1965 Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 Series I

Post Auction & before delivery this lot will have an MOT at the vendors expense

One of only 44 UK, right-hand drive cars. Rare and collectable

Manual gearbox, rear air-con, and wire wheels

Always well-maintained. Restored in the late seventies.

Fascinating owner's file with lots of history

The Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 made its debut at the Brussels Salon in January 1964, proceeding its earlier "250 2+2 GTE' and "330 America' cousins. The "Series I', as it later became known, was much more than a re-engined 250, it was a bolder, more distinctive incarnation in both looks and performance.

Pininfarina was once again entrusted with the styling, and their vision of Ferrari's evolution drew muse from the cars' predecessors, yet included some daring design elements. A sharper nose and tail, a wide grille, and the espousal of a characteristic quad headlight arrangement, all of which reflected the tastes of Ferrari's most important export market, the USA. Although some criticised its styling, the 'Series I' four-headlight 330GT has become truly evocative of 1960's fashion, lauded both for its individuality and Pininfarina's purity of design.

The fantastic Gioacchino Colombo designed, high-output, V-12 engine was fitted to all 300GT series and produced an impressive 300bhp, adorned with triple Weber carburettors, this combination taking the vehicle from 0-100km in an astounding 6.3 seconds, making it the fastest road-going Ferrari at the time.

We are pleased to offer this right-hand drive Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 which was ordered on 15th March 1965 through Maranello Concessionaires Ltd, by Rolls-Royce and Bentley dealer R.S. Mead Ltd. of Maidenhead. It was finished in Grigio Argento over a Pelle Nera Franzi leather interior and was optioned with wire wheels and power-operated windows. The finish must have been special and extra-deep as 4 kilos of extra paint were charged for, as depicted by copies of the Bill of Sale and early correspondence. It would appear that a Mr D. Sleeman took ownership of the car for a short period during 1966 before putting it up for sale with Maranello Concessionaires, who took a Ferrari 250 GT 2+2 in part-exchange and sold the car to a Mr R. Edbrooke of Orpington, Kent. A letter in the file, dated 4th April 1967, from Mr Edbrooke to Maranello confirms the order of a quantity of Rosso paint as, despite the fact that the car was only two years old, he felt it essential to repaint it Rosso as it was the colour of his previous Ferrari.

Well cared for during the 1970s, the car was maintained by John Wortley of Sevenoaks, Kent, whilst also receiving a full bodywork overhaul which included; replacement sills, floor panels and a full bare-metal respray, again in red. In 1981, an American gentleman, Mr A. Gilas purchased the car and it was exported to his residence in New Jersey. There are numerous invoices included in the file for its time in the States before it was purchased by a Mr T. Hoffritz in the early 2000s and crossed the Atlantic once again, this time to Germany. There are various bills in the file from marque specialist S & T Manfred Irber of Munich during this period of ownership.

Chassis #6875 was eventually repatriated back to UK shores in 2007 through respected classic car dealer Martin Chisholm, who placed it with one of his customers, a Mr Spencer-Percival. Upon delivery, the car was sent to Peter Chambers Automotive Ltd, where it benefitted from considerable attention generating an invoice for approximately £10,000.

Our vendor had always desired a 1960"s Ferrari and in December 2008 this became a reality when he purchased this lovely 'Grand Tourer' Whilst in his care the car has had a cylinder head rebuild, a gearbox rebuild and a full respray in its original colour of Grigio Argento. After 10 years of enjoyment, the car is reluctantly being offered for sale and is accompanied by an interesting owner's file and its UK V5c relating to the very apt registration "330 AUE" that will stay with the car.

One of only 44 UK right-hand drive Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 Series I examples, this beautiful car represents a rare opportunity to own a 1960"s Prancing Horse and is worthy of your full attention in today"s collector market.