"The Dino, named in honour of Enzo Ferrari’s son, was a brand for V6 engined Ferraris and the project that Alfredo ‘Dino’ Ferrari worked on before he died tragically of muscular dystrophy at just 24 years old. In order to homologate Ferrari’s Formula Two entry in 1966, the FIA requested that 500 production cars were produced using the same V6 unit as the race car. The Fiat Dino was born using the two-litre V6 Ferrari unit which was later used in the early 206GT versions of the Dino. Ferrari used the mid-engined configuration that was working well for them in sports car racing for the new Dino and the prototype 206S was shown at the 1966 Turin show. The car drew a positive response and Ferrari put the car into production, making it the first mid-engined production Ferrari. A 2.4 litre version on a longer wheelbase, the 246GT, replaced the Dino 206 in late 1969. The beauty of a mid-engined sports car is the handling, as the improved centre of gravity lends itself to better road holding. A Ferrari Dino has great cornering ability and is an enormously fun car to drive.
Our vendor purchased this example back in 1987 and has cherished it ever since. Work life and family life meant the car never got used as much as he originally intended, so it was stored away and used very sparingly over the years. The car spent around 20 years off the road from the mid 1990’s, so in 2019 a thorough recommissioning process began. The work was entrusted to Modena Engineering, who from late 2019 until late 2023, went right through the car inspecting and replacing anything which had deteriorated whilst it was in storage. A total of £54,279 was spent and the car is now in fine fettle. The work began by draining and renewing all fluids, carrying out a compression test, carburettor strip down and refresh, replacement of all coolant hoses, fuel tank internal inspection, new fuel hoses, new spark plus and HT leads, ignition and fuel system checks, brake caliper overhauled, new water flow housing, a tidy up of unnecessary wiring from the car and lots of focus on wiring in general, four new brake discs and pads, new brake pipes, new headlamps, new exhaust manifold gaskets, new CV boots, new engine mounts, overhauled starter motor and alternator, re-chroming of bumpers, suspension inspection, new Koni shock absorbers, new bushes, suspension geometry setup, steering rack overhaul, new undertray, work to internal floor panel, outer floor sills, new gearbox sump gasket, gear change adjustment setup, timing chain tension adjustment, valve clearances checked and adjusted, new head studs, general engine bay tidy up where necessary with cam cover vapour blasted and returned to black, internal paint used for camshaft end plates and oil filler neck, new aluminium expansion tank, interior removed, floor panels cleaned, new underfelt fitted for floors and bulkhead, door lock and window adjustments and many many other small but labour intensive recommissioning jobs.
The car is now supplied to auction in excellent condition, with what appears to be its original seats, excellent paint and the knowledge that an expert has recently been right through the car and it is now ready to be enjoyed. We do know that this car was originally built as a left hand drive example, delivered to its first owner in Italy, but has always been right hand drive during our vendor’s ownership. The car is offered with a very attractive estimate for any Dino and will be supplied with a V5C registration document and twenty pages of invoices detailing the recent works undertaken. Consignor Fraser Smith
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