A closed auction began dedicated to the first prototype of the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona built in early 1967. The car was made for in-house tests and therefore equipped with a custom engine that the seller calls unique. Ferrari had even kept it in its museum for some time in the past. There are no publicly available price estimates, but several mission USD seems plausible.
The precursor to the legend that is the 365 GTB/4 Daytona differs strongly from the production car with its own front end, rear bumper and body outlines. The seller claims it is the world’s only Daytona to come equipped with a 4.4-liter V12 Tipo 243 engine and six Weber carburetors. The production car also had 4.4 liters of displacement, but the engine was an updated Tipo 251 model.
Once done with the tests, the automaker sold the prototype into private hands. Rumor has it the first owner was Count Vincenzo Balestrieri, world champion in motorboat racing. The car then proceeded to change hands multiple times until it settled in the current seller’s family, who has maintained it for 20+ years now. In early 2010s, it received a complete overhaul in the Netherlands and obtained the Ferrari Classiche certificate of authenticity.
