Jim, I am surprised you let this go without comment. I think of you as being an obsessive perfectionist. What's the story??? just one man's opinion tongascrew
Owning a Lola that won Seven Can Am races I tend to doubt that as well. Image Unavailable, Please Login
844 had a very similar body ( it was also converted-only from a 412) but subsequently rebodied in P3/412 style, so I think 858 is the only car left with this style body
I believe the seats are correct. See (terrible quality) late 80's Bill Warner photo of the pre-restoration seats... Image Unavailable, Please Login
I do hope whoever buys 0858 uses the car now and then instead of letting it sit like it has been doing for quite some time. All these cars from the Can Am era are special, we will never see the like of Can Am, virtually unrestricted, un rule driven racing, again. Somewhere I have a picture of 0858 when it raced down here back in the day, will try find it and post.
Road & Track ran and article on the collection in 1990 and the seats were the same as the picture above. Its still astonishing how that collection was/is stored.
Exactly where that photo came from...from the condition in the photo they certaintly seemed as they were "period." I am far from an expert here...
This car is a good example IMO of why Ferrari was not and really could not have been competitive in CanAm during the late 60s. Displacement was the name of the game back then (prior to the turbo Porsche era) and it seems that Ferrari never really put their heart into properly developing some of the 'big' V12s, to compete with the well proven American big block power of the day. That being said I would love to see a 'redevelopment' of the CanAm series today. With F1's formula being nothing more than Bernie's whimsical puppeteering that changes, then reverts, then changes, then reverts, ect ever so constantly the precedence on engineering is compromised which has led to somewhat of a 'stale' product over the recent era IMO. Racing could use a breath of fresh air in terms of the engineering mastery an unregulated series would bring. It would also be a good opportunity to see some Ferrari V12s back on the track.
The seats in your photo are not what was in 0858 when in ran in the Can Am series with the number 27. Here is a picture from that time. http://www.islandcollectibles.net/Ferraripics/F330P3P4/350canams.jpg
IF you knew the guy who currently owns the car, and his background, this 'mistake' wasn't - everyone knows the car would have sold for BIG-$$$ if the ruse held-up. The 350 didn't have the success that the 330 P3/4s had, so I'm dumbfounded as to why the current owner feels entitled to 330 P3/4 money. This machine, unfortunately, was down-valued when the Factory converted it to its present configuration. If it were my machine, I would opt for the 412P bodywork, yet preserving the Factory Fiberglass for historical reasons. The car can legitimately claim both coachworks, having raced in both before, and after, the Factory conversion.
Just thought as the raining authority on these cars it's nice to know there are others out there. just one man's opinion tongascrew
Both were decently competitive out of the box, but Ferrari directed their cash and resources in other directions (F1, and European sports car racing with rules that already fit their existing cars), to properly develop these cars. In all honesty it was the correct decision on Enzo's part. The 612 and 712 are both uber cool cars, with the 712 6.86 liter V12 being the zenith and ultimate pinnacle of Ferrari V12s in my opinion (god the sound!), but the 712 especially would have proved to be uncompetitive no matter how many resources Ferrari threw at it. I believe that the 712 arrived the same year as the first Porsche 917/10s. These turbo flat 12s quickly became the biggest series game changers in modern motorsports history. Within a couple years the 917/30s had over 1500hp waiting for them with a turn of a dial. The big Ferrari V12s would have never had a legitimate answer.....unless if they opted to go the forced induction route.
The 917/10 started running in 1972 with Penske Racing. The Siffert 71 car was a non-turbocharged effort.