Description
By: Anthony Pritchard .
Book Description
The Ferrari 250 GTO is one of the most charismatic cars ever produced. Designed purely for racing success, the 250 GTO dominated the Grand Touring category of sports car racing during the during the years 1962 to 1964, thanks to its strong performance, fine handling and robust construction. Because of its sheer beauty, immensely successful track record and the relatively small numbers of cars built, prices subsequently rocketed in the collectors' market and nowadays a 250 GTO is one of the most valuable cars of all.
This lavish book celebrates the breed more thoroughly than ever before by combining a detailed account of every aspect of the 250 GTO's history with a wonderful array of period photographs — including some rare colour — gathered from all over the world.
The book is divided into two parts. The first part starts by detailing the genesis of the 250 GTO, covering the cars from which it was developed (including the 250 GT Tour de France and 250 GT SWB) and the evolution of the Colombo-designed V12 engine that they all shared. There follows an analysis of the 250 GTO's anatomy, and then long and profusely illustrated chapters covering the three years of the 250 GTO's front-line racing success (1962-64) in events such as the Tour de France, Targa Florio and Le Mans, as well as innumerable lesser motor races and hill climbs. An account of racing in the twilight years (1965-66) concludes the first part.
The second part is a fascinating chassis-by-chassis account that unravels the various complexities of the family, together with a wealth of photographs. The 250 GTO prototypes and all 40 production cars are covered in detail, with plenty of anecdote and arcane fact along the way. Remarkably, every single one of these cars survives today.
About The Author
Anthony Pritchard has been writing about motor racing for 50 years and in that time has had over 60 books published. Sports car racing subjects of the 1950s and 1960s are his favourite area, and his first love has always been Ferrari. His recent Ferrari titles for Haynes include the well-received Scarlet Passion and Ferrari: Men from Maranello.
