Lot 311: Ferrari Dino 246GTS Spyder

It was the need for a production-based engine for the new Formula 2 that led to the introduction of a 'junior' Ferrari, the Dino 206GT, at the Turin Motor Show in 1967. Building on experienced gained with its successful limited edition Dino 206S sports-racer of 1966, Ferrari retained the racer's mid-engined layout for the road car but installed the power unit transversely rather than longitudinally. A compact, aluminium-bodied coupe of striking appearance, the Pininfarina-styled Dino - named after Enzo Ferrari's late son Alfredino Ferrari and intended as the first of a separate but related marque - was powered by a 2.0-litre, four-cam V6 driving through an in-unit five-speed transaxle. The motor's 180bhp was good enough to propel the lightweight, aerodynamically-efficient Dino to 142mph, and while there were few complaints about the car's performance, the high cost enforced by its aluminium construction hindered sales. A 2.4-litre version on a longer wheelbase - the 246GT - replaced the Dino 206 in late 1969. The body was now steel and the cylinder block cast-iron rather than aluminium, but the bigger engine's increased power - 195bhp at 7,600rpm - was adequate compensation for the weight gain. A Targa-top version, the 246GTS, followed in 1972. While not quite as fast in a straight line as its larger V12-engined stablemates, the nimble Dino was capable of showing almost anything a clean pair of heels over twisty going. Testing the ultimate V6-engined Dino  the 246GT  in 1972, the authoritative American motoring magazine Road & Track enthused, 'it is a thrill to drive a car like the Dino, one whose capabilities are far beyond what even an expert driver can use in most real-world motoring, and that is the Dino's reason for being. The real joy of a good mid-engined car is in its handling and braking and the Dino shone as we expected it to. The steering is quick without being super quick, and it transmits by what seems a carefully planned amount of feedback exactly what is going on at the tyres. Thanks to the layout's low polar moment of inertia the car responds instantly to it. The Dino's cornering limits are very high& ' Truly a driver's car par excellence. As the first series-produced, mid-engined Ferraris, the early Dino V6s are landmark cars. The line they founded would prove to be an immense commercial success for Maranello, production amounting to 2,487 GT coup�s and 1,274 GTS spyders by the time the model was deleted in 1974. The stunning right-hand drive 246GTS we offer was purchased by the vendor's father in 1977, remaining in his ownership to the present day. Previously registered '99 BOY' and finished in black, the car has been off the road since 1993/94 undergoing refurbishment, the body being stripped back to bare metal and re-sprayed circa 1996 and the interior re-trimmed in 1997. A new fuel pump and distributor cap/leads were fitted in 2008 and the car is offered fresh from recent re-commissioning. MoT'd in March of this year, it has covered a believed-genuine 36,360 miles from new and is described as in generally good condition. An exceptional low-mileage example benefiting from long-term careful ownership, this beautiful Dino 246GTS is offered with replacement leather wallet and reprinted service booklet; assorted expired MoTs; sundry invoices, old-style logbook; MoT to March 2010 and Swansea V5 registration document.