1972 | Ferrari 365 GTC/4

1972 Ferrari 365 GTC/4

The Ferrari 365 GTC/4 is something very rare: an underrated Ferrari. Yet we knew it all along; this model was the perfect 'Gran Turismo' in the 70s. Designed and built to devour kilometre after kilometre of roads at high speed .

In 1971, the 365 GTC/4 was presented at the Geneva Motor Show as a successor to the 330 GTC and 365 GTC models being a practical 2-seater coupe with 2 small rear seats. In the early 1970s, the model name at Ferrari was still decided by the engine installed in the car.

365 referred to the number of cubic centimetres of cylinder capacity per cylinder. GTC was the abbreviation for Grand Touring Coupe and the 4 indicated that the car was equipped with the latest cylinder heads with four camshafts.

The body was designed and built by Pininfarina in Turin. From the Pininfarina factory, the steel body with aluminium doors, bonnet and boot lid then left for Ferrari in Modena.

Production of the 365 GTC/4 ran concurrently with that of the Dino 246GT and the 365 GTB/4 or popularly called Daytona. The GTC/4 model and GTB/4 have a lot of things in common.

On the engine front, the same type of F101-Colombo V12 block was used as a base. Some modifications were made here and there. Whereas the GTB/4 used 'downdraft' carburettors, the GTC/4 opted for 'sidedraft'Webers. This allowed the line of bonnet to be placed even lower. Power was scaled back somewhat on the GTC/4 to provide a more comfortable delivery of power than the GTB/4's brutal response.

A transaxle gearbox was fitted to the 'Daytona'. The GTC/4 received a gearbox mounted on the engine. As a result, the weight distribution of 51:49 was ideal.

A total of 1 406 units of the 365 GTB/4 were built while only 505 examples of the GTC/4 were built; almost 3 times as rare, in other words. Yet the purchase price of a GTC/4 today is often a lot more favourable than that of the 365 GTB/4. More rare for less money. And yet, in 1972, a GTC/4 cost as much as $3,000 more than the GTB/4.

This Ferrari was built in Modena in 1972. The Pininfarina-delivered bodywork was mounted on the tubular-space frame and the 4.4-litre V12 engine installed. After the necessary tests at the factory, the car was prepared to be shipped to its first owner in the United States. There, the car was delivered by exclusive Ferrari distributor for all of 'Eastern US'; Al Garthwaite and Luigi Chinetti in Pennsylvania.

After spending several years in America, this Ferrari was bought by a Frenchman in 1996 to return to continental Europe. A good 20 years later, the car ended up in Belgium, where it has remained until today.

We found the best way to summarise this underrated Ferrari in the following quote: "The styling is so elegantly low-key that the model is often overlooked." In short, this 365 GTC/4 is the chance for a connoisseur of automotive to snap up Ferrari's top model from 1972 at the right price.

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