What does the E in 250GTE stand for? | Page 3 | FerrariChat

What does the E in 250GTE stand for?

Discussion in 'Vintage (thru 365 GTC4)' started by Daytonafan, Jan 12, 2020.

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  1. TerryG!

    TerryG! Karting

    Feb 12, 2017
    155
    Central UK
    Marcel - I haven't seen those documents before, so thank you for posting the images. They don't seem to answer the OP's question but I found them very interesting.
     
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  2. T308

    T308 Formula 3

    May 12, 2004
    1,008
    Southern Cal
    I thought the /E referenced the Tipo 508E chassis.
     
  3. lancia

    lancia Formula Junior
    Rossa Subscribed

    Jan 18, 2004
    512
    I believe T308 is correct, the 'E' is a reference to chassis Tipo 508E. The other speculative interpretations are interesting and amusing, but Ferrari designations in period are relatively direct and reading historian Prunet's "The Road Cars", there is no mention of any unusual association other than the chassis tipo. I think Gerald Roush published an expanded FML treatise on the GTE years ago, but no longer have it to check that source. (Note the Lampredi-engined 250 Europa had a chassis number suffix EU, not E.)
     
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  4. Marcel Massini

    Marcel Massini Two Time F1 World Champ
    Honorary

    Mar 2, 2005
    22,739
    Sorry for the potential hair splitting here but a chassis number suffix is something totally different than a general TYPE designation such as GT/E etc.

    A chassis number suffix could be "GT" or "LM", etc.
    Here's a quick incomplete overview for some chassis number suffixes:

    A = America.
    AL = America Lungo.
    AM = America.
    AT = America Tubolare.
    C = Corsa.
    CM = Carrera Messicana.
    E = Export.
    ED = Export Tubolare.
    EL = Export Lungo.
    ES = Export Sport.
    ET = Export Tubolare.
    EU = Europa.
    EX = Export or Experimentale.
    F = Formula.
    FL = Formula Libre.
    GT = Gran Turismo.
    GTB = Gran Turismo Berlinetta.
    GTC = Gran Turismo Competizione.
    I = Inter.
    LM = Le Mans.
    M = Mille Miglia or Monza.
    MD = Mondial.
    MDTR = Mondial Testa Rossa.
    MI = Monza Indianapolis.
    MM = Mille Miglia.
    MT = Monza Tubolare.
    S = Sport.
    SA = Superamerica.
    SF = Superfast.
    T = Tuboscocca.
    TF = Targa Florio.
    TR = Testa Rossa.

    Marcel Massini
     
  5. TTR

    TTR F1 Veteran
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    Mar 29, 2007
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    Do I understand correctly that the “E” in GTE (or GT/E) does not indicate or mean “Export” ?
     
  6. lancia

    lancia Formula Junior
    Rossa Subscribed

    Jan 18, 2004
    512
    Marcel, Thanks, understood. My main point was referring to the chassis tipo 508E not the individual chassis number. My other side point was relative to suggestions the E may mean Europe, just noting the nuance of how the 250 Europa individual chassis suffix was tagged EU, not E.
     
  7. Marcel Massini

    Marcel Massini Two Time F1 World Champ
    Honorary

    Mar 2, 2005
    22,739
    Yes. The "E" in GTE is not Export and it also is not a chassis number suffix but a model type designation. Two totally different things.

    Marcel Massini
     
  8. TTR

    TTR F1 Veteran
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    Thank you.
     
  9. bertdeboer340

    bertdeboer340 Formula 3

    Sep 16, 2003
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    Bert de Boer
    readplays and of2worlds like this.
  10. Serobson

    Serobson Rookie

    Sep 8, 2019
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    Moscow, Russia
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    Serob Sahakyan
    Maybe GT Endurance?
     
  11. manta22

    manta22 Karting

    Jun 6, 2011
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    Neil P. Albaugh
    Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
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  12. Bluebottle

    Bluebottle F1 Veteran
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  13. Bob’s 360

    Bob’s 360 Rookie

    Mar 30, 2018
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    Cocoa, FL
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    The E in GTE stands for Endurance
     
  14. TTR

    TTR F1 Veteran
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    Naah, that'll buff out. :rolleyes:
     
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  15. open roads

    open roads F1 Rookie

    Jan 28, 2007
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    What? Nobody said Economie ??
     
  16. John Vardanian

    John Vardanian F1 Rookie

    Jul 1, 2004
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    Do throw rotten tomatoes at me but......... Expendable?
     
  17. Bluebottle

    Bluebottle F1 Veteran
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    :D
    :p
     
  18. Cennini

    Cennini Rookie

    Jun 26, 2017
    5
    Could it be that the difference between the Tipo 128E and the Tipo 128F refer to the 4-speed + overdrive versus the 5-speed manual in the 250 GTE?
     
  19. miurasv

    miurasv F1 World Champ

    Nov 19, 2008
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    Steven Robertson
    All 3 series of the 250 GT 2+2 have a 4 speed + Overdrive gearbox.
     
  20. turbo-joe

    turbo-joe F1 Veteran

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    no GTE has a 5 speed originally
     
  21. miurasv

    miurasv F1 World Champ

    Nov 19, 2008
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    From Godfrey Eaton's The Complete Ferrari book published in 1986:

    "It is apparently the 'E' suffix to the engine type designation that has given rise to a general tendency to refer to the car as '250GTE'."
     
  22. manta22

    manta22 Karting

    Jun 6, 2011
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    Neil P. Albaugh
    My s/n 4209 had a 128F engine with a 4-speed transmission plus overdrive. The difference in the E and F engine was in its cylinder heads.
     
  23. John Vardanian

    John Vardanian F1 Rookie

    Jul 1, 2004
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    #74 John Vardanian, Jun 18, 2020
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2020
    If you look at the complete reference in Post 54, the suffixes have generally referred to three things (1) the coach-build style, (2) the intended use, and (3) the the intended market. I don't think the "E" is a reference to the engine.

    john
     
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  24. Cennini

    Cennini Rookie

    Jun 26, 2017
    5
    I found a clue on the Ferrari website. The original engine was Tipo 128F and from 1963 onwards ( so basically from the series 3 ) they named it 128E/63. So contrary to what I assumed it has nothing to do with gearbox etc. It is an evolution in the engine. Cars with an 128E/63 engine have an upgraded compression.


    https://www.ferrari.com/en-EN/auto/250-gt-2-2
     

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