Only 272 breathtaking examples of the Ferrari 288 GTO were made over three years, from 1984 to 1986. The fastest road car in existence when it was first produced, the 288 GTO was forced off its perch in 1986, when the Porsche 959 arrived. But as conceived, the 288 was a homologated car for a race that failed to show up – Group B rally, discontinued in 1986, thanks to the mayhem at Corsica that killed two participants. The 288 GTO carried only the best of debutante names – Gran Turismo Omologata – conferred once in the past to the legendary 250 GTO and evocative of heavyweight history.  Here at Broad Arrow’s Monterey auction is this 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO, with an estimate of $4.25 to $4.75 million. You can pick up your GTO from the Monterey Jet Center on your way to Laguna Seca – just up the Salinas highway – if you win the bidding. We are ever grateful to Araknid78 for providing us the opportunity to write about magnificent automobiles including this Ferrari.

Should I praise the body of this car before I praise the engine? It’s a toss-up. The engine is Ferrari’s twin-turbo 2.9 liter V8, mounted longitudinally and urged along by Weber-Marelli fuel injection. Insofar as turbos go, this wasn’t Ferrari’s first rodeo. Aside from specialty F1 use, the company installed a turbo on the 208 GTB in order to sidestep taxation applied to higher displacement engines, but still advance in the horsepower race. Inside the 288 GTO, turbos helped the V8 achieve 400 bhp and a zero to sixty time below five seconds. But this was early days for turbos, with lag a significant factor. Basically, it was ask, ask, ask on the loud pedal, and then the thing turned into a rocket ship. Make the next gearchange on the five-speed box, and it was ask, ask, ask again, until liftoff – rinse and repeat.

Chassis ZFFPA16B000054809 was delivered in Switzerland when new, subsequently making the rounds of various countries until it arrived in Japan in 1994. There, in keeping with what is represented as common practice, the odometer was rolled back before it was sold again. Still, as best as we can tell, this GTO has traveled just 9000 km, though astute observers may note considerable pedal wear. Experts attest to the GTO’s originality, including stampings, caulking, and of course the mechanical components, which are represented as numbers matching, including the exhaust system. The car was delivered with red fabric inserts in its Pelle Nera leather seats. Optioned with air conditioning and power windows, this car stands out as an exceptional example. Its provenance is immaculate, as are its accessories, including documentation and its full tool set.

The 288 body doors, trunk, and engine lid were made of aluminum, while the remainder of the panels were substantially comprised of fiberglass and carbon compounds. The car resembled the 308 GTB, but it sported flared wheel arches and emphatic spoilers fore and aft, the result of considerable wind-tunnel testing. The three cooling slots on the rear fenders behind the wheels echoed the motif of the 250 GTO, albeit in the aft position versus the 250’s forward-of-door placement. The final price for this remarkable Ferrari will depend on many factors including the population of buyers present, competing offerings on the Peninsula that week, and previous sales including this attempt in London, and this one at Amelia Island, both of which seem to support a lower price than the estimate advises.