Ulf Norinder 3445 250GTO--was it ever just an old used car , before Norinder rebody

2423GT (a 250 GTE).

 

This is the Drogo body hat used to sit on Norinders car
Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta Speciale Drogo in Timmendorfer Strand, ExoticsOnRoad.com

 

For me it does, by combining original nose configuration to a later paint work. Trying to go back to a certain moment in time is one approach, but it doesn't always work very well...

 

Well, interesting. Do you have any samples, were a correct going back to a certain moment did'n work well? I rather feel that any mix according to personal taste of period configurations is historically wrong and just produces a mess. Original, "delivery" nose and later paint work never existed in that combination.

 

The Drogo body was more original than the replica body.

 

This is fast degrading/devolving into Theater of the Absurd ...

 

In the immortal, actual words written by the hand of Shakespear, "this internet forum doth protest too much"...

Okay, those weren't his exact words but that point is valid: By suggesting that altering a replacement body for a replacement body for a 50-year-lost original is "lost history", it raises the question of what *real* historical value these things represent at all. After all, Joseph Salk didn't cure polio while driving 3445, nor did Pete Higgs propose Higgs bosum while racing 3445 (but wouldn't that be awesome?).

IMHO, it's simply a very subtle repair to a valuable race car (that won exactly no major world competitions but which as been crashed repeatedly) reflecting the original, replacement and period looks of its past. If this is a "mess" then perhaps we should all protest every single GTO ever repaired to look anything remotely different to Scaglietti's originals... Or, just enjoy these for what they are -- beautiful old machines, preserved and repaired as best as the various owners and caretakers through time know how.

 

+1

For me when it comes to color, an owner of any given car is free to choose to repaint it any color he/she so fancies. Doing so is strictly a matter of personal taste, and in no way reflects sinful behavior.

 

It does now and has now become a part of this car's history.

In many cases going back to a certain point of time would require removal of historical layers and period features. I could give a few good examples, but don't particularly like to mock other people's cars. In architecture it is a standard approach to accept the fact that a building combines parts and layers from all the periods it lived through. Going back to a certain point in time would often be equivalent "restoring to death". Cars aren't really very different.

In the case of 3445 I think it is nice to remind people of the fact that this is such an early GTO that it did born with the early nose, and on the other hand of the fact that this is the car Norinder raced using the Swedish colors. No mess in that, both details belong to the history of this particular car.

 

+100

 

I see the point but I don’t feel that “new history” should be produced. Manipulations on Mona Lisa’s smile according to the restorers’ fantasy just produced a mess and some irreversible damage over the centuries. The same with buildings. I rather feel, that the car and its period history is relevant and should be focused and not the taste and style of the restorer or a new creation. Fact is, that the car never existed in such a form and this combination is not part of its period history. Today, neither the early nose nor Norinder’s racing version are correctly shown with this combination.

 

Well it's a good thing you didn't pay for the restoration then. The car never existed in any of its prior forms before it was modified, either. It was only original once, and based on period photos, by the time it entered it's second race the nose had already been modified. Why you're concerned with a (factory original) nose modification to a car that was rebodied twice previously is beyond me. It's as correct as it has been at any point since it left the factory, at least. Paint is a lot easier than metal work, so if you buy it you can have it painted it's original color at a mere tiny fraction of the purchase price and have a factory correct nose and matching paint job if you so desire.

 

As I've previously posted, it seems Ferrari has put their Seal of Approval on a recent collaborative project with their Licensing Partners Lego and Shell involving this car (i.e. Shell V-Power Lego Collection). Ergo, it would seem Ferrari itself is more than okay with the mixing (combination) of 3445 GT's first nose configuration with its later Swedish livery, etc.

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/vintage-thru-365-gtc4-sponsored-vintage-driving-machines/462077-250-gto-3445-gt-lego-shell-advertising-campaign.html

 

Absolutely agree Terra.....

 

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/vintage-thru-365-gtc4-sponsored-vintage-driving-machines/10375-250-swb-2735gt.html

 

Fully agree.

Owners can do as they please. But that doesn't exempt them from criticism. And I bet the owner would be the first to admit this nose/livery combination is not correct. If he doesn't, well...everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not to their own facts. The facts are clear.

 

Well said Peter.


Onno

 

+1.

 

I have the original Road & Track article from October 1967 featuring chassis number 3445 as well as two other Drogo cars. IIRC, the car on page 115 is 1717GT, and on page 116 is 0977GT.

Thought it may be interesting for others to see...
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Stunning Drogo re-body

 

The Ferrari 250 GTO that was Not a GTO, For a Few Years? by Wallace Wyss | The Car Build Index