The Ferrari 365 GTB/4’s dizzying Pininfarina-engineered beauty has been causing knees to weaken and eyes to well for decades. That sleek fastback body epitomises the romance and appeal of the Italian Gran Turismo. The ‘Daytona’ is the kind of classic in which you can turn up anywhere on the planet, be it Monaco or Mumbai, and you’ll draw gawping onlookers by the dozen. It starred in Miami Vice and even Elton John owned one. And in the 1970s that was a big deal.
“The ’Daytona’ starred in Miami Vice and even Elton John owned one. And in the 1970s that was a big deal.”
The Ferrari 365 GTB/4’s dizzying Pininfarina-engineered beauty has been causing knees to weaken and eyes to well for decades. That sleek fastback body epitomises the romance and appeal of the Italian Gran Turismo. The ‘Daytona’ is the kind of classic in which you can turn up anywhere on the planet, be it Monaco or Mumbai, and you’ll draw gawping onlookers by the dozen. It starred in Miami Vice and even Elton John owned one. And in the 1970s that was a big deal.
Early examples are characterised by their distinctive Plexiglas noses with faired-in headlights – a slightly purer design, at least for us here at Girardo & Co. HQ. Changes in American homologation rules forced Ferrari to introduce pop-ups on the 365 GTB/4 in 1971. Less than a third of the 1,284 ‘Daytonas’ produced featured the Plexiglas nose and are therefore most desirable to collectors today.
Chassis number
13537
If we could hop in a time machine back to 1970 and configure ‘our’ new Ferrari 365 GTB/4 ‘Daytona’, we highly suspect it would have looked a lot like chassis number 13537, the fabulous example we’re thrilled to be offering. Giuseppe Minganti from Bologna was the man who ordered this car new, paying the Bolognese Ferrari dealer Motor Sas di Carla Allegretti e C a princely 8.4m Italian lire for the pleasure.
A European-specification Plexiglas ‘Daytona’, chassis number 13537 was finished in the gorgeous shade of Blu Sera with a black Connolly leather interior. Boxes ticked on the optional-extras form included air-conditioning (a must for the hot Italian summers), a wooden-rimmed steering wheel and red fabric inserts on the dainty bucket seats.
“If we could hop in a time machine back to 1970 and configure ‘our’ new Ferrari 365 GTB/4 ‘Daytona’, we highly suspect it would have looked a lot like this car.”
Heir to a prominent Italian mineral-water and wine empire, Violati kindled his Ferrari collection in 1965, buying of all models a 250 GTO – unbeknownst to his family, who disapproved of his insatiable obsession with motorsport! Over the decades, he assembled a stunning collection of over 40 significant Prancing Horses (and many more Abarths!), displaying them in the specially-built Maranello Rosso Collection museum in San Marino.
In the years since then, the historic Ferrari specialists at The Light Car Company in Oxfordshire, England, has undertaken sympathetic recommissioning works to the car including replacement of the fuel pumps, re-foaming of the seats, tuning of the carburettors and fitment of new tyres. These works were undertaken with a view to using the car – something that the current owner has, pleasingly, frequently done in the last nine years.
As outlined in the extensive inspection report we commissioned to the UK’s foremost Ferrari authority Keith Bluemel, this car retains almost all of its original Blu Sera paintwork, which has, as you’d expect, accrued a perfectly imperfect patina. Similarly, the original black Connolly hide and red fabric optional seat inserts are present inside, pervading the interior with the wonderfully rich and unmistakeable scent of aged leather. The ‘mouse-hair’ dash is from the factory, as are all the glass panels.
“It’s hard to describe, but this car feels just ‘right’ from behind the wheel – as though it’s exactly how the factory test-driver signed off on the car after thousands of miles of proving.”
It goes without saying that, beneath the surface, chassis 13537 retains its original matching-numbers engine, chassis and gearbox. If it’s good to ogle, this Ferrari is even better to drive. Max goes as far as to say it’s the best-driving ‘Daytona’ he’s ever encountered. “If ever a car gave me that reassuringly familiar ‘old-pair-of-trousers’ feeling, it was this ‘Daytona’,” he explains. “It’s hard to describe, but the car feels just ‘right’ from behind the wheel – as though it’s exactly how the factory test-driver signed off on the car after thousands of miles of proving. Or how it felt as Minganti parted with it after enjoying it so thoroughly.
“Nothing feels tight or snaggy – the gearshift, especially, inspires so much confidence and the buttery-smooth 12-cylinder engine has zero fluff at lower revs. It’s true some ‘Daytonas’ can feel heavy and cumbersome. But this one doesn’t. A credit to the three gentlemen who’ve cherished it for the last 53 years and the folks at The Light Car Company who have sympathetically maintained it. It would be criminal if this Ferrari’s next custodian didn’t preserve its originality and enjoy it with the same gusto as his or her predecessors. It really is that good.”
Accompanying this Ferrari today is its original black Bologna Italian registration plates, Circolazione card and windscreen disc, and ASI Foglio Complementare. Great ‘Daytonas’ don’t come around too often. And given its provenance and condition, we don’t see why chassis 13537 shouldn’t be considered a reference example of the early ‘Plexiglas’ model. Its new owner is in for a real treat…
Want more details on this car?
November 2023 – Keith Bluemel Inspection – Goberson
November 2023 – Modern Photography – Belchers Farm
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