They only built 4…
There’s exclusive and then there’s exclusive, and mark this one in the latter category.
At the Pebble Beach this year, Rick Cole Auctions will have one of the rarest of the front engine Ferrari racing machines, the 330 LMB or Le Mans Berlinetta. Bring at least $30M.
This 1963 race car is s/n 4381 and is the very car shown at the March 1963 Ferrari conference to launch the Scuderia’s latest 4.0-liter prototype racing Berlinetta.
If you think you don’t see many at Ferrari Club events, it’s because they only built 4, and in the pantheon of vintage Ferraris, this is hallowed ground.
Truly historic, s/n 4381 SA still retains its original body, chassis, differential, engine and gearbox, which was Ferrari Classiche Red Book certified in 2010.
The 330 LMB is more advanced than the 250 GTO and also far rarer as most put GTO production between 36-39, making this a very sought after Ferrari.
400 HP @ 7,500 rpm, the four-speed manual SOHC dry- sump V12 made the 330 LMB the first car ever to hit 186 MPH on Le Mans’ Mulsanne straight.
This LMB was raced at Sebring and Le Mans in 1963 and driven during that period by legends such as Michael Parkes, Lorenzo Bandini, Jean Guichet and Pierre Noblet. Ferrari then gave up front engine racing cars in search of better handling through mid-engine design.
As an interesting aside, this car was re-bodied briefly as a Spider by Carrozzeria Fantuzz in Modena and used in the Fellini film, Toby Dammit.
Fellini’s movie is based on Poe’s short story ‘Never Bet The Devil Your Head “https://youtu.be/JY676c8U5UE.” Poe was sick of the literary establishment railing against his work for not having a moral for the audience, so he wrote a tongue-in-cheek tale that had a thuddingly obvious one. It’s in the title. In the story, Toby Dammit is a foolish lad who, in spite of having no money, would bet on anything, using his head as collateral. Eventually, the devil takes him up on the offer and, not surprisingly, Dammit loses his head. Literally, as he is decapitated while driving
. A bizarre little flick but worth it just for the Ferrari.
I saw Dan Gurney and Jim Hall (really!) drive an LMB at Bridgehampton in ’63. The great thing was, back then it was a completely outfitted street-legal car with a beautiful interior (no roll bar…) and was a really nice candy gold color. Finished 3rd, 1 lap down on the Cooper that Walt Hansgen drove to beat Pedro Rodriguez. It was a beautiful car and looked like you could drive it home, which legally you could have since it had a license plate…
Norman, you are an extremely lucky man and I’m green with envy. If you’ve been around awhile, don’t hesitate to send me some photos or drop me a line about what you would like to see featured. And thanks for the reply! Dave