Is there a better looking classic sports car out there?
On a hot Saturday morning as we drove along the Damansara Puchong Highway (LDP) heading towards Petaling Jaya section 16 from Taman Tun we spotted a very rare and sexy looking classic supercar. Curvaceous like an Italian super model and singing a mild classic tune, this was a Ferrari Dino 245GT.
Yes, it was a mint condition Dino with a rather tall driver enjoying every minute of his classic Pininifarina designed supercar.
This car was built as a tribute to Enzo’s beloved son Alfredino who died of a kidney disease back in 1956 but the ‘Dino’ designation goes back to the year following this tragedy when the new V6-engined Formula Two GP cars were also known as the 246 Dino.
The final upshot of the collaboration in the late ‘60s was that the Fiat Dino Spider and Coupe and Ferrari 206GT Dinowere borne, both designed by the legendary Pininfarina. The major differences being the 2+2 Fiat was front engined, driving the rear wheels whereas the transversally mounted, mid-engined Ferrari was very much a two-seater. Without doubt, it was also the best looking of the two. Both started out as 2.0-litres but then were opened up to 2418cc in 1969, the Ferrari having the edge on power by a few horses over the Fiat at 195bhp.
Despite its relatively low selling price when new, the Dino won worldwide acclaim for its styling and together with faultless handling and stunning performance in relation to its 2.4-litre engine size, it has lost none of its attraction to this day.
In 1971 the Dino cost between 6,000 to 6,200 pounds sterling and today you will be looking at a price that starts from 300,000 pounds sterling which is about RM2 Million.
We have seen a few other mint condition Dino’s in Malaysia which come from the garages of the Royal family and a private classic car collector. We have seen them up close, parked, very tidy and sitting pretty at classic car shows and at selected car parks under watchful eyes. This was our first time seeing it on the move and it sounded glorious.
The 2418cc quad-cam V6 with a four main bearing crank pushes out a healthy 195bhp at 7600 rpm. It breathes through three twinchoke 40 DCF Webers and drives the rear wheels through its integral five-speed gearbox and differential assembly. The 246 GT and GTS were discontinued in 1974 after just over 4000 sales to be replaced by the Ferrari 308 GT4.
We hope that one day we will be given the chance to get behind the wheel of a restored Dino to get a feel of unassisted power delivery and steering feel.
