1967 Ferrari 330 GTC Speciale

Four examples of the custom-bodied Ferrari 330 GTC Speciale were built by Carrozzeria Pininfarina. These hand-built Speciales were given custom coachwork that rested on the Ferrari 330 GTC Gran Turismo platform.

Introduced at the 1965 Geneva Auto Show, the GTC was a two-place coupe designed and built by Pininfarina. They had refined and modern styling, with impressive performance and luxurious appointments. The Speciale went further, with a clean-sheet body style that incorporated many Pininfarina cues with many later finding their way into future production models. In the front was a nose that was similar to the limited-production 365 California Spider, with covered headlights, split bumpers, and a classic egg-crate grille. The first two examples had retractable driving lights. The Speciale's engine bay louvers were placed on either side of the bonnet's trailing edge - a design feature that would later be implemented on the 365 GTC. The long silhouette and ample glass greenhouse were undoubtedly inspired by the mid-engine show cars of the era. The rear quarter window shape was later used on the 365 GT 2+2. The curved rear glass of the Speciale had first been seen on the 206 Dino displayed at the 1965 Paris Auto Show, and later repeated on the two 'Tre Posti' 365 P Berlinetta Speciales. The abrupt Kamm tail design was similar to the 365 California and mid-engine show cars.

The Ferrari 330 GTC Speciale was unveiled at the Brussels Motor Show in 1967. The first example, chassis 09439, was sold to a royal customer – Princess Liliane de Réthy of Belgium. The second example, chassis 09653, was built for Dr. Michael DeBakey of Houston, Texas. The third example was chassis 10107, Pininfarina job number 99686, and given body number C0260. Its first owner was Maria Maddalena Da Lisca.

by Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2018