1977 Ferrari 308 GTB Vetroresina

Introduced by Ferrari at the Paris Salon in 1975, the Pininfarina designed 308 GTB model became the firm's second V8-engined road car, sporting a 3.0-litre engine capable of producing 255bhp and a top speed of 150 mph. Initial production commenced with a the dry sump engine and glassfibre bodywork, in Italian, "Vetroresina', with later cars having a more traditional wet sump engine. This was the first time Ferrari has used this material for the bodywork and still to this day there is much discussion as to why they choose to go down this route. The official factory figures state that only 808 "Vetroresina' cars were produced in total with the UK receiving a small share of just 154 right-hand drive cars, making it a rare and exclusive Ferrari to own today.

This rare right-hand drive UK-spec car bears the all-important chassis number #20637, and is finished in Rosso Corsa Red with Nero trim and Rosso inserts inside the cabin. The car is in outstanding condition in every way with the paint finish gleaming front to back.

The huge history file that accompanies this car has been fastidiously maintained almost as much as the car itself, documenting everything from 1977 -2014, and is too detailed to list in its entirety, however invoices dating back to 1977, show servicing work carried out by H. R. Owen for a Mr F. Merli of Romford, Essex. A retrim of the interior was carried out in 1997 by Nu-Trim at a cost of £1,750, with the car still looking fresh in-side some 17 years later. The vendor informs us that an "engine-out' service was carried out in 2013 with a new clutch being fitted at the same time.

Bringing the car right up to date and only 329 miles ago, the car has had a major service at well-known specialist Simon Furlonger, including new plugs, new cam cover gaskets, new input shafts, cambelt change, air filter and brake fluid. Currently sitting on 16" alloys on a set of new P7 tyres, the vendor states that the original 14" wheels come with the car and are part of this sale.

All of the original service books and hand books are in place in the leather document wallet. Also included in the history file is every MoT certificate from 1981 plotting the mileage as follows:

MoT Date

Mileage

Nov '81

27,635

Feb '83

31,727

Jul '84

38,250

May '87

39,710

May '88

41,407

Jul '89

41,788

Jun '91

42,609

Sept '92

42,618

May '95

42,696

Aug '96

43,296

Aug '97

43,391

Aug '98

49,511

Aug '99

55,701

Aug '00

60,918

Aug '01

64,482

Aug '02

66,944

Aug '03

67,373

Aug '04

68,766

Aug '05

69,289

Oct '06

69,934

Oct '07

70,169

Oct '08

70,252

Nov '09

70,302

Nov '10

70,610

Nov '11

70,730

Apr '13

70,912

Oct '13

71,326

The odometer now reads a warranted milage of 71,637 miles and the car is to be sold with a V5c, a fresh MoT until October 2015 and road tax paid until March 2015.

This is a rare opportunity to acquire one of the most sought after variations of the 308. A superb looking car with fantastic history file, this turn-key ready example is surely one not to be missed by any fans of the Prancing Horse.