Ferrari 365GTC4 Redux and Auto Italia at Brooklands

If you have followed this blog from the very beginning (and/ or you used to read my blogs on the now defunct Drivers Republic website) you may well have read my driving impressions blog of the Ferrari 365GTC4. Today I had the opportunity to drive a second example which unlike the first was right hand drive, which on British roads gives you more opportunity to concentrate on the aspects of the car rather than road positioning.

I quick recap, the GTC4 is a 2+2 ( the +2 needing to be extraordinarily small) GT sold alongside the Daytona between 1972 and 1973. Although it shares the same basic 4.4 V12 as the Daytona, it is in a milder state of tune producing around 330bhp. It also has wet sump lubrication and an in line gearbox, The gearbox itself makes for one of the key differences between the two cars as there is a wide transmission tunnel with the gearstick mounted high up rather like the touring cars.

The gearshift on this car felt somewhat stiffer than the previous example although it is very precise After the Daytona you also have to remember this car has a conventional H pattern arrangement.  The steering is very light compared to the Daytonas, (my Daytona is fitted with the power steering pump from a 400 which is broadly the same as the GTC4's), but (and the this may be because of the right hand drive) felt a lot nicer than I remember it before.

This car also featured better brakes and the engine is a lot more urgent, which I guess shows what a wide variation there can be between two otherwise identical cars. Both C4's sound great, the wet sump eliminates some of the mechanical noise you get in the Daytona. Many say the C4 is the best sounding classic Ferrari, and it is hard to argue with that. 

The purpose of the drive today was a trip to the Auto Italia day at Brooklands, the event features all types of Italian cars from Fiat Topolino's through to some of the rarest Ferraris. One very rare Ferrari was actually not seen at the event at all but while we were filling up with petrol. As we pulled up at the pumps next to a 1952 212 Inter with bodywork by Vignale was filling up alongside. I'm not quite sure what the owner of the garage made of this, as there was also a 456 filling up at the same time, but I suspect 3 thirsty V12s filling up was certainly profitable for him.

The 212 was a beauty and apparently still used in historic racing and events such as the Mille Miglia. The external fuel cut off bore witness to that. By modern standards it was also tiny, easily dwarfed by the GTC4. As the owner pulled away from the garage the 2.5 litre V12 sounded fabulous through what I suspect were exhausts with very little silencing.

We got to the show in the afternoon and by the nature of the event cars tend to come and go. so I can't claim to have seen or photographed all the star cars there. The car attracting the most attention was a brand new 458 Italia, the first time I have seen one in the flesh. I please to say it looks as good in real life as it does in the photographs although the front is perhaps a little fussier than I expected partly because of the positioning of the front number plate mount (Ferrari and Pininfarina have an annoying habit of not designing in proper space for a full size front plate).

DK engineering brought along a nice selection of Ferrari Supercars including a 288GTO and an F40. The 288 being up for sale for £450,000, these cars are rising in value. Auto Italia Magazine itself had the lovely 290MM driven by Fangio in the 1956 Mille Miglia on display (its featured in their current edition).


The David Piper owened 330P4 was on display next to a Noble replica P4 that has been fitted with a 3.5 V12 Ferrari Formula 1 engine. I suspect it;s quite a handful to drive.

Parked immediately out the front of the clubhouse were a selection of Iso's including two Grifo's, a big block engined Series 1 and a small block Series 2. Also displayed was the ex John Lennon Fidia saloon, a very odd looking car indeed.

There were a number of Lamborghinis including a nicely restored Countach and a rare Jarama (the front engined Lambos may not have the kudos of mid engined versions but for me they are much cooler).

Alfas, Lancias and Fiats were much in present with a mix of old and new models with some lovely Guilias, Fulvias and Nuova 500s there. There was also a a few Montreals and HR Owen displayed a lovely 8C Spider surely the prettiest cabrio on sale at the moment

There were not so many Maseratis but there were a couple of examples of the new Gran Cabrio, . For the classic Maserati lover there was a 3500GT and a . series 1 Quattroporte.

Overall a nice diverting event for a Saturday afternoon and even the weather managed to stay dry.