1969 Fiat Dino

In the mid-1960s, Ferrari needed a 2-litre production-based engine for their new Formula 2 cars and conceived the mid-engined Dino 206 to provide the necessary basis. Since the late 1950s, Ferrari's V6-engined sports-racers had used the Dino name, after Enzo Ferrari's late son, Alfredino, who had died in 1956, and this was duly applied to the new road car. Indeed, at this time, it was intended that it would be the first of an entirely separate marque. However, faced with the daunting task of building 500 units per annum to meet the FIA's homologation requirements, Ferrari turned to FIAT for assistance, with the resulting agreement for the latter to build the Dino's four-cam V6 engine leading to a spin-off model for FIAT.

Launched in Pininfarina-bodied, two-seat Spider form at the 1966 Turin Show, the FIAT Dino carried its 2.0-litre, 160bhp engine ahead of the driver in a conventional manner, and was notable as the first FIAT to employ four overhead camshafts and a limited-slip differential as standard. Steel bodied, the newcomer employed a FIAT 5-speed gearbox and featured independent front suspension by means of wishbones and coil springs, a live rear axle, and disc brakes all round. A longer-wheelbase 2+2 Coupé with Giorgetto Giugiaro-penned Bertone coachwork appeared the following year at the Geneva Salon and was much-acclaimed for its good looks and clever design. In 1969, both Ferrari and Fiat introduced new 2.4-litre Dino models with the aim of increasing torque and usability. In addition to the larger displacement, amongst other notable improvements were a ZF gearbox, FIAT 130-type trailing-arm independent rear suspension and updated switchgear and trim.

Offered here is a truly stunning Dino 2400 Coupé finished in Passion Red Metallic with an immaculate tan leather interior. It’s a second-series example featuring the larger 2.4-litre, 180bhp Ferrari engine from the Dino 246 with triple carburettors and a dog-leg ZF 5-speed gearbox as standard.

Originally despatched to an Italian dealer, it subsequently moved to Germany and onwards to Switzerland where it was re-registered in 1973. In 1990, the Dino was imported to the UK by the late Michael Sellers, son of renowned car collector Peter Sellers, as confirmed by the club registry and a letter addressed to ‘Mr Sellers’ for work undertaken in 1990. It underwent a full body restoration in the mid-2000s and was subject to a full engine rebuild and gearbox overhaul by DK Engineering in 2017. Further maintenance work was carried out by Dino UK in 2019 and the timing chains were adjusted by Light Cars Action in August 2022.

The Dino’s history file is contained within a leather-bound DK Engineering binder and includes all the invoices for work carried out in the UK and a current V5C ready for transfer or export. The file makes for fabulous reading, with a plethora of old MOTs, DVLA correspondence, handwritten invoices for work undertaken in the 1990s in English and German, masses of invoices for parts and labour from the likes of Superformance in the 1990s through to the mid-2000s. You can really paint a picture of what this car has seen and done over the years by immersing yourself within this fascinating history file. It’s also accompanied by a copy of the Dino Handbook in Italian, and two Fiat Dino 2400 handbooks on ‘Specifications and Features’.

During our fastidious vendor’s ownership, the car has seen an exceptionally strong level of maintenance simply with perfection in mind, and this attention to detail has been rewarded with much success and admiration culminating in an invitation to grace the lawn at the 2021 London Concours d’Elegance.

You are welcome and encouraged to view this remarkable 2400 Coupé to appreciate the sheer quality on offer.