| Closed cars were also eligible to run in
the prototype or experimental class, so Ferrari fitted a number of 250 GT
derived chassis with the competition four-litre engine. In 1962 and 1963
a total of seven 'Berlinettas' were fitted with the 4-litre engine. The
first three were fitted with a body similar to the regular GTO and the next
four were fitted with a body similar to the LM bodied GTO, which had a similar
rear end as the Lusso. Bodies of these first three differed slightly from
the GTOs, most noticable is the large bump in the bonnet to clear the larger
engine and the extra set of lights in the nose. Not officially named by
Ferrari, they came to be known as the 330 GTO. |
| Not all of the 330 GTOs were used in competition, but the first one constructed was and it won its class the first time out at the Nürburgring 1000 km race. Article by Wouter Melissen |
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| From the late 1970s to the late 1980s, classic
car values rose rapidly and the 250 GTO, touted as the Ferrari that most
successfully embodies the salient traits of the marque, became the most
valuable of all Ferraris. According to an anonymously authored article in Times Online, a 250 GTO seized by the FBI from a convicted drug dealer was sold in a sealed auction in 1988 for approximately $2 million. In 1989, at the peak of the boom, a 250 GTO was sold to a Japanese buyer for $14.6 million plus commission. By 1991 the market had cooled to the extent that a GTO sold at a Las Vegas auction for $5.5 million, and in 1994 the example that had brought $13.3 million five years earlier changed hands for about $3.5 million. In 2008, a British buyer bought a 250 GTO that formerly belonged to Lee Kun-hee of Samsung Electronics at an auction for a record £15.7 million. Scarcity and high monetary values led to the creation of several replica 250 GTOs on more common Ferrari chassis. Misrepresentations of the original cars, offered for sale at full market value, have been reported. When Lord Brocket was convicted of insurance fraud in 1996 it came to light that he had passed off his replica as a genuine example, although he had not sold it. However the values of legitimate high-demand Ferrari models have continued to rise through the present decade. |
Another Superb example recreated from an original 330GT One of only 5 Ferrari 330GT Spyder Specials |
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Contact for furtherdetails
bva@exemail.com.au |