Unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October 1966, the 275 GTB/4 was the final iteration of the beloved road-going 275 Grand Touring Berlinetta, which was first introduced in short-nose, two-cam configuration in 1964. The new GTB/4 was differentiated from the outgoing, long-nose, two-cam 275 GTB by a muscular bulge on the engine bonnet.

Maranello’s first four-cam road car, the GTB/4 was equipped with a 3.3-liter tipo 226 V-12 engine inspired by Ferrari’s successful line of prototype racing cars of the period. Producing 300 hp at its screaming 8,000 rpm redline, the dry sump V-12 had improved low-end torque and greater overall flexibility.

Beyond its magnificent four-cam V-12 engine, the 275 GTB/4 benefited from other notable refinements, from the implementation of the improved torque-tube driveshaft to more modern interior appointments. Beautiful, civilized, and devastatingly fast, Ferrari’s four-cam Berlinetta had few peers on the roads of 1967.

According to the research of Ferrari historian Marcel Massini, the 275 GTB/4 presented here, chassis 10299, was completed on August 22, 1967. Factory records on file confirm that this car was originally finished in the classic Ferrari color scheme of Rosso Chiaro (Light Red), with an interior trimmed in Beige Scuro Connolly leather.

Originally specified for the European market, 10299 was equipped with optional electric window lifts and a speedometer in kilometers per hour. The new four-cam Berlinetta had been ordered through Jacques Swaters’ Benelux Ferrari distributorship, Garage Francorchamps in Brussels, Belgium, by Petrus Hubert Henderiks of Weert, the Netherlands. Henderiks took delivery at the factory in Maranello on September 4, 1967, and was issued an Italian tourist registration Carta de Circolazione, which is contained in the car’s file.

Two years later, in November 1969, the Ferrari was exported to the US, where its next owner was William Kenneth DiStefano of Montclair, New Jersey. Mr. DiStefano had the car serviced by the official US Ferrari distributor Luigi Chinetti Motors in New York, and according to Ferrari historian Marcel Massini, the odometer showed 2,683 km at the time. Mr. DiStefano decided to sell the car two years later and described it in an advertisement in the September 1971 issue of Road & Track as “always garaged, mint condition, asking $10,500.”

The Berlinetta’s next owner was Edward Thomas Conmy Jr. of Fargo, North Dakota, whose stable also included a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing and Jaguar E-Type, photos of which are on file. Conmy retained the car for six years, until it was acquired by renowned racing driver Charlie Kemp of Jackson, Mississippi in 1977. Mr. Kemp had an extremely successful racing career, which spanned from 1967 through 1979 and included campaigning a multitude of cars, from a Shelby GT350 at the 24 Hours of Daytona to participating in the Can-Am series with multiple Lolas and a Porsche 917/10.

Mr. Kemp also founded International Motorcars Corporation, a sports car dealership, in the mid-1970s with his friend Sam Scott in Jackson. Their heavily Ferrari-dominated showroom was converted from a Chrysler dealership, which was owned by Mr. Kemp’s father. Some unusual Ferraris featured within the showroom included an early “plexi-glass” 365 GTB/4 and the 365 P “Tre Posti” (chassis 8815). Mr. Kemp kept a 250 SWB (chassis 2251) as a personal driver.

Mr. Kemp sold the 275 GTB/4 to renowned Ferrari restorer and marque authority Patrick Ottis of Breckenridge, Colorado, and eventually Berkeley, California, in 1978. Recently reflecting on his ownership of the car, Mr. Ottis said, “I had made my living repairing Ferraris for eight years and really wanted a 275 four-cam. I was working for Alf Francis in Oklahoma City and repaired a six-carb two-cam 275 for Kemp and told him I would like to buy it. Kemp gave the two-cam to his girlfriend, but told me he had a low mileage four-cam he wanted to sell. It was an original paint and interior car at the time. When we stripped the car to bare metal, there was no evidence it had been in an accident, and there were hammer planishing marks around the original welds applied at Scaglietti.” Archival photographs on file show the Ferrari in bare metal in Colorado in 1978. Ottis elected to simply repaint the car, while leaving the well-preserved upholstery intact.

Later, Mr. Ottis moved to California and registered the Ferrari under the blue plate “1KFF512,” which accompanies the car today. By this time, the speedometer had been exchanged for a US-specification mile per hour unit. Mr. Ottis would retain the car for 21 years.

Acquired by the consignor in 2001, this 275 GTB/4 has remained the centerpiece of his extensive collection, containing the finest postwar and contemporary sports cars from Italy, Germany, Japan, and the US for over 24 years. During his ownership, the four cam has been shown on multiple occasions, almost exclusively in the Pacific Northwest, and has been awarded First in Class multiple times at the Kirkland Concours d’Elegance in Washington.

Being cognizant of the car’s cherished life and limited roster of caring owners, the consignor has maintained the four-cam mechanically and has kept it in extremely presentable cosmetic condition, but has never subjected it to an unnecessary complete concours restoration.

By September 2001, the Ferrari’s paint had become faded in areas, and a specialist in Port Angeles, Washington, was selected to expertly repaint the four-cam, a process that took six months. Ferrari specialist Butch Dennison of Puyallup, Washington, has been responsible for maintaining the Ferrari’s mechanicals during the past 18 years, work that is documented in detailed invoices on file. In 2004, upholstery specialist Ken Nemanic of Walnut Creek, California, was entrusted with reupholstering the front seats, carpet, and lower door panels. The original seat leather and lower door panels accompany the sale, while the dash and upper door panels remain original.

Also included in the sale are a tool kit, original handbook folio and owner’s manual, early ownership transfer paperwork, copies of factory build sheets, maintenance invoices, correspondence, concours awards, and a history report compiled by Ferrari historian Marcel Massini.

This pure and coveted 275 GTB/4, retaining its original four-cam engine and transaxle, and equipped with desirable cast-alloy wheels and period Irvin Air Chute seat belts, is an exceptional example that was cherished for years by multiple long-term owners. These traits are not commonly found in other four-cams present in the public market, meaning this is surely one of the finest examples extant and worthy of close inspection and consideration.