FERRARI

250 GTO

The Ferrari 250 GTO was built between 1962 and 1964 to homologate Ferrari for the FIA's Group 3 Grand Touring category, and the "GTO" in its name stands for Gran Turismo Omologato, Italian for "Grand Touring Homologated." Beneath its sensuous aluminium bodywork the Ferrari 250 GTO carried the legendary 3.0-litre Tipo 168 Colombo V12, fed by six Weber carburettors and producing around 300 horsepower, mounted in a tubular chassis derived from the 250 GT SWB. Development was overseen by the brilliant young engineer Giotto Bizzarrini and, after his departure during the famous "palace revolt" of 1961, completed by Mauro Forghieri, who worked alongside the Carrozzeria Scaglietti to refine the aerodynamic shape that gives the Ferrari 250 GTO its timeless beauty. Just 36 examples were hand-built, comprising 33 cars with the classic 1962-63 Series I body and three with the later 1964 Series II body resembling the 250 LM, and several early cars were updated to Series II specification. On track the Ferrari 250 GTO was utterly dominant, winning the over-2-litre class of the World Sportscar Championship in 1962, 1963 and 1964 and cementing its reputation as the ultimate front-engined racing Ferrari. Because so few were made and every one is intimately documented, the Ferrari 250 GTO has become the holy grail of car collecting, with values that dwarf every other classic. Beautiful, victorious and impossibly rare, the Ferrari 250 GTO is the most coveted automobile ever created.