1964 Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 Series I
Coachwork by Carrozzeria Pininfarina
Registration no. Not registered in the UK
Chassis no. 5797
Engine no. 5797

This particular Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 Coupé by Pininfarina is a left-hand drive European 4-headlight variant featuring 4-speed transmission with overdrive, power windows, factory seat belts and with provision for a radio to be fitted. It was Pininfarina assembly sequence No 158 and was finished originally in Bianco 18934 M exterior paintwork with its original interior colour Nero VM 8500. It retains its original engine and is thus a 'matching numbers' example.

This 'Series I' 330 GT was built during the first month of the model's production period and it was sold new to Ferrari's energetic Venezuelan importer, Carlos Kauffman, in Caracas. He then supplied it to its first private owner, Serafino Fridegotto of Caracas.

Little is recorded of the car's central American life but we know that it was returned to Italy from Venezuela on June 10, 1970. It was Padua registered on September 16 that year, with the licence plate serial 'PD 268296'. On September 22, 1970, the car was then sold to Assunta Ines Maria Fridegotto – presumably a relative of its original Venezuelan owner – resident in Rovolon, Padua Province, Italy.

It was then acquired on August 2, 1973, by Gianfrancesca Bertola of Vicenza, the declared price being Lire 1,000,000. On August 28 it was then re-registered in Vicenza as 'VI 277727'. The car then found its fourth owner in the shape of Fabrizio Violati's Bellancauto SpA company, domiciled at the Villa della Conciliazione, Rome, on April 15, 1977. The car subsequently became yet another of the exhibits within his Collezione Maranello Rosso exhibitions halls in the Republic of San Marino, from which it was entrusted to Bonhams for sale by auction this past July.

Introduced in January 1964, the 330 GT 2+2 was based on the preceding 250 GTE model, Ferrari's first quantity-production fourseater road car. Ferrari's production partner, Pininfarina, had again been entrusted with the latest model's styling. Most notably – and controversially - they adopted a four-headlamp frontal treatment that reflected the perceived contemporary tastes of Ferrari's most important export market, the USA. Although some criticized its styling, and the departure from European norms in its adoption of the four-headlight system, what would become known retrospectively as the 'Series 1' four-headlight 330 GT would become truly evocative of 1960s fashion, lauded both for its individuality and for Pininfarina's purity of design in such a Grand Touring conveyance for the gentry.

Like its predecessor, the 330 GT employed a sturdy tubular chassis welded-up from mixed oval and round stock, though this time some 50mm – 2-inches - longer in its wheelbase, which greatly improved cabin space for the occasional rear-seat passengers. Suspension was independent at the front by wishbones and coil springs while at the rear a live axle/semi-elliptic system was retained. Improvements to the model's disc brake system saw separate hydraulic circuits provided for the front and rear brake calipers.

The 330's Colombo-type, 60-degree, two-cam, V12 engine had first appeared in the 330 America (effectively a re-engined 250 GTE 2+2) introduced in 1963. Displacing 3,967cc, the all-alloy unit was good for 300-plus horsepower at 6,600rpm, an output sufficient to propel the 330 GT to a maximum velocity of 152mph (245km/h) making it, when introduced, the fastest road-going Ferrari. Built alongside the ultra-exclusive Superamerica, the 330 GT became Ferrari's ultimate Gran Turismo for the sophisticated client during the "swinging 'sixties". A personal favorite of Enzo Ferrari himself, the 330 GT would become the first of his production cars to sell more than 1,000 units.

This is a handsome example of the now rare 'Series I' 4-headlight 330 GT and it is offered here direct from very long-term museum display. We therefore recommend expert inspection and careful re-commissioning before a new owner might consider using the car in earnest.

Please note this vehicle is subject to import tax should it remain in the EU.