Ferrari 250
Encyclopedia
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
built by Ferrari
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street-legal vehicles as Ferrari S.p.A. in 1947...
from 1953 to 1964. The company's most successful early line, the 250 series included several variants. It was replaced by the 275
Ferrari 275
The Ferrari 275 was a 2-seat front-engined Gran Turismo automobile produced by Ferrari between 1964 and 1968. It used a 3.3 L Colombo 60° V12 engine and produced 280-300 hp. The Pininfarina-designed body was a graceful evolution of the car's predecessor, the 250, and strongly contrasted...
and the 330
Ferrari 330
The 1963 330 America shared the outgoing 250 GTE's chassis but not its engine, being powered by the new Type 209, at 6600 rpm, 4.0 L engine.Socialite Sandra West is buried with her blue 330 America at the Alamo Masonic Cemetery at San Antonio, Texas....
.
Similarities
Nearly all 250s share the same engine: The Colombo
Ferrari Colombo engine
Ferrari's earliest cars used engines designed by Gioacchino Colombo, who had formerly designed Alfa Romeos for Enzo Ferrari. These V12 powerplants ranged from the diminutive 1.5 L unit fitted to the 125S to the 3.3 L unit in the 1966 275.Enzo Ferrari had long admired the V12 engines of...
Tipo 125 V12
V12 engine
A V12 engine is a V engine with 12 cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of six cylinders, usually but not always at a 60° angle to each other, with all 12 pistons driving a common crankshaft....
. At 2953 cc, it is not a large engine even for the time, but its light weight and impressive output (up to 300 PS in the testarossa and gto) made a big difference. The Ferrari V12 weighed hundreds of pounds less than its chief competitors — for example, it was nearly half the weight of the Jaguar XK straight-6
Jaguar XK6 engine
The renowned Jaguar XK dual overhead camshaft inline 6-cylinder engine was introduced in 1949 and continued in manufacture until 1992. It was produced in five displacements for Jaguar passenger cars, with other sizes being made by Jaguar and privateers for racing...
.
The light V12 propelled the small Ferrari 250 racing cars to numerous victories.
Racing models
Typical of Ferrari, the Colombo V12 made its debut on the race track, with the racing 250s preceding the street cars by three years.225 S
A predecessor to the 250 line was the 225 S introduced at the 1952 Giro di Sicilia. Two of the two-seat sports prototypes were built, an open barchetta and closed coupe both by Vignale. Seven 225 S cars were entered at the Mille Miglia, but these were overshadowed by their larger-engined 250 S brother. Although not as heralded as the 250 line, the 225 did play one unique historical role: A 225 S tested at ImolaAutodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari is an auto racing circuit near the Italian town of Imola, east of Bologna and east of the Ferrari factory in Maranello....
was the first Ferrari to drive on that course.
250 S
The first of the 250 line was the experimental 250 S berlinettaBerlinetta
Berlinetta is an especially sporty form of coupé. Typically a two-seater, the type may include 2+2s.The real meaning for berlinetta in Italian is "little saloon".Introduced in the 1930s, the term was popularized by Ferrari in the 1950s...
prototype entered in the 1952 Mille Miglia
Mille Miglia
The Mille Miglia was an open-road endurance race which took place in Italy twenty-four times from 1927 to 1957 ....
. The company's newest product was entrusted to Giovanni Bracco
Giovanni Bracco
Giovanni Bracco was an Italian racing car driver,remembered for losing control of his Delage 3000, killing five spectators at the 1947 Italian Grand Prix....
and Alfonso Rolfo and was severely tested by the Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
300SL racers
Mercedes-Benz 300SL
The Mercedes-Benz 300SL was introduced in 1954 as a two-seat, closed sports car with distinctive gull-wing doors. Later it was offered as an open roadster...
run by Rudolf Caracciola
Rudolf Caracciola
Otto Wilhelm Rudolf Caracciola , more commonly Rudolf Caracciola , was a racing driver from Remagen, Germany. He won the European Drivers' Championship, the pre-1950 equivalent of the modern Formula One World Championship, an unsurpassed three times...
, Hermann Lang
Hermann Lang
Hermann Lang was a German champion race car driver.Born in the Bad Cannstatt district of Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, at age fourteen Hermann Lang had to go to work to help support his family following the death of his father...
, and Karl Kling
Karl Kling
Karl Kling was a motor racing driver and manager from Germany. He participated in 11 Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 4 July 1954. He achieved 2 podiums, and scored a total of 17 championship points.It is said, that he was born too late and too early...
. The little 230 PS Ferrari was outgunned in the long straights but fought back in the hills and curves and Bracco emerged victorious at the end. This same car was later entered at the 24 Hours of Le Mans
24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
and the Carrera Panamericana
Carrera Panamericana
The Carrera Panamericana was a border-to-border sports car racing event on open roads in Mexico similar to the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio in Italy. Running for five consecutive years from 1950 to 1954, it was widely held by contemporaries to be the most dangerous race of any type in the world...
.
The little 250 S used a 2250 mm (88.6 in) wheelbase with a "Tuboscocca" tubular trellis frame. Underneath were double wishbones at the front and a live axle located with double longitudinal semi-elliptic springs at the rear. Drum brakes and worm and sector steering were the norm. The dry-sump 3.0 L (2953 cc) engine used three Weber 36DCF carburettors and was mated directly to a five-speed manual transmission.
250 MM
Lauding the success of the 250 S at the Mille Miglia, Ferrari showed a more-conventional chassis for the new 250 engine at the 1952 Paris Motor Show. Pinin Farina clothed this chassis, with the celebratory 250 MM coupe launched at the 1953 Geneva Motor Show. This car was almost plain by contemporary standards, but it possessed a certain purposefulness with its small grille and compact tail complete with a panoramic rear window. Carrozzeria Vignale's open barchettaBarchetta
A barchetta was originally an Italian style of open 2-seater sports car which was built for racing. Weight and wind resistance were kept to a minimum, and any unnecessary equipment or decoration were sacrificed in order to maximize performance....
also broke new styling ground, with recessed headlights and side vents becoming a staple of Ferrari design for the 1950s.
The 250 MM's wheelbase was longer than the 250 S at 2420 mm (95.3 in), with the saloon 50 kg (110 lb) heavier than the 850 kg (1,874 lb) barchetta on a conventional tube frame. The V12 engine's dry sump was abandoned for the production car, and the transmission lost one cog as well, but power was up to 240 PS.
Like the 250 S, the 250 MM was a racing car, debuting at the Giro di Sicilia with privateer Paulo Marzotto. A Carrozzeria Morelli-bodied 250 MM barchetta came fourth in the 1954 Mille Miglia with driver Clemente Biondetti
Clemente Biondetti
Clemente Biondetti was an Italian auto racing driver.-Biography:Born in Buddusò, Sardinia, into a working class family, Biondetti began racing motorcycles in 1923 but in 1927 turned to automobiles...
. The V12-powered 250 MM was replaced by the four-cylinder 625 TF and 735 S
Ferrari Monza
A Ferrari Monza is one of a series of cars built by Ferrari. In the early 1950s, Ferrari shifted from using the compact Gioacchino Colombo-designed V12 engine in its smallest class of sports racers to a line of four-cylinder engines designed by Aurelio Lampredi...
later in 1953.
250 Monza
An unusual hybrid between the light four-cylinder 750 Monza and the 250 line was the 250 Monza of 1954. This model used the 250 engine in the short wheelbase chassis from the 750 Monza. The first two used the Pininfarina barchetta shape of the 750 Monza and a one-off 500 Mondial. Two more 250 Monzas were built by Carrozzeria ScagliettiCarrozzeria Scaglietti
Carrozzeria Scaglietti was an Italian automobile design and coachbuilding company active in the 1950s. It was founded by Sergio Scaglietti in 1951 as an automobile repair concern, but was located across the road from Ferrari in Maranello outside Modena, Italy.Scaglietti gained Enzo Ferrari's...
, an early use of the now-familiar coachbuilder. Although a frequent entrant through 1956, the 250 Monzas failed to gain much success and the union of the Monza chassis and 250 engine was not pursued beyond this model.
250 Testarossa
- See main article Ferrari TRFerrari TRThe Ferrari TR, or 250 Testa Rossa, is a race car model built by Ferrari in the 1950s and 60s. These cars dominated their arenas, with variations winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1958, 1960, and 1961. They were closely related to the rest of the Ferrari 250 line, especially the legendary 250...
The racing 250 Testa Rossa was one of the most successful Ferrari racing cars in its history, with three wins at Le Mans
24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
, four wins at Sebring
12 Hours of Sebring
The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, a former Army Air Force base in Sebring, Florida...
, and two wins at Buenos Aires
1000 km Buenos Aires
The 1000 km Buenos Aires was an endurance sports car event held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The race mostly run on the Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, although it would run the Costanera circuit in 1957...
.It sold at auction for a record breaking 16.39 million dollars.
250 GTO
The 250 GTO, designed for racing, was manufactured between 1962 and 1964. A radically restyled GTO, the 250 GTO/64, was launched in 1964 and 36 examples were built.250 P
The 250 engine from the Testa Rossa was mounted in the midships position for the 250 P prototype racer of 1963.250 LM
The mid-engined 250 Le Mans looked every bit the prototype racer but was intended to be produced as a road-going GT. Descended from the 250 P, the Le Mans also appeared in 1963 and sported Pininfarina bodywork. Ferrari was unable to persuade the FIA that he would build the 100 examples required to homologate the car for GT racing. Eventually, 32 LMs were built up to 1965. As a result, Ferrari withdrew from factory participation in the GT class of the 1965 World Sportscar ChampionshipWorld Sportscar Championship
The World Sportscar Championship was the world series run for sports car racing by the FIA from 1953 to 1992.The championship evolved from a small collection of the most important sportscar, endurance and road racing events in Europe and North America with dozens of gentleman drivers at the grid,...
, allowing the Shelby Cobra team to dominate the class. Only the very early LM's were true 250 models, with all the rest made as 3300cc models and as such should have been named 275 LM (the early cars were also converted to the 3300cc engine)
250 Export/Europa
The 1953 250 Export and Europa were the only of the family to use a different engine. They shared the 2953 cc LamprediFerrari Lampredi engine
Aurelio Lampredi designed a number of racing engines for Ferrari. He was brought on to hedge the company's bets with a different engine family than the small V12s designed by Gioacchino Colombo. Lampredi went on to design a number of different straight-4, straight-6, and V12 engines through the...
V12 designed for Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
use.
250 Export
The Export model was similar to the 250 MM with its 2400 mm (94.5 in) wheelbase. One exception was its 220 PS Lampredi engine. It was launched at the Paris Motor Show of 1953.250 Europa
The 250 Europa, also introduced in Paris in 1953, looked entirely different. With the long 2800 mm (110.2 in) wheelbase and Ferrari AmericaFerrari America
The first America cars were the 340, produced between 1950 and 1952. Using the new Lampredi V12 developed for Formula One racing, the 340 America could produce over...
-style bodies, it was designed as more of a grand tourer
Grand tourer
A grand tourer is a high-performance luxury automobile designed for long-distance driving. The most common format is a two-door coupé with either a two-seat or a 2+2 arrangement....
than any previous 250. Both Pininfarina
Pininfarina
Pininfarina S.p.A. is an Italian car design firm and coachbuilder in Cambiano, Italy.Founded as Società anonima Carrozzeria Pinin Farina in 1930 by automobile designer and builder Battista "Pinin" Farina, Pininfarina has been employed by a wide variety of high-end automobile manufacturers,...
and Vignale
Vignale
Vignale was an Italian automobile coachbuilder company. Carrozzeria Alfredo Vignale was established in 1948 at Via Cigliano, Turin by Alfredo Vignale in Grugliasco, near Turin ....
handled the coachwork, with 21 produced in total.
GT cars
The 250 design was extremely successful on the race course as well as the street. A number of GT models were built in varying states of road or racing trim.250 Europa GT
The first street car to use Colombo's 250 V12 was the 250 Europa GT, introduced at the 1954 Paris Motor Show. Pinin Farina's sober Paris coupe was just one of many shapes for the 250 GT line, with coachbuilt production extending through 1956 before the 250 line became more of a standardized product. The original 250 Europa GT used a 2600 mm (102.4 in) wheelbase on a conventional chassis. The dry sump V12 was tuned to 220 PS, with three Weber 36DCZ3 carburettors. Aping the Vignale's 250 Europa, Pinin Farina added now-familiar vents to the front fenders, a standard styling feature for many of the 250 GTs that followed.250 GT Boano and Ellena
Unable to meet demand, Pinin Farina asked Mario Boano
Mario Boano
Felice Mario Boano was an Italian automobile coachbuilder.With Giorgio Alberti, he bought the Carrozzeria Ghia in Torino when their friend Giacinto Ghia died...
, formerly of Ghia, to handle the construction. When Fiat
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
recruited Boano, he handed production duties of the Ferrari to his son-in-law Ezio Ellena. With partner Luciano Pollo, Carrozzeria Ellena would produce the Ferrari for another few years. Ellena revised the car, raising the roof and removing the vent windows from the doors.
Carrozzeria Boano built 74 250 GTs on the long wheelbase chassis.
All but one were coupes. The single convertible, 0461 GT, was sold to New York collector, Bob Lee, off the stand at the 1956 New York Auto Show. At the direction of Enzo Ferrari, Lee bought the car for $9,500- far below cost. He still owns it, making it one of the oldest Ferraris still in the hands of the original purchaser.
250 GT Berlinetta "Tour de France"
Named for the 10-day Tour de France automobile raceTour de France Automobile
Tour de France Automobile was a sports car race held on roads around France, first held in 1899 at speeds of 30 mph . The first event was won by René de Knyff driving a Panhard et Levassor...
, not the famous bicycle race
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
of the same name, a number of 250 GT "Tour de France" Berlinettas were sold for GT races from 1956 through 1959. There was actually 84 Tour de Frances built. Construction was handled by Carrozzeria Scaglietti
Carrozzeria Scaglietti
Carrozzeria Scaglietti was an Italian automobile design and coachbuilding company active in the 1950s. It was founded by Sergio Scaglietti in 1951 as an automobile repair concern, but was located across the road from Ferrari in Maranello outside Modena, Italy.Scaglietti gained Enzo Ferrari's...
based on a Pinin Farina design. The engine began at 240 PS but rose to 260 PS by the end.
A one-off short wheelbase Tour de France was built for the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans
24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
. This car, called the 250 GT Interim, would foreshadow the 2400 mm (94.5 in) SWB cars of 1959. The 250 GT Interim is currently owned by Lulu Wang.
250 GT Cabriolet Pininfarina Series I
Pininfarina
Pininfarina S.p.A. is an Italian car design firm and coachbuilder in Cambiano, Italy.Founded as Società anonima Carrozzeria Pinin Farina in 1930 by automobile designer and builder Battista "Pinin" Farina, Pininfarina has been employed by a wide variety of high-end automobile manufacturers,...
cabriolet used the 2600 mm (102.4 in) wheelbase and had distinct bodywork from the Berlinetta.
About 36 examples were produced before a second series was shown at Paris in 1959. These later cars had much more in common with the production Berlinetta.
About 200 of the series two cars were built.
Motor Trend Classic
Motor Trend
Motor Trend is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, issued by Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles, and bearing the tag line "The Magazine for a Motoring World". Petersen Publishing was sold to British publisher EMAP in 1998, who sold the former Petersen...
placed the 250 GT Series I Cabriolet and Coupe ninth on their list of the ten "Greatest Ferraris of all time".
250 GT California Spider LWB
45 were made before it was replaced by the SWB version in 1960, and it remains highly valuable for automotive collection, with one example auctioned on August 18, 2007 at Monterey, California for $4.9 million.
250 GT Coupe Pininfarina
Desiring to enter series production in order to stabilize the company's finances, Enzo Ferrari asked PininfarinaPininfarina
Pininfarina S.p.A. is an Italian car design firm and coachbuilder in Cambiano, Italy.Founded as Società anonima Carrozzeria Pinin Farina in 1930 by automobile designer and builder Battista "Pinin" Farina, Pininfarina has been employed by a wide variety of high-end automobile manufacturers,...
to design a simple and classic 250 GT coupe. The resulting car was introduced at Milan in 1958, and 335 nearly identical examples were built by 1960. Buyers included Prince Bertil of Sweden. The GT Coupe eschewed the fender vents for simple and clean lines and a notchback look with a panoramic rear window. The oval grille was replaced by a more traditional long narrow look with protruding headlights. Traditional telescoping shock absorbers were also fitted instead of the Houdailles found on previous 250s, and disc brakes were added in 1960. The final 250 GT Coupe had a Superfast
Ferrari America
The first America cars were the 340, produced between 1950 and 1952. Using the new Lampredi V12 developed for Formula One racing, the 340 America could produce over...
tail and was shown at the 1961 London Motor Show.
250 GT Cabriolet Pininfarina Series II
In line with the high-volume coupe, Pinin Farina also designed a plainer 250 GT Cabriolet for series production. Introduced at the 1959 Paris Motor Show, the GT Spider sported a look similar to the GT Coupe of the previous year, including the removal of the side vents. About 212 were produced.250 GT Berlinetta SWB
Development of the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta was handled by Giotto Bizzarrini
Giotto Bizzarrini
Giotto Bizzarrini is an Italian automobile engineer active from the 1950s through 1970s....
, Carlo Chiti
Carlo Chiti
Carlo Chiti was an Italian racing car and engine designer. Chiti is best known for his long association with Alfa Romeo's racing department....
, and young Mauro Forghieri
Mauro Forghieri
Mauro Forghieri is an Italian Formula One car designer.-Early life and Ferrari:Forghieri was born in Modena, the only child of Reclus and Afra Forghieri. His father, a turner, did war work during World War II for the Ansaldo mechanical workshops of Naples...
, the same team that later produced the 250 GTO
Ferrari 250 GTO
The Ferrari 250 GTO is a GT car which was produced by Ferrari from 1962 to 1964 for homologation into the FIA's Group 3 Grand Touring Car category....
. Disc brake
Disc brake
The disc brake or disk brake is a device for slowing or stopping the rotation of a wheel while it is in motion.A brake disc is usually made of cast iron, but may in some cases be made of composites such as reinforced carbon–carbon or ceramic matrix composites. This is connected to the wheel and/or...
s were a first in a Ferrari GT, and the combination of low weight, high power, and well-sorted suspension made it a competitive offering. It was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October and quickly began selling and racing. The SWB Berlinetta claimed GT class of the Constructor's Championship for Ferrari in 1961.
In 2004, Sports Car International
Sports Car International
Sports Car International was an automobile magazine in the United States published by Ross Periodicals Inc. that was focused on sports cars. The magazine was published from 1986 to 2008. Its business offices were located in Novato, California....
placed the 250 GT SWB seventh on a list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s. Motor Trend Classic
Motor Trend
Motor Trend is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, issued by Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles, and bearing the tag line "The Magazine for a Motoring World". Petersen Publishing was sold to British publisher EMAP in 1998, who sold the former Petersen...
placed the 250 SWB fifth on a list of the ten "Greatest Ferraris of all time".
250 GT Spider California SWB
A fiberglass-bodied replica of a 1961 250 GT Spider California, based on an MG, was featured in the 1986 hit film Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off is a 1986 American teen coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by John Hughes.The film follows high school senior Ferris Bueller , who decides to skip school and spend the day in downtown Chicago...
.
A record price
Most expensive cars sold in auction
This is a list of the most expensive cars sold in auto auctions through the traditional bidding process, consisting of those that attracted headline grabbing publicity, mainly for the high price their new owners have paid...
for a 250 GT at auction was set on May 18, 2008 when a black 1961 SWB example that had been owned by The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven is an American Western film directed by John Sturges, and released in 1960. It is a fictional tale of a group of seven American gunmen who are hired to protect a small agricultural village in Mexico from a group of marauding Mexican bandits...
star James Coburn
James Coburn
James Harrison Coburn III was an American film and television actor. Coburn appeared in nearly 70 films and made over 100 television appearances during his 45-year career, and played a wide range of roles and won an Academy Award for his supporting role as Glen Whitehouse in Affliction.A capable,...
was sold for 6.4 million Euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
s/£5.5 million/$10,894,900 (€7,040,000 including fees). The buyer was Chris Evans, a British radio DJ.
250 GT/E
Engine output was listed at 240 PS.
Almost 1,000 GTEs were constructed by Pininfarina with prototypes starting in 1959 and continuing through three series until 1963. The model was followed by the visually similar 330 Americas.
The large production run of the GT/E was a major contributor to the financial well being of Ferrari in the early 1960s. MSRP of the GT/E was $11,500.
A 250 GTE can be seen in The Wrong Arm of the Law
The Wrong Arm of the Law
The Wrong Arm of the Law is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Peter Sellers, Bernard Cribbins, Lionel Jeffries, John Le Mesurier and Bill Kerr...
, a film starring Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
.
250 GT Lusso
Ferrari 250 GTO
The Ferrari 250 GTO is a GT car which was produced by Ferrari from 1962 to 1964 for homologation into the FIA's Group 3 Grand Touring Car category....
's Tipo 168 engine with 250 PS and three Weber 36DCS carburettors.
Scaglietti handled construction of the Lusso which lasted through 1964 with few modifications.
Rock star Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
owned one, and an example that had been owned by Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
was sold at auction for $2.3 million on 16 August 2007.
In 2004, Sports Car International
Sports Car International
Sports Car International was an automobile magazine in the United States published by Ross Periodicals Inc. that was focused on sports cars. The magazine was published from 1986 to 2008. Its business offices were located in Novato, California....
placed the 250 GT Lusso tenth on a list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s. Steve Boone
Steve Boone
Steve Boone is the bass guitarist for the rock band, The Lovin' Spoonful.After the Lovin' Spoonful stopped touring in 1968, Boone went to work producing an album for Mercury Records by the Oxpetals. Soon after finishing the album Boone bought a 56 ft sailboat 'Cygnus' and moved onto it in the...
, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the group the Lovin' Spoonful owned one that was stolen from a repair shop in Queens NY and never found, #4237.
330 America
A 250 in all but name, the 1963 330 America shared the outgoing model's chassis if not its engine. Powered by the new 4.0 L engine of the later 330Ferrari 330
The 1963 330 America shared the outgoing 250 GTE's chassis but not its engine, being powered by the new Type 209, at 6600 rpm, 4.0 L engine.Socialite Sandra West is buried with her blue 330 America at the Alamo Masonic Cemetery at San Antonio, Texas....
cars, fifty 330 Americas were built. Likely the most famous 330 America is that belonging to California socialite Sandra Ilene West. Mrs. West was buried at the wheel of her car following a 1977 drug overdose. Her instructions specified that she be clad in her lace nightgown with the driver’s seat "slanted at a comfortable angle". The car (and driver) is interred at the Alamo Masonic Cemetery, San Antonio, Texas.
In the early 1990s (as reported in Classic Car magazine), a green-metallic 330 coupe was regularly abandoned, claimed and then re-abandoned in Melbourne over the course of 4 years. Its ultimate fate is not known.
The Ferrari 250's place in Lamborghini history
Tractor manufacturer Ferruccio LamborghiniFerruccio Lamborghini
Ferruccio Elio Arturo Lamborghini was an Italian industrialist. Born to grape farmers from the comune of Renazzo di Cento in the Emilia-Romagna region, his mechanical know-how led him to enter the business of tractor manufacturing in 1948, when he founded Lamborghini Trattori, which quickly became...
owned at least three Ferrari 250s: a 250GT coupe by Pininfarina, one or two 250 SWB Berlinettas by Scaglietti, and a 250GT 2+2 by Pininfarina. He was frustrated by frequent clutch problems and complained to Enzo Ferrari
Enzo Ferrari
Enzo Anselmo Ferrari Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian race car driver and entrepreneur, the founder of the Scuderia Ferrari Grand Prix motor racing team, and subsequently of the Ferrari car manufacturer...
. Lamborghini later hired ex-Ferrari engineers to design and develop his Lamborghini
Lamborghini
Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., commonly referred to as Lamborghini , is an Italian car manufacturer. The company was founded by manufacturing magnate Ferruccio Lamborghini in 1963, with the objective of producing a refined grand touring car to compete with established offerings from marques like...
cars.
See also
Ferrari 250 GT Drogo - the "Breadvan", a 250 SWB modified by Giotto BizzarriniGiotto Bizzarrini
Giotto Bizzarrini is an Italian automobile engineer active from the 1950s through 1970s....
and Piero Drogo
Piero Drogo
Piero Drogo was a racing driver and coachbuilder from Italy. He participated in one Formula One Grand Prix, debuting on September 4, 1960. He scored no championship points. He moved on to form a carrozzeria in Modena to service the thriving sports car industry there...
for Giovanni Volpi
Giovanni Volpi
Count Giovanni Volpi di Misurata was an automobile racing manager. He inherited a fortune, at the age of 24, from his father, Count Giuseppe Volpi di Misurata, a politician financier and founder of the renowned Venice Film Festival....
.