Ferrari 246 GT "Dino"

Ferrari 246 GT "Dino"

Ferrari 246 GT "Dino"

Ferrari 246 GT "Dino"

Ferrari 246 GT "Dino"

Ferrari introduced the 275 GTB, its first car with independent rear suspension. But however significant the 275 GTB was, most spectators were drawn to the dramatic Dino 206S Speciale show car, a mid-engined concept featuring a mock 2-liter V6 engine. The show car was created as a tribute to the late Alfredino "Dino" Ferrari, and as such had no Ferrari emblems on it whatsoever.

The Turin Auto show of 1966 featured a working prototype of the Dino called the Dino Berlinetta GT. Powered by a transversely mounted V6, the 206 Dino GT was not only Ferrari's first mid-engined production car, but was also a new Ferrari-based Dino brand. The 180-hp, 1,986-cc engine powering the Dino was largely built by Fiat. Even with Dino badges and a Fiat-built engine, the 206 GT's lineage was clearly Ferrari, thanks to the Pininfarina bodywork and the performance.

In 1969, the V6 was enlarged to 2,418-cc, the output increased to 195 horsepower, and the car was renamed the 246 GT. While Ferraris have always been about free revving high performance engines, the Dino 246 GTs have quick, responsive handling that immediately separates them from earlier front-engined Ferraris, and marks the shift that led directly to the present generation of Ferrari road cars. Historically significant, the Dino was the only production car that featured the dynamic advantages of a mid-mounted engine without the angular wedge shape designs that would characterize Ferraris from the mid-'70s well into the '90s.

The 1972 Ferrari 246 Dino GT presented here is a superb, highly original example finished in Fly Yellow with a black leather interior. Very well preserved and cared for by its previous owners, this Dino has documentation of ownership dating back to the mid-1970s, showing it as a Southern California car, and having last been offered publicly for sale at a Ferrari dealership in 1985.