1966 Ferrari 275 GTB Alloy by Scaglietti

1966 Ferrari 275 GTB Alloy by Scaglietti
Sold for $3,382,500 Including Commission
RM Auction, Monterey, CA. 2014
Chassis no. 08069
Engine no. 08069
280 hp, 3,286 cc V-12 engine with triple Weber dual-choke carburetors, five-speed manual transaxle, four-wheel independent suspension with upper and lower wishbones, coil springs, and tubular shocks, and four-wheel disc brakes. Wheelbase: 94.5 in.
Current ownership for 40 years
A remarkably well-preserved long-nose, alloy-bodied 275 GTB
Just over 59,000 original kilometers from new
Features all original books and tools
THE 275 GTB ALLOY
By the mid-1960s, it seemed as if Ferrari could do no wrong. With their competition cars emerging successful at nearly every major race on the calendar and their road cars attracting more and more customers every year, the company had handily cemented its reputation within the history of the automobile, and each new car that exited the factory gates in Maranello seemed to be better than the last. Ferrari’s 275 GTB was a clear evolution of the 250 GT SWB and the 250 GT/L Lusso. It was introduced at the 1964 Paris Auto Show to replace the aging 250 series of grand touring cars, and it marked the beginning of another fantastic series of V-12-powered berlinettas.
At the time, the 275 was the most advanced road going Ferrari ever produced, as it utilized a 3.3-liter version of the classic Colombo V-12. In an effort to improve handling, the overall height of the engine was reduced to achieve a lower center of gravity, and the 275 GTB was the first car from the marque to boast a four-wheel independent suspension and a rear-mounted five-speed transaxle gearbox, helping it to achieve a better weight distribution at the same time.
The car proved to be better in every way than the cars it replaced, as it boasted all of the performance that the iconic SWB offered but was still just as luxurious as the Lusso. The 275 GTB produced 280 horsepower and was capable of sprinting from 0 to 60 mph in just over six seconds, leading to a top speed of 160 mph. The long-nose construction on the later cars also helped eliminate the undesirable high-speed lift characteristics of the early variants, further increasing the already flexible nature of the car. Its combination of incredible performance with enough space for a weekend’s worth of luggage for two clearly made this a dual-purpose grand touring car and the perfect choice for the well-heeled individual looking to win races, drive across Europe, or both. As such, customers had free reign to outfit their cars as they saw fit, leading to some cars leaving the factory outfitted with racing in mind, while other were outfitted primarily for comfort and touring.
Of course, the most desirable option was alloy bodywork. Some of Ferrari’s most competitive competition cars were bodied in aluminum, including the 250 GTO and competition versions of the 250 SWB. This option was considerably lighter than the normal steel bodywork and was often selected by clients looking to race their new cars, as the use of aluminum allowed them to shed a few unnecessary pounds and therefore increase their car’s performance. While the design of the car was penned by Pininfarina, the bodies were hand-beaten by Scaglietti’s craftsman in Modena. By the time production switched over to the more powerful 275 GTB/4, only a handful of aluminum-bodied examples had been produced, cementing their desirability for years to come.
CURRENT OWNERSHIP FOR 40 YEARS
The example offered here, chassis number 08069, was manufactured in 1965 by Ferrari. It was a long-nose 275 GTB with alloy bodywork and triple Weber carburetors, and it was finished in Argento Metallizzato (106-E-1) over full Nero (VM 8500) leather seats, according to noted Ferrari historian Marcel Massini. It was subsequently delivered new to Ferrari’s official dealership in Milan, M. Gastone Crepaldi S.a.s. Later that year, Crepaldi sold the car to its first private owner, a Mr. Zaniboni, who was residing in Italy. Sometime thereafter, Zaniboni sold the car to its second Italian owner, a Mr. Ghisa, another Italian citizen who was living in the city of Trieste.
It is believed that this 275 GTB was exported from Italy to the United States sometime in the early 1970s and was then subsequently purchased by Ronald DeLorenzo, of Youngstown, Ohio. DeLorenzo listed the car for sale in the July 1974 issue of Road & Track magazine. The advertisement notes that it was still wearing its silver and black interior, with 31,000 kilometers on the odometer, and it further mentioned that DeLorenzo was the car’s only owner in the United States. After seeing the advertisement, the car’s current owner contacted DeLorenzo and purchased it for $6,700. Since then, the car has remained in the state of Ohio, with the same caretaker
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Robert Myrick Photography