LOT 272 •
1973 Ferrari Dino 246GTS Spyder Coachwork by Pininfarina Chassis no. 04366
Estimate: US$175,000 - US$200,000
Lot 272•
1973 Ferrari Dino 246GTS Spyder Chassis no. 04366
The Greenwich Concours d'Elegance, Collectors' Motorcars and Automobilia|7 June 2009, 12:00 EDT|Connecticut, Greenwich
1973 Ferrari Dino 246GTS Spyder
Coachwork by Pininfarina
Chassis no. 04366
Coachwork by Pininfarina
Chassis no. 04366
It was the need for a production-based engine for the new Formula 2 that led to the introduction of a ‘junior’ Ferrari, the Dino 206GT, at the Turin Motor Show in 1967. Building on experienced gained with its successful limited edition Dino 206S sports-racer of 1966, Ferrari retained the racer’s mid-engined layout for the road car but installed the power unit transversely rather than longitudinally. A compact, aluminum-bodied coupe of striking appearance, the Pininfarina-styled Dino - named after Enzo Ferrari’s late son Alfredino Ferrari and intended as the first of a separate but related marque - was powered by a 2-litre, four-cam V6 driving through an in-unit five-speed transaxle. The motor’s 180 brake horsepower was good enough to propel the lightweight, aerodynamically-efficient Dino to 142mph, and while there were few complaints about the car’s performance, the high cost enforced by its aluminum construction hindered sales.
A 2.4-litre version on a longer wheelbase - the 246GT - replaced the Dino 206 in late 1969. The body was now steel and the cylinder block cast-iron rather than aluminum, but the bigger engine's increased power - 195bhp at 7,600rpm - was adequate compensation for the weight gain. A Targa-top version, the 246GTS, followed in 1972. While not quite as fast in a straight line as its larger V12-engined stablemates, the nimble Dino was capable of showing almost anything a clean pair of heels over twisty going.
Testing the ultimate V6-engined Dino – the 246GT – in 1972, the authoritative American motoring magazine Road & Track enthused, ‘it is a thrill to drive a car like the Dino, one whose capabilities are far beyond what even an expert driver can use in most real-world motoring, and that is the Dino’s reason for being. The real joy of a good mid-engined car is in its handling and braking and the Dino shone as we expected it to. The steering is quick without being super quick, and it transmits by what seems a carefully planned amount of feedback exactly what is going on at the tires. Thanks to the layout’s low polar moment of inertia the car responds instantly to it. The Dino’s cornering limits are very high… ’ Truly a driver’s car par excellence.
As the first series-produced, mid-engined Ferraris, the early Dino V6s are landmark cars. The line they founded would prove to be an immense commercial success for Maranello, production amounting to 2,487 GT coupés and 1,274 GTS spyders by the time the model was deleted in 1974.
Starkly presented in the ever popular Giallo Fly yellow, the 246 GTS we offer was purchased by the current owner in California in 2001. Accompanying the car we are told is a large file of bills accounting for work carried out in the mid-1990s when it was refurbished and its maintenance since. In its current use the owner has chosen to give the 1970s classic a minor facelift with the fitting of Ferrari 348 rims and more modern rear view mirrors, but we are assured that the four original Campagnolo rims are still with the car and for the purist this would be a simple reversal.
A 2.4-litre version on a longer wheelbase - the 246GT - replaced the Dino 206 in late 1969. The body was now steel and the cylinder block cast-iron rather than aluminum, but the bigger engine's increased power - 195bhp at 7,600rpm - was adequate compensation for the weight gain. A Targa-top version, the 246GTS, followed in 1972. While not quite as fast in a straight line as its larger V12-engined stablemates, the nimble Dino was capable of showing almost anything a clean pair of heels over twisty going.
Testing the ultimate V6-engined Dino – the 246GT – in 1972, the authoritative American motoring magazine Road & Track enthused, ‘it is a thrill to drive a car like the Dino, one whose capabilities are far beyond what even an expert driver can use in most real-world motoring, and that is the Dino’s reason for being. The real joy of a good mid-engined car is in its handling and braking and the Dino shone as we expected it to. The steering is quick without being super quick, and it transmits by what seems a carefully planned amount of feedback exactly what is going on at the tires. Thanks to the layout’s low polar moment of inertia the car responds instantly to it. The Dino’s cornering limits are very high… ’ Truly a driver’s car par excellence.
As the first series-produced, mid-engined Ferraris, the early Dino V6s are landmark cars. The line they founded would prove to be an immense commercial success for Maranello, production amounting to 2,487 GT coupés and 1,274 GTS spyders by the time the model was deleted in 1974.
Starkly presented in the ever popular Giallo Fly yellow, the 246 GTS we offer was purchased by the current owner in California in 2001. Accompanying the car we are told is a large file of bills accounting for work carried out in the mid-1990s when it was refurbished and its maintenance since. In its current use the owner has chosen to give the 1970s classic a minor facelift with the fitting of Ferrari 348 rims and more modern rear view mirrors, but we are assured that the four original Campagnolo rims are still with the car and for the purist this would be a simple reversal.
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