1969-1973 Ferrari Dino 246 GT/246 GTS

It was only a 206 with a gilded engine, but that hasn't stopped the Dino 246 GT from making its mark. It began doing that, as a prototype, in early 1969, with production commencing at the end of that year. With two exceptions, the 246 (2.4 litres, six cylinders) was identical with the 206: same basic styling, running gear, and tubular-steel chassis with all-independent wishbone/coil-spring suspension and four-wheel disc brakes. Wheelbase, however, was now 2.1 inches longer for a like gain in cockpit space. As before, Scaglietti supplied the body and Fiat the twincam V-6, skill transversely placed between cockpit and rear axle. But as the new model number implied, the engine was enlarged (via increased bore and stroke) to 2.4 litres and 175 horsepower (on 9.0:1 compression). Also, it was now made of cast iron instead of Silumin alloy for greater reliability, particularly in the U.S. A single dry-plate clutch continued to take power to a 5-speed transaxle with all-indirect gearing and a 3.62:1 final drive. The car still bore no Ferrari insignia, the reason for which has never been clear. Some claim the Dino was denied its heritage because of the Fiat-built engine, others because it had only six cylinders instead of 12. The former seems more plausible.

After all, Enzo had named his V-6 GP engine Dino, after his late son, a tribute to the young man who'd been working his way up through the Ferrari organization and would likely have taken it over one day. Also, Ferrari had put his name on cars with inline four, straight-six, V-6, and V-8 engines. Why he didn't do it here is known only to Il Commendatore himself. The Dino engine wasn't built entirely by Fiat. Ferrari engineer Franco Rocchi had designed it, and Maranello furnished the lower section containing sump, transaxle, and half shafts. The Italian giant manufactured block, heads, manifolds, and accessories.

Fiat used this V-6 in an upmarket sportster of its own, the front-engine Fiat Dino. While the collaboration between automakers of such disparate size might seem strange, Fiat bought a controlling interest in Ferrari in 1969, which would have vast implications for Maranello's future products and production methods. By mid-1970, the 246's centre-lock knock-off Cromodora alloy wheels had been replaced by five-bolt Campagnolo rims. Most U.S. models were so equipped. Two years later, an open model appeared, the 246 GTS. It wasn't a full convertible, thought, being a "targa" design with a lift-off panel above the cockpit. The coupe's rear quarter windows were replaced by metal panels bearing three small louvers, which also contributed to the spider's somewhat different look. For a "low-line" car, the 246 cockpit was comfortable and relatively plush. The intrument panel, in fact, was almost identical with the Daytona's (albeit suitably scaled down), encompassing eight instruments in an elliphcal binnacle set just ahead of the wheel.

Still, not all was bliss. Road & Track, in a 1972 coupe test, said that the "Dino's most obvious sacrifice [to practicality] affects the human ear. It is noisy in the extreme. The sounds are exciting to be sure: busy tappets, whining cam chains and transfer drive, a raucous exhaust system.... Even on a slow run to the corner drugstore, the Dino seems to be working, snarling, racing. The exhaust note at low speeds gives away it's 6-cylinder configuration, but as the engine climbs into its effective rev range (little happens below 3000 rpm) . . . it takes on the characteristic Ferrari sounds despite having only half the number of cylinders." Of course, with a little less than two-thirds the weight but only half the house power, the 246 couldn't match the Daytona in a straight line, but it could outpoint almost any car on a winding road. Even better, it's reasonably reliable, providing the front cylinder-bank cam chain is regularly checked for proper tension. Its difficult to reach, so some mechanics don't bother, but the wages of neglect are potentially disastrous: a chain that slips a tooth on one of the sprockets can destroy an engine. You're apt to see some of these Dinos with Ferrari badges now instead of the origonal emblems. Purists may sneer at such lily-gilding, but it says much about pride of ownership, which the 246 deserves as much as a "real" Ferrari. It did Maranello proud.