Motorclassica commemorates Ferrari Dino
Melbourne's annual classic car event looks back at the iconic nameplate that's set to be rebornFive Dino Ferraris will put in an appearance at this weekend's Motorclassica, at Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building.
Three are examples of the highly sought 246 GT model with V6 power, and the other two are examples of the polarising 308 GT4, which was later supplanted by the Mondial.
Ferrari Australasia's official support for this year's Motorclassica, with its focus on the Dino name within the Ferrari pantheon, is a possible prelude to the reborn Dino that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne has confirmed will go ahead.
"Customer demand for classic Ferraris, and in particular the Ferrari Dino, has seen the market value of these vehicles rise dramatically within the past five years," says Ferrari Australasia's CEO, Herbert Appleroth. "A Dino display of this many classic vehicles is unprecedented in Australia, and we are excited to be officially involved in Motorclassica in 2015, the 50th anniversary year of the Dino."
But Appleroth, quoted in the press release, made no mention of any future Dino Ferrari.
The history of the Dino-badged cars built by Ferrari and Fiat begins with the tragic death of Enzo Ferrari's son Alfredo, nicknamed Dino. Prior to his death, Alfredo was working on vee-configuration engine development, which led to Enzo naming F1 and other racing models with vee-configuration engines to be named after his son's nickname.
The name was resurrected in 1965 for the 166P, which later became the 206 SP and 206 S. During the period from 1968 to 1973 Ferrari built the most famous Dino models, the 206 GT and 246 GT, each with a mid-rear-mounted V6. Due to the limitations of Ferrari's manufacturing output, Fiat was contracted to build its own 'Dino' coupe and Spyder (convertible) models with Ferrari V6 engines, for the engine to be produced in sufficient numbers to permit Formula 2 homologation.
Ferrari's 206 GT Dino did not wear Ferrari badges and wasn't considered a true Ferrari by the purists. That attitude subsequently changed, and the V6 Dino changes hands these days for considerable sums of money. A 246 GT sold in Sydney earlier this year for a record-breaking figure of over half a million dollars.
Pictured: Left-hand drive Dino 246 GT from the collection of Prince Albert of Monaco
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