Hello all, we have just completed a total restoration of this magnificent SWB. Marcel was a great help with the history and some very useful period photos. We learnt initially from the factory that the car was finished in a two tone paint scheme (yes two tone!!) and with some unique features such as a full width front bumper, 50s style riveted steering wheel, a leather covered dash (should be painted), grey seat piping (over red leather), arm rests and a few other minor items. Marcels photos were very useful indeed and during the restoration we were able to find a lot of clues relating to these items. We are really interested to learn if anyone can help with some more 60s/70s/80s photos? Or whether anyone knows about the first owner? We must assume he was fairly important to have such modifications! Many thanks in advance for any help you can provide. James
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Original exterior color: Grigio Conchiglia 16249, roof in Grigio 16674 (deep gray). Original interior color: Rosso VM 3171. Sold new May 1962 through Garage de Montchoisy SA in Geneva, Switzerland, to the first Swiss owner. Below photo taken by Fluid Images for DK Engineering. Marcel Massini Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hi I gather you are not Alberto Crippa. That's fine.Can you give us some info on how and when you acquired the car.Do ypu have pictures of the restoration? The only thing I have are two ads one from FML 9/4/ 1980 and R&T 10/1980 both fro Thorobred Motorcars offering the car for $59,000.Let's hope someone come up with more. tongascrew
George, JimiC is James Cottingham of his father David Cottingham's DK Engineering. James thank you for sharing the magnificent restoration photos. 3425 looks like a jewel.
After Crippa in the 1990s the car went to Germany (Giessen). That was in 1999. Then on to Brescia, Italy, until 2013. Here are some pix from the very recent restoration. Marcel Massini Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
the factory states the leather as red, do they specify carpet color as well or do you have freedom to choose carpet color? thanks
Congratulations James. The car is beautiful. I love the two tone paint and it is a pity one does not see it even more. The interior is very unusual - beautiful. I especially like the clock in teh dashboard passenger side. The car is a piece of art. Lucky owner and if it has none - then lucky owner to be! Best Edmond
They are all recorded on the factory build sheets and associated records, so the car was like this when it left the factory. But as for why? We don't know... Must have been by special request; sadly as yet we haven't been able to determine whether the factory decided what to do or if it was the lucky chap who placed the order that specified these actual alterations. The individuality of the car really does make it very special. Glad you all like it. Thanks also for the compliments!
Until we know who was the first owner it may remain a mystery about the origins of the special features. If it can be established that the car was ordered thru a Swiss Ferrari dealer or directly thru Ferrari by the first owner it seems likely that these special features were a special order. Rarely in those days was a new Ferrari sold off a show room floor.This is late steel body car and a buyer of the day could order any number of modifications. tongascrew
I didn't think it was easy to order special features at that time... I may be wrong! I always thought it was very expensive and you had to be a special client, isn't that the case? I can only think of a few SWBs with non standard features like this.
I think very few customers were aware of the possibility and even fewer were self-sentered enough so they would try to improve the work of a master. On the other hand Ferrari didn't really market eventually available options before the introduction of 360, which was the first Ferrari model globally offered with a long list of options incl. challenge grilles front and rear, seat options, contracting stiching etc. and clearly designed for this type of a demanding customer. Labour in early 60's was very cheap and a I remember seeing a period road test (1961) that suggested the price of a special order coachwork as +20% comparing to a standard production car. The +20% special body would without a doubt have been assembled using various contours readily available, not something drawn on a clean sheet of paper. The most famous of such specials must be the Lennart Ericson Coupé (3469GT - a copy of the Villard Cabriolet 1737GT with a permanently fixed HT). Are there any pre-restoration pics you can share? I, like many other people, have tons of unidentified photos from all decades and something could maybe be found if we knew hat to look for. Best wishes, Kare
These photos, taken on a visit to DK earlier in the year, probably show the contrasting roof a little better than some of the excellent shots already posted. Although not quite complete at that time, the car looked magnificent. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Marcel, Is VM 3171 as dark as it seems on picture? This was I think the original leather color of my ex SWB ( which per FC was also Grigio conchilia, a wonderful color ,,also thought it was lighter than on the picture?) but I thought VM 3171 was closer to lipstick read? Or there is another VM red, or just the pictures? Best P
James, is that tray on the gearbox made from scratch or did you use something readily available? How is it held in place? Thanks for sharing the pictures, BTW. john
I've never seen most of the mods, but somewhere along the line I did have a car with the tray. Can't remember what car or how it was attached.
Hi Ed, me too, I've seen that tray in another car. I have a similar thing in mine--a wooden cigar box, sans the lid. It works. john
