I have a very early 1974 Euro GT4. It is #35 off the line. It has an unusual configuration in the front trunk area with respect to the following: 1. Battery, normally located in the right front corner, is located in the left front corner. 2. Washer bottle, normally located in the left front corner, is located in the center section. 3. AC equipment, normally in the right front corner, is located in the center. I was hoping some folks with cars earlier than mine, or knowledge of the really early cars, could chime in and let me know what is "right" and what is "wrong". I'm not sure what constitues "pre-production" versus "production", but at #35, my car is likely right in that transition zone. I know that "right" vs. "wrong" is very nebulous with these cars, as it seems the guys at the factory did pretty much what they wanted, depending on how much wine they had at lunch, and if it was in the afternoon or Friday. But I also have weird mirrors on mine (Talbot?), which I thought were "wrong", until I saw photos of a car in some pre-production marketing literature from 1973-1974 which had the exact same mirrors. I was also wondering about the Bertone badge, as the 1974 parts manual shows the "correct" location on the left side, but just about every car I see has it on the right side. I had read somewhere that the very early cars had it installed on the left. My car has a smooth front valance with no cutouts for fog/driving lights, but I am also seeing cars like that in the very early marketing literature photos and online. I also have no labels stenciled above the switches on the left side dash panel. It's just plain aluminum. The car is very new to me, so I know very little about it. It went right into the shop for a major, so I don't have it at home, but should be going by the shop in the next few days if there is anything I should be looking for. Thanks for any wisdom or insight. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Al Ierardi of Naples Classic Car in FL may be a good source of info since he restored #1. Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
I kept calling there a few years back week after week , but no return call. The guy I spoke to said something about Al, but honestly I dont remember exactly and dont want to guess. Something to the extent of him getting out of cars. BUT MY MEMORY IS SHOT DISCLAIMER
The car was imported by a private party in 1976 and went through a Registered Importer for DOT compliance. It is possible some things were changed then, but I would think conformation was limited to the lighting configuration, and things of that nature. There is no US emissions equipment on the car, and it has retained its Euro muffler and bumpers. The idea that the RI would move the AC, washer bottle, and heater box around during conformation makes absolutely no sense at all, as it would be completely unnecessary and senselessly add work. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find cars that were earlier than mine to examine as a reference. But, I will keep looking and hopefully someone here can help.
