Presented to Niki Lauda following his signing with Ferrari in 1973
Delivered new in Grigio Argento with leather in Blu
Largely in unrestored condition
Matching Numbers

What are the chances of a young fellow at the tender age of 24 getting a brand-new Ferrari as a company car from his employer? Really, really poor, one would think, unless your employer’s name is Enzo Ferrari and you’re Niki Lauda, and you’ve just signed a contract as a Formula 1 driver with “il Commendatore”.

It’s not surprising that in September 1973 the young “Niki Nazionale” couldn’t help but smile while washing his car. He had just taken the first steps in his international career, so it was a pleasure for him to lend a hand. Almost exactly two years later, at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, he became world champion for the first time – in a Ferrari.

By then, Lauda hadn’t owned the originally silver Ferrari 365 GT4 2+2 for a while. It had been too difficult and too expensive for him to get the car, which he had been driving from the start with Italian “Escursionisti Esteri” (EE) license plates, through Austrian customs. And so, in January of his first year as world champion, he used the first opportunity to get rid of the Ferrari. Coming from the south, he had a mate just over the Brenner Pass, a Ferrari brand manager at Denzel in Innsbruck, to whom he wanted to offload the one-year-old car. Contrary to expectations, his friend declined, but he did have a brother, who took pity on Lauda and, as a trained tax consultant, wasn’t frightened off by customs intricacies.

After two other, not entirely unknown owners (one of them Karl Oppitzhauser, a racing driver like Lauda, though not quite as successful; the other one Michael Denzel, offspring of Ferrari importer Wolfgang Denzel, who had the 365 GT4, originally argento silver, repainted a kind of dark red metallic), Niki’s Ferrari disappeared without a trace. For decades, nobody really knew where it was, or whether it still existed. And not even its current owner had the slightest idea of the excellent provenance of his Ferrari, which had started showing its age a little.

The design for the Ferrari 365 GT4 2+2 came from Leonardo Fioravanti and it was highly praised by his boss, Sergio Pininfarina. The modern, edged, straightforward design was deliberately understated, aimed at businessmen that were not looking to make a grand entrance upon arriving with their car.

Mechanically the 365 GT2 2+2 was closely related to the 365 GTC/4, with only its wheelbase lengthened by 15 cm. They shared the same 4,4-Liter V12 with four overhead camshafts that produced 340 hp. This engine originally came out of the 365 GTB/4 Daytona, presented in 1969, however, Ferrari had it civilized and slightly detuned with a bit less compression and a different carb set-up, that reduced the power for the 2+2 models by a good 10 hp.

As modest as The Ferrari 365 GT4’s appearance was the crowd’s reaction upon its presentation at the 1972 Salon de Paris. It took a while for Ferrari’s clients to appreciate its unpretentious exterior. Perhaps it was just ahead of its time, because the fact that this design would go on and stay a full 17 years in the Ferrari program shows how timeless it really was. Over time it had only seen minor cosmetic revisions, while the mechanics were continuously refined until the Ferrari 412 was discontinued in 1989.

Along the way the 365 GT4 had turned into the 400 GT in 1976. Engine size was increased and for the first time an automatic gearbox became available in a Ferrari. Four taillights instead of six were now sufficient and the knock-off wheels were replaced with bolt-on rims. In 1979 the 400 GT was succeeded by the now fuel-injected 400i and by 1985 the final guise of the original shape was introduced as Ferrari 412. One last time the engine size was increased to 5 liters, which raised the power output back to where it originally was in the 35 GT4 2+2. 17 years through all its evolution make this timeless shape the longest-lived design in Ferrari history – very well deserved, as we may say!

Chassis: 17517
Engine: 00817
Paperwork: Austrian single vehicle approval from 1979