this is 47649: red. Did 1':35" as lap time at Fiorano track. As all the prototypes and all the production cars, It was painted in red at Ferrari spraying plant. Never deliverd, of course: it was the prototype that Ferrari sent to the omologation tests at Italian Motor Department. But then this No.6 prototype was dismantled and abandoned in a Factory yard. Dead. The remanings of the car (the chassis) was purchased by a Ferrari dealership, as a not running car: but it had the chassis number, 47649, as it wasn't removed from the car. Then rebuilt and completed by an Official Ferrari dealership with OEM spare parts, the Modena Official Ferrari Dealership: in Yellow. When the car got the plate and so was registered at Italian Motor Department itwas Yellow. Then sold as Yellow. Official color: Yellow. Was it red in origin? yes it was: you can see it here below, 47649, Prototype No.6 As said, Prototypes are not production cars and changed many times during their life: this one was dead, but then saved from scrapping and reborn in Yellow. When the car was resistered at Italian MOT it was Yellow. When was delivered to the first private owner, it was Yellow. Then, Red or yellow? Yellow, in my opinion as it was Yellow when car was completed after being dismantled (so it ceased to be a car as red) and it was just a scrap and no more a car. Second life as a Yellow car, as Ferrari dealership gave it a new life and choosed the Yellow color for this car, that is the first official life as a street car. Done by Conte Antolini himself, owner of the Motor S.p.A., the Official Ferrari dealership and assistance point in Modena, Italy. Picture one: 47649, the No.6 prototype with the test plate. Picture Copyright: Ferrari S.p.A. - De Agostini Picture two: 47649, the street car born from former prototype No.6. It's no more the red Prototype No. 6, even if it has some important parts of it: chassis, suspensions, part of the dashboard. Picture Courtesy: Miles Sandy, Cavallino Motorsport, Brookvale, Australia. So, those are the facts: everyone can have his own opinion, of course. But the story is this. ciao Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Here's 47649 on the cover of German magazine "Auto, Motor & Sport". Marcel Massini Image Unavailable, Please Login
47649 was the official press test car before the start of 288 productions: all the magazines testers drove (and pictured) that car. The Italian Autocapital magazine was another one: 47649 test drive impressions are in the May 1984 issue you can see here in my former post. That car was of course red when it was a prototype at the Esperienze department. Even had the red front bumper. https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/posts/146319501/ ciao
As said, all magazine testers drove 47649: It was the test car as it was the last (so probably the best available) prototype built. All pictures here below come from Autocapital, May 1984 issue. All pictures show the Prototype No.6, chassis 47649: there are many used copies for sale, here in Italy, and they are very cheap too. They say "We drove 47649: It's still an experimental car, and it has previously been sent to omologation tests" ciao Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
56761 coming to auction in Arizona next month...https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/az19/arizona/lots/r0061-1985-ferrari-288-gto/727696 Paul
56761 sold new through Newport Imports in CA. Engine #00214. Gearbox #204. Scaglietti Body #197. 29 April 1985 factory build start. Marcel Massini
The cover car has the black horse on the left instead of earlier chrome horse? Also the GTO emblem (a decal?) is present on the left side instead of the other location beside the right hand tail lights. The "288" numerals have disappeared to. They don't appear on the left side of the Auto Capitol cover car GTO. The horizontal rear panel between the tail lights is the later flat version. The concave sunken section surrounding the license plate is missing. Interesting to see the evolution of this 288 GTO model as it was developed and refined. Thank you to both Marcel and Alberto for the images shared here!!!
Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Could this be the same rear panel used on prototype 6 car? Single mirror on the last pic is not the tall style. Also the color is a lighter shade of red like Marcel mentioned.
Could this be the same rear panel used on prototype 6 car? Single mirror on the last pic is not the tall style. Also the color is a lighter shade of red like Marcel mentioned. Yes it is also similar in style (the GTO was wider) to what they were using on the 1985 308 series cars with the concave area around the license plate. Also putting the chrome horse on the left side at the back was normal for the 308 series and not the right side. Very neat to see the "288" numerals on the rear in those pictures as they were deleted on the production cars for some reason. Yet the 308 and 328 had their series numerals on the back end for years throughout their production. It is interesting about the color change for some of the prototypes as also some of the earliest F40 prototypes when photographed appear with a more 'orange' red paint color to... ( YOU better give Marcel credit for his photographs > the last two with the low front and rear view of the GTO there!!!!! )
I have never seen that third picture before where the GTO is just visible behind the Testarossa! Thank you very much.
Awesome image. I think Prototypes with their unique features are both historically important & interesting, and given the existence and life of 47649 in contributing to the testing & development of the 288 GTO, if I or a client ever acquired 47649, it would go back to it's Prototipo specification in red.
Yes, in fact that's the reason why I wrote "All pictures here below come from Autocapital, May 1984 issue. All pictures show the Prototype No.6, chassis 47649" in my post #12471, and there wasn't the Autocapital cover among the pictures I attached. That's not the test car 47649: it's very likely 50255. In the Autocapital article there are several pictures: some are of the test car 47649 driven by Autocapital (the ones I posted, there is even the Autocapital sticker attached on the car bumpers) taken by the photographer S. Bacchi and some others were of 50255 and some of another car I don't know, taken by photographer Renato Fontana (and those Renato Fontana pictures are the same pictures you can find on the official Ferrari site today). ciao
Sandro Bacchi, a well known Italian automobile photographer at the time. Knew him personally. Marcel Massini
The two different cars on the same Autocapital article Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login those are stickers they attached just for that picture: here the full picture of that car rear view, taken by Renato Fontana and published in the same Autocapital arcticle. It's 50255 ciao View attachment 2636608 Image Unavailable, Please Login
Joe a milestone with page 500 for the 288 GTO here, not to mention over 1.7mil views! Congrats on keeping it going.
Thank you. Meanwhile, I love the raw 'Muletta' look of 47649, and no question it would go back to that supercool initial red configuration down to the exposed gearbox supports, unique 288 GTO badging, and Prova plate, if it were mine. If the current owner consults with me, that will be my advice. Prototypes are important, and should be preserved & celebrated for what they were, just as the F40 Prototypes are, they should not be hidden under the guise of some post-production modification Image Unavailable, Please Login
All well and good but then what about the second Geneva show car GTO 50253 that was turned into the 288 GTO Evoluzione ? How would you handle that one? Image Unavailable, Please Login 50253 Ferrari 288 GTO 2nd Prototype later converted to 288 GTO Evoluzione 1 of 6 Also was 50253 on the Pininfarina stand at the Geneva showing or 50255?
50255 was on the Ferrari stand at the 1984 Geneva Motor show. Black interior with red inserts. 50253 was on the Pininfarina stand at the 1984 Geneva Motor show. All black interior. I attended this show personally on the press day 28th February 1984, as I do every single year since March 1970, and personally wrote down the chassis numbers and took photos of both 288 GTOs. Marcel Massini
