Three years. About a thousand days. That’s how long it has taken for UK classic car specialist Bell Sport & Classic to turn a Ferrari 330 GTC from forgotten barn-find into a best-in-the-world concours winner.

It isn’t the most obvious traditional Ferrari to lavish so much time and effort on, but that’s sort of the point. Instead of going down the predictable route associated with turning the 250 SWB or 365 GTB/4 Daytona into the best example on the planet, Bell Sport & Classic turned its attention to a lesser-known model from Ferrari’s back-catalog. It’s a move that has undoubtedly earned it more attention as a result.

And what the remarkable result it is. Finished in its original color of Verde Chiaro Metallizato (light green metallic; Italian just sounds better, doesn’t it? ), but with a fawn-colored interior, replacing the original black at the new owner’s request, it’s a car as distinct as it is desirable.

Unveiled within 1966, the particular 330 GTC borrows its chassis from the 275 GTB Berlinetta and an engine from the 330 2+2 Coupé, yet where the latter offers two smaller seats in the rear for children, the GTC is strictly a two-seater, albeit with additional luggage space ahead of the trunk.

Both versions associated with 330 are powered by a four-liter, V12 engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo and producing 300 horsepower at 7, 000 rpm. Also appearing in members of the particular revered Ferrari 250 family, it is a masterpiece of a power unit; tractable and torquey at low speeds, along with a willingness to rev and revolution all the way to the limiter, while producing one of the greatest automotive soundtracks of all time.

Before getting behind the beautiful wooden steering wheel and click-clacking the open-gate shifter in to gear, it is worth diving deeper into the painstaking restoration process undertaken by Bell Sport & Classic that took this Ferrari from non-running barn-find to concours winner.

“Ferrari built 600 examples between 1966 and late 1968 and this particular example was built during the initial year of production, ” says Peter Smith, head of acquisition and sales at Bells Sport & Classic. “It first came to us six years ago having clearly had a good amount of use. The car initially sold into Switzerland, had spent time in the US, and has been eventually found in Venezuela. Although the engine wasn’t running and it had been repainted blue, literally every nut plus bolt had been original, so it was a good example to start with – but we all knew we could make it as close to perfect as possible. ”

Two points that demonstrate just how much effort Bell Sports activity & Classic put in to this repair concern the black paint applied to the particular inside of the wheel arches and engine bay, and the color associated with the fuel tank. Of the former, Matt Wilton, who oversaw the recovery project, said: “It took three attempts before we were certain we got exactly the correct in addition to original degree of shine and even tonality. ”

On typically the latter, this unusual original colour of often the 330’s gas tank, Elliot East regarding Bell Activity & Traditional explains: “Despite having already been painted black at some stage – as most have been – when the car seemed to be new, its twin fiberglass-coated fuel tanks were painted a pale turquoise glowing blue. It’s not an easy color to match, and some might argue that it’s not important as the carpet hides the tanks. But it’s essential to use, and that’s why the particular fuel tanks are once again finished in period-perfect turquoise after we found an original area of paint inside of typically the necks plus color matched it. ”

Inside, this original black interior was replaced by fawn leather requested by the new owner, who acquired the car mid-way through the restoration process. Rather than being a bespoke choice, Ferrari Conolly VM 218 fawn leather was available as an option to 330 GTC buyers when new, and for this repair the upholstery was matched up with period-correct carpets, headlining and vinyl, all sourced from Italy and produced by O’Rourke Coachtrimmers & Suppliers associated with southern England. Although often the foam padding and leather is brand new, the seat frames are original, along with the belt fittings in addition to buckles which have been restored to as-new condition.

A 1980s cassette player had already been fitted at some point in the car’s life, but this was removed by Bell Sport & Classic and even replaced with an initial Beck Europa radio. It is the exact type as would have been fitted from fresh, but restored and invisibly upgraded simply by audio specialist ChromeLondon to have modern internals and Bluetooth connectivity.

The exact weave of the floor mats was also carefully recreated, and today your car is provided with a pair of every-day mats happy to soak up some dirt, while those made to match the originals are stowed in the exact trunk, ready to impress concours judges at the moment’s notice.

The concours mats are, mercifully, intended to mostly go unused, because Bells Sport & Classic wanted to ensure the 330 GTC drove as well as it looked. Once the particular engine has been stripped down, refurbished together with rebuilt, it endured two days regarding testing to check for oil leaks, before being installed back into the car and additionally subjected to 500 miles involving road testing. “We restore cars, not just to be sat on a concours lawn, but driven and enjoyed by their owners, ” says Smith.

And so in order to the driving. Like most Ferraris connected with this era the experience is dominated from the engine. But whereas in a 250 SWB typically the car feels like an eager dog yanking at its leash, ready to charge to the rev limiter, the 330 GTC feels more civilized. It will be pleased to cruise at a canter through town, the motor entirely unstressed but prepared to deliver a surprising amount of torque in one higher gear than you think this needs.

The particular steering is usually nicely weighted, with some from the initial slack that is commonplace in cars of this era, yet starts to communicate clearly when a few degrees with lock is definitely applied. It only takes a couple of minutes to be able to get used to, and paired with this lightness not to mention compact dimensions compared for you to modern performance cars, often the 330 GTC is easy to help place on the road. Its size also means you can navigate narrow country roads and also pass oncoming traffic without feeling a new sudden urge to breathe in, and your thin A-pillars and relatively upright windshield help to fill the cabin with light. The lack of seatbelts is as weird as ever, but they could be retrofitted if the exact owner so chose.

Although powered with a closely related V12 powerplant, the 330 GTC is a far calmer drive compared to members of the older, smaller-capacity 250 family. It lacks the rawness of some sort of race-bred 250 SWB, and is instead better suited to daily traveling duties, like a 250 Lusso – nevertheless at around $750, 000 for an immaculate example, the thick end for a million dollars cheaper.

But this is still a good V12 Ferrari, and one that isn’t in any way short on overall performance. The 330’s laid back demeanor soon vanishes with a prod from the accelerator in second gear, the particular cabin quickly filling along with one of the greatest-ever automotive soundtracks. The 330 is claimed to reach 60 mph within around 6. 5 seconds, and inside period had a top speed about 150 mph; hair-raising stuff for 1966.

Whereas modern supercars dispatch straights throughout the blink of an eye, typically the 330’s efficiency gives the driver more time to enjoy their surroundings. The soundtrack, of course , although also this wooden Nardi steering wheel, the wonderful aroma in leather, often the light nonetheless communicative steering and, naturally , the lovely open-gate gear shifter. Everything takes a bit more effort than in a modern car, both physically and mentally, however , once you dial into the 330 it’s your total joy.

Bell Sports activity & Classic may have picked an oddball – at least in the rarified world of deciding which classic Ferrari to restore next : but the execution is top-drawer. The company has now set its sights on restoring a short-nose Ferrari 275 GTB, but of course we’ll have to wait a few years to see the result.