Vehicle Description
1979 Ferrari 308 GTS
As fans of Classic Auto Mall may have noticed I get a lot of my
inspiration for my earlier days of unlimited boob tube watching. It
has paid off handsomely with many an inspiration to write about
these vehicles that come through our door. This star of the small
screen rose to fame with the handsome mustachioed Tom Selleck
zipping around Hawaii solving mysterious disappearances and various
sundry crimes. Of course, it was a Ferrari 308 GTS for this suave
and debonair sleuth!
Abbondanza! and for consignment a 1979 Ferrari 308 GTS. Its wedge
design was very futuristic in the late 70's. A pop culture icon
from the TV show with its Targa style top and of course bathed in
Ferrari Rosso Chiaro, (deep red), and sporting the Scuderia
prancing horse logo. This was used by Ferrari because of a famous
Italian pilot who had many dogfight kills in WW1 was actually a
member of the cavalry, had horses on his noble family's farm, and
was probably "borrowed" from a downed German pilot from Stuttgart
which was that city's logo! Ciao! Alligator.
Exterior
The Italians known for their futuristic design led the way with
this car and its wedge-shaped front end, even integrating the crash
bumper into the nose and we will then adorn it with turn signal
lighting. A chin spoiler is below and hidden headlights front vents
which allow air to flow to the mid-engine. A black targa top with a
headliner can be removed so you can feel the wind in your hair as
you scream through a curve. The entire rear shell lifts to allow
access to the mid-engine of this red painted car. It has long B
pillar flying buttresses with more vents and even more are seen on
the sides starting on the doors and culminating in an opening on
the rear quarters. On the back more venting in black on the rear
deck and round tail lighting floats above a black rear bumper and a
crash-ready one within a vented rear roll pan with dual exhaust.
14-inch wheels are expertly framed by the wells on this low slung
Italian sports car.
Interior
A swing of the sleek sexy doors reveals black leather panels with a
long armrest/pull that has the power window toggles tucked into the
top edge near the sill. A black leather bag is attached for storage
and the door actuators are actually a black button. Shiny polished
thresholds hold back a sea of clean black carpeting, on which float
the black leather stitched buckets. These have aged nicely and have
the feel of a well-used smoking chair in the library. In the center
is a console with more toggles and sliders than you can shake a
stick at along with the handbrake and gated shift lever. The dash
is very race car-like with an aluminum dash front panel just in
front of the steering wheel that houses a series of various sized
round inset gauges and lights. In dash central is an aftermarket
Alpine AM/FM/Cassette player and some A/C vents below. Inside the
headliner is a white vinyl with black ribs with the white. Pilot to
Copilot hold on!!
Drivetrain
In the mid car we see a 3.0 Liter Ferrari Dino DPHC V8 which puts
out 205hp. A 2-barrel Weber 40DCNF carb is feeding it and on back a
5-speed manual transmission with a rear axle designation of 3.70.
This mid-engine bay has a nice patina
Undercarriage
All completely rust free with plenty of ground effects panels
covering the entire undercarriage. Independent suspension is all
around, and power disc braking is on all 4 corners.
Drive-Ability
Once I squeeze into this low slung 308 it fires right up and
immediately I'm turning heads. On the test track it has smooth
endless acceleration, great handling, easy steering and solid
braking. Just like a Ferrari!
Originally purchased in Hawaii and resided there for a time
although no association to Tom Selleck, it eventually made its way
to the continental US and now resides in our hallways. Extensive
maintenance records are available for the potential buyer to peruse
and are all well-organized for easy perusal. A great Iconic 308
Design and having the TV show doesn't hurt either!
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 650 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.
