Ferrari 250 GTO Manufacturer Ferrari Production 1962–1964 (36 produced) Successor Ferrari 288 GTO Class Sports car Body style(s) Berlinetta Layout FR layout Engine(s) 3. The automotive industry is the industry involved in the design development manufacture marketing and sale of Motor vehicles In 2007 more than 73 million motor vehicles Ferrari SpA is an Italian Sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy The Ferrari GTO (often referred to as Ferrari 288 GTO) was an exotic Homologation (thus the O for Omologazione) version of the Ferrari 308 GTB Car classification is subjective since many vehicles fall into multiple categories or do not fit well into any A sports car is a term used to describe a class of Automobile. Cars can come in a large variety of different body styles. Some are still in production while others are of historical interest only Berlinetta is a term used to designate a coupe car (as opposed to spider, a Convertible car In Automotive design layout specifies where on the car the Engine and Drive wheels are found 0 L V12 300 PS (296 hp/221 kW) Transmission(s) 5-speed manual Wheelbase 2,400 mm (94. V12 redirects here For the V12 Training program see V-12 Navy College Training Program. A manual transmission (also known as a stick shift or just 'stick' 'straight drive' or standard transmission) is a type of transmission used in In both road and rail Vehicles the wheelbase is the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels 5 in) Curb weight 1,100 kilograms (2,425 lb) Related 330 LMB 250 LM

The Ferrari 250 GTO was a sports car and auto racing car made by Ferrari in the early 1960s. Curb weight is the total Weight of a Vehicle with standard equipment all necessary operating Consumables (e 330 America The 1963 330 America shared the outgoing 250 GTE's chassis but not its engine being powered by the new Type 209 at 6600 rpm 4 The Ferrari 250 is a series of Sports cars built by Ferrari from the 1950s and early 1960s A sports car is a term used to describe a class of Automobile. Auto racing (also known as automobile racing, motor racing or car racing) is a Motorsport involving Racing Cars It Ferrari SpA is an Italian Sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy

The numerical part of its name denotes the displacement in cubic centimeters of each cylinder of the engine, whilst GTO stands for "Gran Turismo Omologato", Italian for "Grand Touring Homologated. Engine displacement is defined as the total Volume of air/fuel mixture an Engine can draw in during one complete engine cycle it is normally stated in Cubic A cubic centimetre or cubic centimeter (symbol cm3 —the abbreviation cc, though widely used is deprecated is a commonly used unit of Volume The internal combustion engine is an engine in which the Combustion of Fuel and an Oxidizer (typically air occurs in a confined space called a Italian ( or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 63 million people as a First language, primarily in Italy. Homologation is a technical term derived from the Greek homologeo (ὁμολογέω for "to agree" which is generally used in English to signify "

In 2004, Sports Car International named the 250 GTO number eight on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s, and number one as the top sports car of all time. Sports Car International is an Automobile Magazine in the United States focused on Sports cars It is unabashedly enthusiast-oriented Sports Car International magazine compiled a list of the Top Sports Cars of the last few decades Similarly, Motor Trend Classic named the 250 GTO as number one in their list of the "Greatest Ferraris of all time". Motor Trend is one of the oldest Automobile magazines still publishing.

Development

The V12 engine

The 250 GTO was designed to compete in GT racing. V12 redirects here For the V12 Training program see V-12 Navy College Training Program. Sports car racing is a form of circuit Auto racing with Automobiles that have two seats and enclosed wheels It was based on the 250 GT SWB. The Ferrari 250 is a series of Sports cars built by Ferrari from the 1950s and early 1960s Chief engineer Giotto Bizzarrini installed the 3. Giotto Bizzarrini (born June 6, 1926) is an Italian Automobile engineer active from the 1950s through 1970s 0 L V12 engine from the 250 Testa Rossa into the chassis from the 250 GT SWB and worked with designer Sergio Scaglietti to develop the body. The litre or liter (see spelling differences) is a unit of Volume. V12 redirects here For the V12 Training program see V-12 Navy College Training Program. The Ferrari 250 is a series of Sports cars built by Ferrari from the 1950s and early 1960s Carrozzeria Scaglietti (ˈkarɔˌtsɛria ˌskaˈʎjɛti was an Italian Automobile design and coachbuilding active in the 1950s After Bizzarrini and most other Ferrari engineers were fired in a dispute with Enzo Ferrari, development was handed over to new engineer Mauro Forghieri who worked with Scaglietti to continue development of the body, including wind tunnel and track testing. Enzo Anselmo "the Commendatore" Ferrari ( February 20, 1898 &ndash August 14, 1988) was an Italian car driver and entrepreneur Mauro Forghieri (born January 13 1935) is an Italian Formula One car designer A wind tunnel is a research tool developed to assist with studying the effects of air moving over or around solid objects Unlike most Ferraris, it was not designed by a specific individual or design house.

The rest of the car was typical of early-Sixties Ferrari technology: a hand-welded tube frame, A-arm front suspension, a live-axle rear end, disc brakes, and Borrani wire wheels. The disc brake or disk brake is a device for slowing or stopping the rotation of a Wheel. The five-speed gearbox was new to Ferrari GT racing cars; the metal gate that defined the shift pattern would in turn become a tradition that is still maintained in current models. The interior was extremely basic, to the point where a speedometer was not installed in the instrument panel. Many of its switches came from the Fiat 500, and it was said that as the car was rushed into production, the original cloth seats were made from workers' overalls. "500" is also Fiat's model number for the earlier Fiat Topolino, later Fiat Cinquecento and current Fiat Nuova 500 The ^[1]

Racing success

At the time, the FIA rules for sports car racing required at least one hundred examples of a car to be built in order for it to be homologated in the GT class . However, Ferrari built only 36 250 GTOs (33 of the "normal" cars, three with four-litre 330 engine sometimes called the "330 GTO" - recognizable by the large hump on the hood - and three "Type 64" cars, with revised bodywork) but the car was still allowed to race in the GT class. 125 The first homegrown Ferrari engine was the 125. First appearing May 11, 1947 under the hood of Ferrari's 125 S sports racer The reason why the GTO was allowed to race is unclear.

The car debuted at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1962, driven by the team of American Phil Hill (the standing World Driving Champion) and Belgian Olivier Gendebien. Philip Toll Hill Jr, ( April 20, 1927 &ndash August 28, 2008) was a United States automobile racer and the only American-born Olivier Gendebien ( 12 January 1924, Brussels, Belgium – 2 October 1998, Les Baux de Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône Although originally annoyed that they were driving a GT-class car instead of one of the full-race Testa Rossas competing in the prototype class, the experienced pair impressed themselves (and everyone else) by finishing 2nd overall behind the Testa Rossa of Bonnier and Scarfiotti. See also the 500 TR and Testarossa models The Ferrari TR, or 250 Testa Rossa, is a race car model built by Joakim "Jo" Bonnier ( January 31 1930 - June 11 1972) was a Swedish Sportscar racing and Formula One Ludovico Scarfiotti ( 18 October 1933 - 8 June 1968) was a Formula One and sports car driver from Italy.

The 250 GTO won the World Manufacturer's Championship in 1962, 1963, and 1964.

Production

Ferrari, and his dealer in North America Luigi Chinetti, were selective about the customers to whom they would sell the thirty-six GTOs produced. The cost of a GTO when new was $18,000 to buyers that met Ferrari's or Chinetti's approval.

The 250 GTO was one of the last front-engined cars to be competitive at the top level of sports car racing. In the age before vintage racing, the 250 GTO faced the same fate as any other racing car of its time: as it passed into obsolescence, some were kept as regional race machines, while others were used as normal passenger cars. It is believed that all 36 GTOs still exist. Many are still raced today in such events as the Monterey Historic Races at Laguna Seca.

Collectability and appreciating value

In the late Seventies and early Eighties, the focus of the "performance" of the 250 GTO and other rare Ferraris turned out to be their rapidly-accelerating market value. As the auto industry struggled through new regulations and questionable marketing decisions, the unfettered performance machines of the recent past became more desirable. The point of view regarding these cars began to change from old but lovable racing cars to a sort of drivable fine art, much like the coachbuilt luxury cars of the pre-World War II era. This raised the interest of wealthy collectors in these cars.

This investment mentality became excessive in the late Eighties. As the wealth of certain members of the baby-boomer generation exploded and the stock market became a questionable investment, the market value of classic cars, especially Ferraris, went geometric - and as the much-touted great example of all the best traits of the breed, the asking price of the 250 GTOs soared highest. One of them, seized by the FBI from a convicted drug dealer, was sold in a sealed auction in 1988 for approximately $2 million, which was considered outrageous at the time - and within three years would come to be seen as a good investment. The last 250 GTO believed to be auctioned off was through World Classic Auctions, in Las Vegas in 1991. The total came up to $5. 5 million. ^[2] A legend states that a 250 GTO exchanged hands to a Japanese collector for approximately $15 million.

The money element, and the car's raw desirability and scarcity, have resulted in a number of faux 250 GTOs being crafted on the base of more common Ferrari chassis; there are many more cars that look like 250 GTOs on roads today than were ever rolled out of the Scaglietti coachworks. The Alpha One 250 GTO replica used the chassis and body of a first generation Datsun Z-car and can be seen in the John Candy movie Delirious. The S30 Nissan/Datsun (known in Japan as the Fairlady Z and in other markets as the 240Z and later as the 260Z and 280Z Delirious is a Romantic comedy Film starring John Candy, Mariel Hemingway, Emma Samms and Raymond Burr. In the opening scenes of the film Vanilla Sky, the main character drives a black 250 GTO, though this was later revealed to have been a different car altered to look like an original 250. Vanilla Sky is a 2001 American Psychological thriller Film, which has been variously characterized by published film critics as "an odd On a more sinister level, misrepresentations of the original cars, with unscrupulous types attempting to sell them for full price, have been reported. One such example (although he did not sell his) was Charles Brocket, who had his passed off as a genuine example when it was a replica and this only came to light when he was convicted of insurance fraud in 1996. Charles Ronald George Nall-Cain 3rd Baron Brocket (born 12 February 1952) also known as Charlie Brocket, is a peer and television presenter Insurance fraud is any act committed with the intent to Fraudulently obtain payment from an insurer. The number of replicas on the roads would spark a legendary saying (the number quoted can vary from source to source). . .

The collector-car bubble burst in a very messy way not much later, but the price for legitimate high-demand Ferrari models has steadily climbed in the middle of the first decade after the millennium.

References

External Links

A gathering of GTOs for the 45th Anniversary celebration