Ferrari has a very long legacy of building front-engined grand tourers, and the latest in that long lineup is the 812 Superfast. Taking a tiny step back in the lineup's history, there was the Ferrari F12 TDF with a name that revived the moniker from the famous 250 Tour de France. In a new video, Mr. JWW took his recently acquired F12 TDF to DK Engineering in Chorleywood, Hertfordshire, England, to display the modern GT next to a classic example.
The long-wheelbase Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta earned the Tour de France name after winning the 10-day race – not to be confused with the famous bicycle event. The one in this video was one of the first customer examples that Ferrari made. Like other vehicles in the brands 250 series of models, it used a 3.0-liter V12 that produced around 260 horsepower (194 kilowatts). Early cars, like this one, featured 14 louvers on the rear sail panels. Later iterations had three or one louver.
Rather than speeding around Europe's curvy roads, the car actually went to California initially. After the first owner had to flee the country due to some tax issues, Disney acquired this Tour de France, and it made an appearance in The Love Bug – the first film in the Herbie series. Unfortunately, times then got tough for this little Ferrari because a later owner's kid overrevved the engine and left the stricken car by the side of the road. The machine then changed hands a few more times until someone finally understood how special of a machine it was. An owner gave the coupe a proper restoration, and one of DK Engineering's clients refreshed the vehicle again to bring it to the current gorgeous condition.
The classic Ferrari is so much smaller than its modern namesake. In the decades since its introduction, the company's grand tourers have grown bigger and broader. They're much more powerful now, though.
In addition to this 250 Tour de France, DK Engineering has an amazing facility for selling, restoring, and storing sports cars, especially Ferraris. An array of small buildings open to reveal a treasure trove of Prancing Horses, in addition to rare models from Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo. It's quite a place.
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