1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/C

by Michael Duffey

The aggressive 275 GTB is today more coveted by collectors than the Lusso, even though the Lusso’s design has endured the test of time—generally agreed as among the most pure and beautiful products to come out of the collaboration between Ferrari and Pininfarina. The 275 GTB has other distinctive attributes, not least its place as the first fully independent suspension Ferrari road car and the power and tractability of its 3.3-liter 600 V12 engine developed from the one-liter Colombo “short block” originally designed in 1947. Series production of road Ferraris continued with the 275 GTB, first with two-cam engines and later with four-cam versions, as the mainstay of the marque. Ferrari knew this highly evolved Berlinetta with its improved rear suspension and the balance permitted by its rear-mounted transaxle would, like all good Ferraris, be driven from showroom floor to race-track paddock. Ferrari created a 275 GTB that more closely adapted to the...