It was reportedly one of Enzo Ferrari’s favourite cars. Il Commendatore ran a pre-production version of the 330 GT 2+2 for two years, ahead of the car’s launch at the 1964 Brussels Salon. That very car sold for around $500,000 in 2018.
Mr. Ferrari liked the 330 GT 2+2 enough to gift one to John Surtees in recognition of winning the 1964 Formula One World Championship. Surtees, who at the time owned a BMW 507, was given the choice of the Ferrari range, but chose the new 330 GT 2+2 because it had the biggest boot. Even F1 drivers demand practicality on their days off.
Launched as a replacement for the 250 GTE 2+2 and 330 America, the styling of the 330 GT 2+2 was penned by Tom Tjaarda at Pininfarina. The twin headlight arrangement proved controversial and was altered when the second series of the car arrived in the middle of 1965. At the same time, the Borrani wire wheels made way for ten-hole cast alloy wheels, still with knock-off Rudge hubs. The original wire wheels remained an option.
One thing that didn’t change was the Colombo 4-litre V12 engine. Producing 300bhp at 6600rpm, the engine could whisk the grand tourer and its occupants to a top speed of 245km/h (152mph). Car and Driver described the ride as “harsh as hell on any surface at any speed under seventy-five, but smooth as glass at anything over eighty”.
In the same review, the road tester said: “If the Ferrari was a woman, she’d be about thirty-five with an athletic figure and sad eyes. She’d be a lousy cook, sensational in bed, and utterly unfaithful.” He also said the rival Pontiac 2+2 “would have an enormous bosom and the pretty-but-empty-face of an airline stewardess. She’d be earnest but uninspired in both kitchen and boudoir, and your friends would think you were the luckiest guy in the world”.
The 1960s: a decade that was, quite literally, a different era.
Production ran from 1964 to 1967, by which time some 1080 examples had been built. It was replaced by the 365 GT 2+2, which took the Ferrari 2+2 into the 1970s.
As is evident by the quad headlights, the ‘garage find’ coming to auction is a series one car, delivered new on 1 August 1964 in London. Originally finished in Blu Scuro with a red leather interior, the car was despatched to its first private owner, the Scottish businessman Sir John “Jack” Stewart Clark. He kept the car for a couple of years before moving it on.
It changed hands a few times in the 1960s, before the vendor bought it in 1971, having responded to a classified advert for a ‘Ferrari 330 Sports’. The ad described the car as a ‘fabulous looker’ and ‘a snip’ at a mere £1750. The seller stopped short of commenting on its performance in the bedroom or kitchen, but the remark about it being ‘a snip’ was spot on; that’s around £19,750 in today’s money.
Unfortunately, it needed more work than the buyer envisioned (we’ve all been there), and although the clutch and flywheel were sorted, the Ferrari was last sent for an MOT in 1987. After 35 years in the garage, the owner has decided to move it on. One of only 20 or so known right-hand drive survivors, the matching numbers example has covered just 43,000 miles.
The auctioneers describe it as “largely solid” and in a “well preserved condition”, but notes that the “slumbering V12 engine” was turned over and “burst into life”. A pre-auction estimate of £60,000 to £70,000 seems reasonable, especially given current Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 values. Once complete, it could fetch between £140,000 and £231,000.
If you’re searching for a winter project, the 2+2 will go under the hammer at this weekend’s Dore & Rees autumn sale.
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