1972-1988 Ferrari 365 GT4 2+2/400i/412i

Europeans think of a car like today's "family" Ferrari as a coupe, but some Americans might call it a two-door sedan because of its pillared notchback styling. It certainly looked more like a sedan than the car it replaced, the 365 GTC/4. Actually though, this model, which bowed at the Paris show in October 1972 as the 365 GT4 2 + 2, was the lineal successor to the 365 GT 2 + 2, production of which had ceased a year and half earlier. Such a lag was unusual for Ferrari, which heretofore hadn't discontinued a model without having its replacement ready. In retrospect, then, the GTC/4 was an interim measure. It really wasn't a 2 + 2, but the GT4 was.

Dimensional comparisons confirm this view. Against the 365 GT 2+2, the GT4 was two inches longer in wheelbase, 7.5 inches shorter overall, fractionally wider, 1.5 inches lower, and up to 300 pounds heavier. The cockpit was 2.5 inches wider in front and over four inches wider in back, while trunk room swelled by a useful 1.2 cubic feet. If all this sounds dull for a Ferrari-and it does-Maranello was only following the contemporary trend among premium GTs: bigger, plusher cars with larger engines and higher prices. As its model designation suggested, the GT4 carried the quad-cam V-12 as used in the 365 GTC/4, with the same sextet of horizontal cartes and 320 horsepower.

Chassis design, suspension, brakes, and steering were also borrowed from the GTC/4, as were the 5-speed manual gearbox and what seemed to be Ferrari's standard road wheel, the lovely five-spoke Cromodora alloys first seen on the Daytona. Power steering and brakes and air conditioning remained standard. Ferrari fans taken aback by this posh, Yankee-style clipper got an even bigger shock in the updated version announced at the 1976 Paris show. There for all to see was a Ferrari with-could it be? automatic transmission, the 3-speed Turbo-Hydra-Matic unit from General Motors, recalibrated for the Ferrari V-12. This model was called 400i A, for "Automatic," but the letter could just as easily have meant "American." At least the manual car was still available as the 400i. Common to both was an engine stroked from 71 to 77 mm, giving total capacity of 4823 cc and an extra 20 horsepower peaking 300 rpm higher with Bosch. Outside were a modest front "lip" spoiler, revamped taillights, and lug nuts instead of knock-off hubs for securing the wheels. Inside, Pininfarina reworked the seats for greater comfort and gave them a slide-forward mechanism to assist rear entry/exit. Ferrari also threw in a four-speaker radio/tape system. Both 400s continued virtually unchanged until 1985, when they became 412s by dint of a silly millimeter bore increase. The resulting 4942-cc engine also acquired K-Jetronic mechanical fuel injection with Bosch. Marelli Microplex electronic ignition and higher compression (up to 9.6:1 from the previous 8.8:1), but there was no change in rated horsepower except that it peaked at an even lower 6000 rpm. A dual-disc clutch replaced the single-disc unit in manual models, but the most significant change was adoption of Bosch ABS anti-lock electronic control for the all-disc brakes. "Federalizing" costs soared as much as inflation-fueled car prices in the Seventies, so Ferrari didn't bother certifying any of these models for U.S. sale. Still, a few have been imported privately and through the inevitable "gray market."

Though fast, these are not sports cars but rather the ultimate in a modern grand touring Ferrari-the definitive country-club cruiser, with an unmatched blend of style, comfort, performance, and a panache that is Ferrari's alone. As Autocar magazine said in a 1975 group test between the GT4 and a gaggle of British rivals: "Our own cars can compete on one level or another. But none of them can compete with the Ferrari on all levels." So call it a sedan, but just remember it's a Ferrari.