1963 Ferrari 400 Superamerica Coupe Aerodinamico

Ferrari's grand touring luxury automobile of the early 1950s, beginning with the 342 America, continued to evolve over the years. In 1956, Ferrari introduced the 410 Superamerica that would go through three series of limited production. It had a graceful exterior, sophisticated interior appointments, and a powerful Lampredi engine. However, they were heavy and unforgiving and somewhat limited by drum brakes and four-speed gearboxes.

In October of 1959, at the Turin Auto Show, Ferrari introduced the new Superamerica, which was intended to address these limitations. Chassis number 1517 SA had a unique brushed aluminum coupe coachwork by Pinin Farina and was essentially a one-off showcar. Its underpinnings, however, we soon produced in series in the 400 Superamerica. One of the main differences from its predecessor was the use of the Colombo short-block V-12, which was bored from its 250 GT dimensions to displace nearly four liters. It had an outside-plug arrangement that had been proven effective in the Testarossa sports racers. The 400 also had Dunlop disc brakes, as well as an overdrive that increased the top-end ratio by 28-percent.

The early examples of the 400 Superamerica were built on the short 2420-millimeter wheelbase and given coachwork by Pinin Farina. That all changed in November 1960, with the appearance of a new show car. That car, chassis number 2207 SA, was called the Superfast II, and it had a pointed open-mouth nose, a slippery roof, and a fastback tail. Aerodynamics was certainly important on the car, and it featured retractable pop-up headlights and rear wheel skirts.

At the Geneva Motor Show the following year, the rear wheel skirts and retractable pop-up lights had been removed. The car at the show, chassis 2373 SA, became the basic blueprint for Pininfarina's Coupe Aerodinamico body style. Due to the semi-custom coachwork, no two Aerodinamicos were precisely the same.

At the London Motor Show in September 1962, Ferrari introduced a second-series 400 Superamerica on chassis number 3931 SA. It had the Aerodinamico body style now rested on the 250 GTE's 2600-millimeter chassis. This would be the platform for the remaining cars.

Series II production came to a close in 1964, with approximately 18 long-wheelbase Coupe Aerodinamicos constructed and 35 Series II examples produced in total (including the earlier short-wheelbase examples).

This example, chassis number 4113 SA, is the twenty-third Aerodinamico-bodied 400 Superamerica and the sixth long-wheelbase Series II car built. It is the third of just four Series II coupes to be given open headlights. Job number 99548 entered Pininfarina's Grugliasco plant in October 1962, where it was finished in Grigio Argento and upholstered in Nero Connolly leather, and it was finally completed on April 13, 1963.

The first recorded owner, Farinac Fassi of Carazza, Italy, purchased the car on May 30. It was registered the following month on Turinese plates TO 543644, and it was then returned for service to the factory's Assistenza Clienti in Modena in June 1964, at which point the odometer displayed 23,118 kilometers.

Giuseppe Vito Sturda of Brindisi, Italy, became the car's next owner in June of 1966. Mr. Sturda registered the Aerodinamico with Brindisi tags that September. In 1969, the car was imported to the United States. By the late 1970s, the car was spotted in Los Angeles wearing Rosso Corsa and a beige interior. In August of 1980, it was sold to Ferrari West of Monterey, CA. Soon thereafter, it was purchased by Helga Ezazi of San Francisco.

Richard Mazer of San Francisco purchased the car less than two years later. The car remained with Mr. Mazer for 30 years. During most of that period, it was garaged and remained largely idle. In 2011, Mr. Mazer commissioned a partial rebuild of the matching-numbers V-12 motor. After the work was completed, the car was offered for sale. It was purchased by a New York-based enthusiast.

In July 2013, the car was given a complete ground-up restoration. The body was stripped to bare metal and finished in Blu Sera Metallizzato paint, while the interior was trimmed with proper red Wilton carpeting and matching red leather. The work was completed in June 2014.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2014