Headlight Covers

I am looking for a source to buy headlight covers for a 246 Dino GT. Any suggestions?
Thanks

 

Welcome to the board!

Why the "thumbs down"?

What kind of Dino do you have?

 

Superformance in the UK has them. Dont forget to order the mounting hardware.

http://www.superformance.co.uk/a-246/lights.htm


Personally, I like them.


Steve

 

Bear in mind that there are two kinds. The correct ones have a curved profile and follow the line of the front fenders ("wings" to you Brits) in profile. The cheap ones have a "straight line" profile, without the compound curvature (much cheaper to manufacture, I'm sure) and don't look very good at all, in my opinion. I'm not familiar with the Superformance ones, so I cannot say which category they fall into (although from the photo, at least, they do look correct). It would be more helpful to see a photo on a car rather than what they have on the website.

 

I have purchased 2 types. One is thin (Dennis McCann) and the other is thick (Maranello Conc.). Both require different mounting which you have to fabricate. Fitting and trimming is very time consuming. My car with the thin variety.
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These are the originals fitted by the Ferrari factory or Maranello in 73

The top clips are rather neat in that they bolt onto the headlight mounting bowl. Remove one bolt on the lower edge and they just fall out

Will get a closer pic if interested.
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The factory never fitted headlight covers.

Cheers,

Julio

 

With all due respect, I think they are both incorrect, because all headlight covers are incorrect.

That being said, you can of course cover your headlights with whatever you like, but no Dino ever left the factory with covered headlights. Personally, I believe the less stuff added to our beauties, the better; but that's just me.

Cheers,

Julio

 

Sergio Pinninfarina had them installed on his personal Dino. That is endorsement enough for me.
Cheers Mark

 

No argument there, but what I wrote still stands.

Cheers,

Julio

 

"no Dino ever left the factory with covered headlights."

Fact: at least one Dino (00114) not only left the factory with headlight covers, but was displayed by Ferrari at the 1967 Turin Motor show.

When it comes to Ferrari there are few absolutes.
Aloha,
Mark

 

Perhaps it would have been better phrased that the factory did not offer headlight covers for the Dino.

I believe quite a few were fitted at the dealer, but not at the factory, and that more European cars had them fitted than US, since it was a DOT violation in the 70's.

I don't happen to like them, but I also don't like the GTS vs the more pure lines of the GT. So, I see this as each individual's choice.

Only place it becomes a penalty is at concours, and of course that the mounting hardware, if removed leaves unsightly holes in your car.

DM

 

Yes, Julio, you're right. By "correct", I meant similar to the aftermarket covers that were sometimes installed by dealers when the cars were new. In London back in the swinging 70s, quite a few of the cars on display in H.R. Owen's showroom had the covers installed.

It would be interesting to do a wind tunnel test to determine the extent to which the covers reduce aerodynamic drag.

 

I don't know where i read that it had been tested and it was negligible, about a 1% reduction in drag. I will try to find it.

 

There is a company (la Scuderia Rossa) that claims to sell headlight covers that are original factory versions. They boast that the other ones in the market place are "for kit cars." Their price is $2,000 Euros compared to other versions which are priced significantly lower. La Scuderia Rossa claims that all their stock for Dino 246 mechandise is original old stock that is New.

Thay are telling me that the headlight covers were a factory option on all Dinos. Is anyone familiar with this company?

Stephen

 

+++++++++++++1

 

Good gawd! Ridiculous!!!!

I don't think so.

 

Here's a photo of two "L" series Dinos - one with headlight covers originally fit by Maranello Concessionaires (Ferrari UK) and one without. Note, the headlight covers supplied by Ferrari UK in the day didn't follow the nice lines of the wheel arches. I bought a set of the properly contoured ones from Dennis McCann some time ago and had them trimmed for my car (the red one) but have never put them on the car.

With or without, the Dino looks great.

...Keith
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While it is true that Maranello Concessionaires offered headlight covers as a dealer installed option on new Dinos and that some early prototype Dinos were pictured with headlight covers (perhaps done by Scaglietti themselves), they were not a factory option on production Dinos. Go through the original coachwork books for the 206 and 246 Dino and you will not find them anywhere. While it is true that there are no absolutes in the Ferrari world, original documentation is a pretty good judge of what came with the car.

You can certainly buy them and some people think they look great on the car. I've seen both the steeply raked (Ferrari UK) style and the more shapely style used and a variety of supporting hardware by a number of Dino owners through the years. The silver "L" series car I pictured earlier in this thread was picked up by the owner at the factory (at which point the factory installed a Ferrari badge on his car at his request) and then when he got the car to England (where he was living at the time), he had Ferrari UK fit the covers on his car during a routine service.

As for paying $2K for headlight covers, if LSR is offering them at that price, I would expect that they also include swampland in Florida and a face to face meeting with Elvis at that price. I'd recommend you check with Dennis McCann, TRutlands or call Maranello Consessionaires directly before spending $2K on headlight covers from ANY source.

Best...Keith

 

Good one!

 

I paid no more than $200 at McCanns but that was a while ago. In fact I think I was the one that supplied the mould/template to Dennis because he knew our car had covers almost since new. Her is another view.
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Dinos need headlight covers like 308s need a big spoiler on the rear deck.

 

The debate will rage but really what is not to like? practily every top ferrari from the sixties on, except for the flip ups are covered headlamps and so-o-o-o damed attractive and aerodynamic to boot, so stylish and very correct visually. Take your choice but always allow for flexibility in opinion.

 

Let's see. . .

1. Not original.
2. Necessitates drilling an ugly hole or two in the bodywork.
3. Negligible aerodynamic improvement.
4. Once done, can't be undone without a lot of time and expert work.

That said, I love the Dinos, especially the 206 series. . . But I wouldn't reject a 246, even with the headlight covers. The way the prices have gone, I've little hope of affording one anyway.

Dinos are awesome cars either way. I just prefer the ones that have been left well enough alone, if I had to choose.