I am a fan, and former owner, of Ferrari cars, I love the brand and the wondrous cars they produce. There is a mythology about the Ferrari brand that no other single manufacturer of sports and GT cars can match. There is just a special magic about a car that wears the Cavallino Rampante on its nose. Of all the closed cars that the Maranello company has built, the single model I find to be the absolutely most beautiful is the 250 GT Lusso.
Ferrari introduced the 250 Lusso as a prototype at the 1962 Paris Motor Show. The new model was built for Ferrari to fill a model gap between the sports car 250 GT SWB and the more luxurious, but less dramatic looking, 250 GTE 2+2. Sports car fans in the early 1960s were seeking sports cars with more comfortable interiors that were also practical for travel. What the 250 Lusso became was a world class grand touring car with the emphasis on the “grand.”
The 250 Lusso lifespan was very brief for a Ferrari road car with production only running from 1962 to August of 1964. During that time a total of only 351 were built, The car was replaced by the 275 GTB. It was also a very expensive car for the time with a list price of $13,375, making its customer base quite exclusive.
The Lusso is not just a pretty face either, even though it was never intended for competition, the 250 GT Lusso raced at a number of events including the Targa Florio and the Tour de France.
Our Pick of the Day is one of these fabulous cars, a 1963 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso located at a dealer in Monterey, California, and it’s listed for sale on ClassicCars.com. (Click the link to view the listing).
The seller describes this as a beautiful numbers matching 250 GT Lusso (#4427) that has been in single ownership for 50 years in California. They add that receipts include when the seller purchased the vehicle in southern California in 1973. It has been painted silver but was originally painted in a dark red, and the interior has been restored in brown leather that was originally tan.
They add that the engine was professionally rebuilt in 2008, and the chassis appears to have never been disassembled at that time. They state as well that the car runs and drives well with great compression readings (you can see them all on the listing). Prospective buyers have access to the Massini report on the car. The seller believes that the odometer, which is in kilometers, 46,573 km (28,939 miles) is accurate mileage for this car. They close stating that there are no signs of accidents, there is some minor surface rust in a few areas of the undercarriage, and that the car recently received a new water pump, a mechanical fuel pump rebuilt, two new distributors, and had all fluids changed.
I have driven a few 250 GT Lussos and these cars are everything I ever hoped a Ferrari would be. The styling, combined with the very strong engine performance, with the addition of the amazing leather interior with lots of quilting simply checks every box for me. These are awesome road cars and are the perfect car for vintage rallies and events. They seem to beg to be driven hard and reward every one of a driver’s five senses.
The driver’s view of the dash from behind the wheel with the central location of the speedometer and the tack with the auxiliary gauges in front of you is amazing to see. To me the Lusso is the very personification of that Ferrari magic.
The 250 GT Lusso is the stuff that classic sports car dreams are made of, and if I had the asking price of $1,499,000 it would be the car I drove during Monterey Car Week next year.
Since today is actually my birthday, if someone wants to send me a belated present this week this car would be fine.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.
Greetings Andy,
I sincerely enjoyed your article on the Ferrari 250. Beautiful car.
When I read your bio at the end of the article, I did a double take. My first car at the age of 16 was a 1972 fiat 124 Spyder. The fiat unfortunately met its demise almost a decade later when i flipped it over going exceptionally fast into an exceptionally tight curve.
My other vehicles which are still around include a 1972 BMW 2002, 1975 BMW Bavaria, 1974 Pontiac Grandville Convertible, 1988 MB 560SEL, and a 1994 straight line 6 Jaguar XJS in British Racing Green.
In any case, I hope this reply finds you and your family well.
Regards, Paul
Santa Cruz, CA
Hey Paul thank you for the kind words. You have some amazing cars. The final series XJS with the inline aj6 and aj16 engines is as good as they ever got. I am a fan of the BMWs as well as I think we are up to 6 at this point, and the 560SEL is likely the last of the truly great Mercedes DS class cars.
Thanks for reading and commenting.
Andy
Greetings Andy,
Thank you for getting back to me. I loved it and quite frankly couldn’t believe it.
My every day car is the XJS and my wife thinks I’m nuts. My mechanic Emilio here in Santa Cruz said that car wants and needs to be driven, and I listened.
FYI Our youngest daughter is about to turn 18. I bought her a mint condition 1982 BMW 528e for $3500 from a friend when she turned 16. And she thinks it’s awesome.
We are both very fortunate.
Be well, Paul