330 GTC
I'm minding my own business the other day when I get a text from L.A. Rob about "some craziness" he ran across a few minutes earlier. Then this is what pops up in the next message:
Alright, so what should I do now? Start a blog about flowers or cooking? Because it's painfully obvious that this will be the finest bit of machinery to ever grace NYC Hoopties corner of the internet. This is a car that sells in the $400,000-$900,000 range parked on the street! It took a little while after this teaser text but the images came through and I hand the crown to L.A. Rob for the automotive find of the year.
What we have here is a Ferrari 330 GTC from 1966-1968.
This was known as the first Ferrari in which you could enjoy the radio. Before this model Ferraris were really more stripped-down race car than anything else. The 330 added classy refinement in the guise of rich leather seating and insulation against noise. These were also the easiest Ferraris to drive up to that point with 4-wheel disc brakes, road-tuned independant suspension, and great visibility thanks to the thin-pillared window treatment.
I'm not usually the guy speaking about cars as if they're beautiful women, but this Ferrari's sexy as hell. There isn't a harsh angle, crease, or neglected moment on any inch of this stunning high water mark of automotive design. How many superlatives can I fit into a sentence to describe it? Not enough!
The Italian design house Paninfarina is responsible for the bodywork on the 330, which was available as the GTC (Grand Touring Coupe), the GTS (convertible), and the 2+2 (4-seater). From the windshield forward the design is almost identical to the earlier Ferrari 400 Superamerica. If that name sounds cool consider this; the 400 Superamerica was renamed the 500 Superfast for its final year! "What kind of car do you drive?"
"A Ferrari 500 Superfast."
Those 4 exhaust pipes are attached to a front-mounted 4.0 Liter 12 cylinder engine rated at 330 horsepower and mated to a 5-speed manual transaxle. 330 hp doesn't sound like a crazy amount, but when it's a high-revving 12 cylinder in a somewhat light and very balanced car that's plenty! I've just watched a slew of videos with people driving these things and they sound tremendous.
We can tell this car was built without a radio from this shot; on the rear upper quarter panel just under the passenger side of the window there would be an antenna if it had one.
I've seen dark green and red examples of the 330 GTC, but I think this silver is the classiest choice. It is a touring coupe after all, not a race car.
In this shot through the rear window we can see the leather luggage straps mounted on the rear deck. As it is a classic touring coupe there are only 2 seats, with a luggage tray where the rear seat would be. This car also has a decently sized trunk, so in theory you really could tour your way across Europe with all the luggage you'd need. If you look further over the seat you can see the 3 vents for the heater. Just below these vents would be the radio if this car was so equipped.
The locking gas cap is more to deter souvenir seekers than gas thieves as the cap alone would cost more than several tanks full of fuel to replace. Of course it's lovingly painted the correct color and sports shiny chrome trim. What do you expect for half a million dollars?
The original wooden steering wheel is a great touch. I think this is probably a pretty safe neighborhood since the owner parked this thing with the vent windows wide open!
Not that it matters, but I've seen both chrome rearview mirrors and black ones such as this in the 330s. Maybe the black version was the export model? Somebody out there knows the answer because somebody out there knows every single thing there is to know about every Ferrari.
Well there we have it; one of the finest sports (ahem, Grand Touring) cars ever made. Tomorrow we feature something not so nice.
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