1962 Ferrari 330 GTO

The 1962 World Sportscar Championship season featured the International Championship for GT Manufacturers and was contested in three engine capacity divisions as was the 1962 Coupe des Sport. Rule changes by the FIA shifted focus to production-based GT cars and the World Sportscar Championship title was eliminated. This was the start of each class having its own championship, instead of a single overall title.

The incredible performance of the 250 GTO earned Ferrari the International Championship for GT Manufacturers in 1962, 1963, and 1964 in the over-two-liter category.

Prior to the start of the 1964 season, the FIA made further adjustments such that the resulting classes amounted to 'under two liters' and 'over two liters,' the latter of which now included the powerful over-three-liter cars. Competition increased for Ferrari as the GTO was now officially in the same class as the larger capacity lightweight Jaguar E-Types, AC Cobras, and Aston DB4 GTs. With the 250 LM denied homologation status, the 250 GT was placed into service for another season. Ferrari began the 1964 season by winning Daytona and Sebring, but without the Scuderia fielding its own Works entries, privateers were left to challenge victory.

At the next event, the Targa Florio, 28 cars would finish the race, while over 30 never even crossed the finish line, due to mechanical failures or accidents. Joakim Bonnier came out strong, taking the lead in the Porsche 718 GTR, followed by Edgar Barth in an eight-cylinder 904. Gianni Bulgari in a Porsche 904 GTS took the lead by the third lap. Lap by lap, lead changes continued over the course of the race. Many cars were sidelined, however, the Ferraris were in their element, and the 250 GTO, chassis 3413, driven by privateer Corrado Ferlaino and Taramazzo crossed the finish line victorious, securing a class victory and 5th place overall, as the first in a series of four Ferrari GTOs to successfully finish the race. The 14.4 points earned by the cars were critical at year-end as Ferrari continued its battle with Shelby's Cobras and ultimately beat the Americans by a very close count of 84.54 to 78.3.

While the rule changes made by the sport's governing body had not hindered the 250 GTO in its quest for the overall title, the regulations imposed by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest for the 24 Hours of Le Mans limited its chances at overall victory. The special class for prototype racers with a displacement limit of four liters meant Ferrari required a new racing car to chase the checkered flag. At the time, they did have a production car with a four-liter engine, called the 400 SuperAmerica. The Colombo-designed engine, like many other competition Ferrari cars, shared its design with the 250 GTO and had a similar setup of six Weber carburetors and dry-sump lubrication.

The competition engine, producing nearly 400 horsepower, was installed in two different chassis. A single 330 TRI/LM, constructed by Fantuzzi, was built and had a similar design to the latest 250 TR models. Three examples, called the Ferrari 330 GTO, were given a slightly lengthened version of the 250 GTO chassis. The larger wheelbase was needed to house the larger engine and required the coupe bodywork to be slightly taller with a larger bulge on the engine cover when compared to its 250 GTO siblings.

Phil Hill and Olivier Gendebien drove the sole 330 TRI/LM to Ferrari's third consecutive victory in the 24 Hours of LeMans in 1962. The next two places were won by the three-liter Ferrari 250 GTO. While not as successful, two of the three 330 GTOs were raced in period, with one achieving a class victory at the Nurburgring 1000 km, while the other was sidelined at LeMans due to overheating issues.

Once again, the Scuderia Ferrari had proven they were able to adapt to the constantly changing rules, and the evolving line of Ferraris was a direct reflection of these changes. The four-liter V12 engine would continue to find new life and uses, including the four 330 LMB models built in 1963. With coupe bodywork inspired by the front of the 250 GTO and the back of the 250 GT Lusso, they were installed on a lengthened wheelbase of 2,500mm. During test sessions for the 1963 24 Hours of LeMans, a 330 LMB became the first car to exceed the 300 km/h barrier on the track. With proven aerodynamics, the design would be used on subsequent 250 GTO chassis.

Of the four 330 LMB chassis, one would only be used during the Le Mans test days. The other three were sold to privateers and all three were raced at the 1963 24 Hours of LeMans, with only one making it to the finish line. The car that finished was in fifth overall and first in class, driven by Mike Salmon and Jack Sears for Maranello Concessionaires Ltd. Six Ferraris swept the first six places at LeMans, led by a 3-liter 250 P and followed by a 250 GTO. A 250 P finished in 3rd, a 250 GTO in fourth, and the 330 LMB in fifth. The 330 LMB chassis that led its class at LeMans earned a class victory two months later at Brands Hatch in the Guards Trophy race.

Ferrari had built seven four-liter GT racing specials including three 330 GTOs and four 330 LMBs. Although more powerful than the 250 GTO, they were often outclassed by their shorter and less-powerful siblings due to the 250 GTO's better handling and reliability. Additionally, the 330 GTO and 330 LMB were raced less frequently and, perhaps, the list of drivers was not as capable of those driving the 250 GTO. The speeds achieved during the test sessions at LeMans proved they were more than capable of vying for outright victories.

by Dan Vaughan

Berlinetta Coupe
Chassis number: 3765A
Engine number: 163 LM

This 330GTO, chassis number 3765A, is one of three 330 GTOs and features a modified 400 SA chassis and a 400 Superamerica engine, along with the GTO body style. In 1962 it finished second overall at Nurburgring driven by Willy Mairesse and Mike parks and then raced at Le Mans. Later, fitted with an earlier 3-liter GTO engine, the car ran various events, including the Targa Florio. Assigned to Ferrari Engineer and racer Mike Parkes factory F1 and sports car ace Lorenzo Bandini, Mr. Jaeger's 4-liter GTO appears as it did on June 23rd of 1962, when gridded seventh at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It never made the finish at Le Mans that year because after 56 laps it retired with overheating due to an accident and did not race again until 1965. By then, the new owner had installed a three-liter V-12 engine scavenged from a Ferrari prototype. This swap allowed '3765' to compete as a GTO in Italian GT races.

On June 13, 1965 new owner, Ferdinando Latteri, scored five straight class wins in Italian hillclimbs after retiring from the Targa Florio in May. He ended the car's competition history with a class victory in the Coppa Gallenga Hillclimb in March, 1966.

In 1967 '3765' came to America. Jim Jaeger took possession of this prototype GTO in 1985 and began a historically fastidious restoration. Once he had obtained the car's original 4-liter V-12 engine block, Jaeger returned the car to its original 1962 Le Mans livery. Today '3765' wears the number seven, just as it did 50 years ago at Le Mans on Saturday afternoon, June 23, 1962.

The Ferrari 330 series was produced from 1963 through 1968. They were replacements for the Ferrari 250 GT 2+2 with many of the series retaining the style and mechanical components of their predecessors.

The front-engined, rear-wheel drive vehicle were powered by a derivative of the 400 Superamerica's four-liter Colombo 12-cylinder engine.

The first in the series was the 330 America, which was actually a 250 with a new engine. During its production lifespan, lasting only a year, 50 examples were produced of the 2+2 sports car.

The 330 GT 2+2 was introduced to the public at the 1964 Brussels Motor Show, built as a replacement for the 330 America. The 330 GT 2+2 is unique in that it provided ample seating for four individuals plus luggage. These were the ultimate road-going, practical sports cars that could be used for every-day transportation. The 330 GT 2+2 was a new product, not just an engine modification. Under the hood was a Tipo 209, twelve-cylinder engine capable of producing 300 horsepower. Disc brake were placed on all four corners to provided the stopping power. The 1964 model used a four-speed manual gear box with overdrive. The 1965 version, known as the Series II, received a 5-speed manual gearbox. Other changes included alloy wheels, dual-light front clip, and optional power steering and air conditioning.

The 330 GT 2+2 was produced from 1963 through 1968. Around 1080 models were produced of the 330 GT with 50 of them being Type 330 GTE Americas.

The 330 was a replacement for the 275. The shortened wheelbase and independent rear suspension was courtesy of its predecessor. The GTC (Gran Turismo Coupe) Pininfarina designed vehicle was debuted in 1966 at the Geneva Auto Show. It had a V-12 engine mounted in the front that was capable of producing 300 horsepower. The five-speed manual gearbox was located in the rear transaxle.

The 330 GTS (Gran Turismo Spyder) was shown in October 1966 at the Paris Auto Show.

There were around 600 coupes and 100 spyders produced during the production lifespan. In 1968 they were replaced by the 365 GTC/4 Daytona.

by Dan Vaughan

The Ferrari 330 series belonged to a long line of Ferrari road cars with front-mounted V12 engines, cars that were members of a bloodline whose history is still being written by the 612 Scaglietti and 599 GTB Fiorano. The 330's name derived from the then-familiar Ferrari practice of naming cars for their per-cylinder displacement in cubic centimeters, indicating that the engines used to power this series of cars displaced a total of 12x330cc, or about four liters. Preceded by the 275 and replaced by the 365, the 330 was caught right in the middle of a glorious era for Ferrari road cars.

The 330 spawned the vaunted 330 P series of mid-engined racers, which battled Ford's GT-40 in sports car racing throughout the mid-1960s. A successor to the legendary 250 GTO was also created using the 330 motor, named the 330 LMB. Ferrari produced only four of these latter models.

The 330 road cars were decidedly more relaxed and less exhilarating than the racing cars mentioned above, but their relatively high sales numbers and use of race-bred components meant that they were still important cars to Ferrari's history. Ferrari produced the 330 road cars primarily in four guises: the 330 America, the 330 GT 2+2, and the coupe/spider couple named 330 GTC and 330 GTS.

Ferrari introduced the 330 America first. It was a transitional model, essentially a 250 GTE 2+2 with the new 330 motor. The 330 GT 2+2 followed in 1964, and was a more thoroughly revised grand tourer built on a chassis stretched by 50mm compared to the America. This newer model, though still closely related to its predecessor, wore a controversial body design by the familiar Pininfarina. Its front end styling used an unconventional quad-headlight arrangement that mounted the two lights per side in clusters canted down toward the egg crate grille, creating an aggressive but cumbersome appearance of slanted eyes. The Mulliner Park Ward-bodied Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud III of the mid-1960s used a similar frontal treatment, also with questionable results.

A more harmonious front end debuted on the 1965 Ferrari 330 GT 2+2, reverting to a more traditional twin-headlight approach. Other changes for 1965 included the replacement of the four-speed with overdrive gearbox by a 5-speed unit, and the introduction of power steering and air conditioning as options. Production of the 330 GT 2+2 continued until late 1967, by which time Ferrari had produced some 1,075 examples of the model. This was an excellent figure for a 1960s Ferrari, especially when compared to the 50 examples of the transitional 330 America that the company produced.

At the Geneva Motor Show of 1966, Ferrari introduced a two-seater 330 coupe called the GTC. Also styled by Pininfarina, the GTC looked surprisingly sultry given that its design was an amalgamation of prior cues. From the front the GTC aspired to 500 Superfast or 400 Superamerica greatness, while from the back the car looked like a 275 GTS with a fixed roof. Somehow the look came together remarkably well, though, creating an iconic Ferrari design without the hand-me-down flavor that could have resulted from the borrowed styling features.

Later in 1966, at Paris, the spider version of the 330 appeared. Named 330 GTS and clearly an open version of the GTC, it too was a lovely design. Production of both the GTC and GTS ended in 1968, after Ferrari produced approximately 600 coupes and 100 spiders.

The engine common to all 330 series road cars was a 60-degree V12 of 3,967cc displacement. The block and heads were cast silumin, an aluminum and silicon alloy. A chain-driven single overhead camshaft per cylinder bank operated two inclined valves per cylinder that opened into hemispherical combustion chambers. Ferrari employed three Weber carburetors and an 8.8:1 compression ratio in the 330 motor to create a power plant that was capable of 300bhp at 6,600rpm in street tune. The V12 was bolted to a 5-speed gearbox in all 330 road cars, excepting the 330 America and early 330 GT 2+2, which used 4-speed gearboxes with overdrive.

Double wishbones and coil springs suspended the front end of all 330 road cars. The GTC and GTS used independent rear suspensions, but the 2+2 models retained live axles. Brakes were assisted four wheel discs on all models, using an unconventional dual-circuit design that incorporated two master cylinders and two servos.

Pininfarina styled and bodied all four standard versions of the 330 road car, though there were bespoke examples crafted by other coachbuilders including Michelotti and Drogo. The 330 chassis was made of tubular steel, and the Pininfarina bodies too were primarily steel, but with opening panels in aluminum.

As witnesses of Ferrari's finest days, the 330 series road cars have become historically important and commensurately collectible. The GTC and GTS remain the thoroughbred sophisticates of the series and command high prices. The 2+2 models, though, especially the oddly styled early 330 GT 2+2s, represent good value and are some of the most attainable machines to emit the distinctive mechanical symphony of a 1960s Ferrari V12.

Sources:

'Ferrari 330.' CarsfromItaly.net n. pag. Web. 27 Dec 2010. http://carsfromitaly.net/ferrari/index.html.

'Specifications.' 330 Register n. pag. Web. 27 Dec 2010. http://www.330register.com/models.cfm.

Tyer, Ben. 'Ferrari 330 GTC.' Supercars.net n. pag. Web. 27 Dec 2010. http://www.supercars.net/cars/551.html.

by Evan Acuña