Vehicle Description
1981 Ferrari 512 BB - Berlinetta Boxer
VIN: F102BB 33971
Engine: F102B00000748
Chassis: 33971
Engine-out, major service, including new timing belts
Complete with book, tools, jack and spare
One of only 929 Ferrari 512BBs ever built
Stunning restoration
Updated mechanicals, gearbox and suspension to 512BBLM specs
4.9 liter flat-12 engine
5-speed manual transmission
First sold in Europe this Boxer was brought into the United States
in early 1981. No Berlinetta Boxer was ever sold new in North
America, as Enzo Ferrari did not believe it to be worth the cost of
federalizing. Ferrari Compliance of Santa Ana, CA imported the car
and had it modified to US specification for around $16,000. With an
original list price of around $40k for the 512BB, and an additional
$16k for federalizing it looks like Enzo may have been right.
33971 was first offered for sale by Ron Tonkin Ferrari in Portland,
OR in April of 1981. Frank Kawalkowski, a San Francisco commercial
real estate broker and Ferrari collector, would be the first owner
of the silver Boxer. After over a decade of ownership, in 1994 he
would put the car up for sale with 48,000 kilometers (29,826 miles)
on the clock. The next owner, another Californian, would keep the
car until 1997 when it would move on to its third owner, Ray
Hartman of Santa Barbara, CA.
In 1998 the Boxer would be sent to Sal Garcia's Waterfront
Automobili in San Francisco for paint and leather. In 2001 the car
would go to Symbolic Motors in San Diego, CA for major service
including updating the Boxer mechanicals, gearbox and suspension to
512 BBLM specs. During this period of restoration the kilometer
odometer was replaced with one showing miles, and was reset to
zero. Canepa would acquire the car from Hartman in late 2004 and
put it into inventory.
Canepa sold this car to its last owner in 2005. He purchased the
car showing 1238 miles on the odometer. Over the past 9 years he
put on just about 11,000 miles, and during that time the car was
maintained by both Ferrari of Seattle and Canepa. Some of the work
included having the carburetors rebuilt, all the shocks rebuilt, a
new radiator, cooling system service, and regular timing belt
services. The transmission was rebuilt by Bob Wallace, famous
Lamborghini test driver and owner of Bob Wallace Cars in Phoenix,
AZ.
Right after coming through our doors the Boxer was partially
disassembled so that the chassis, frame, engine, transmission,
belly pans, suspension, and wheel wells could be inspected, hand
cleaned, and detailed. Over 350 hours of mechanical service and
concours detail work were performed over the past few months until
the car finally met our standards. Mechanical highlights include a
complete timing belt service, valve adjustment, water pump rebuild,
and all the gauges were cleaned and restored.
Now this rare Berlinetta Boxer presents as new; a flawless example
of what Road and Track called the best all-around sports and GT
they had ever tested.
About the Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer:
The Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer was introduced in 1973 to replace the
365 GTB/4. Designed by Leonardo Fioravanti, it was a radical
departure from the front-engined Daytona in design and purpose.
Enzo Ferrari felt that a mid-engined road car would be too
difficult for his buyers to handle, and it took many years for his
engineers to convince him to adopt the layout. This attitude began
to change as the marque lost its racing dominance in the late 1950s
to mid-engined competitors. In the late 60s Ferrari finally allowed
the production of the mid-engined Dino road cars, but only if they
used the less powerful 6-cylinder engine, and not carry the Ferrari
badge. Real Ferraris had 12 cylinders.
The 365 GT4 Berlinetta Boxer was the first mid-engine Ferrari
badged street car. In 1976 the 365 GT4/BB was updated as the 512
BB, resurrecting the name of the earlier Ferrari 512 racer. The
engine was larger at 4942cc, had an increased compression ratio of
9.2:1. Only 929 512BB models were ever produced. In popular culture
the 512BB is forever connected to the video of Sammy Hagar's
automotive anthem "I Can't Drive 55."
Specifications:
Mid-mounted 4.9 liter flat 12 cylinder engine
360 horsepower
333 lb-ft of torque
Top speed: 188mph
0-62: 5.4 seconds
