HOLY COW !! that is the car and WOW its got so much worse, it was really quite bad at the time but was on the verge of potentially being saved. This though is crazy how much more its rotten out since.
Plenty to salvage on this car...gauges, wheels, probably brake calipers, trim, seats, console, dash, shifter, switch gear, door handles, door cards, quite a few items. door glass, quarter glass, windshield.
Back in the 1970s, the joke here in Canada used to be that the British invented rust, and then licensed the process to the Italians, which was where the Japanese copied it from. 😆
I recon at some point that car has been in a damp shed near the coast (with salt in the air), condensation can wreak havoc. I pulled a Jag XJ6 out a garage years ago, been in there 30 odd years, drove in fine in the 70's and was just left (death in the family from memory ?), then the garage roof started leaking and was never fixed, it was so rotten it nearly broke in two when we tried to pull it out, the garage held the damp in the car even on dry days for decades, was a real shame, had been a lovely pale blue series 1 car with a manual box : (
According to the Ferrari owner's club register, third edition, (1987), chassis number14574 was not listed. There is a section for 308 GT/4's with unknown chassis numbers, but I would need the name or number plate with that. There is '14572' & '14578', which were 'T' registrations, there is a '15474' with a 'V' reg.
Hi Jack. Love this video. I'm from West Lancashire originally, a few miles inland from Southport. I remember a white 308GT4 being around Southport in the mid 80s. From what I remember I'd see it all year round and it was very often parked on the promenade. Back then we all used to say, "Never buy a Southport car, it'll turn into a teabag!"
This looks like a vehicle that's been under water at some point in its life. Being indoors in a damp environment can be worse than being outside. A 246 Dino, the earlier shape one, was found in a similar condition up here in Fife a few years back. The story with it went, the old boy who owned it had been getting chased by the police one night so had hidden the car at the back of his garage under blankets and tarps and it had been forgotten about and left for decades until the place was sold and the kids had to clear it out.
Another great video Jack and what a fantastic story! A basket case example of the 'unloved' Ferrari, but the 308GT4 has always been my favourite. Back in the early '80s I used to walk past a silver one with a red interior on my way to work, I loved it's Bertone styling and I always stopped to have a look at it, even as the Ferrari you weren't supposed to like it still looked exotic next to the Fiestas and Sierras that surrounded it. One of Gandini's best with elements of his own Stratos design, particularly around the C pillars and air intakes, and it's often forgotten that it was a tweaked version of the first Lamborghini Urraco prototype of 1970 which Ferruccio Lamborghini rejected, the design was picked off the shelf at Bertone as the basis for the 246's replacement in 1973. I'm certainly biased but for me there isn't a bad line, angle or proportion on it anywhere. Let's hope with this one someone manages to salvage the interior and put it to good use.... ;-)
I'd like to solve the puzzle. From the mid 1970's through the early 80's, there was a steel shortage from Italy's usual suppliers, Sheffield England and USA. They started having to buy bad steel from Turkey which mostly went on their foreign shipped cars. Many (but not all) Ferraris, Fiats and Alfa's were made of this low quality Turkish steel which rusted out fast.
I was born and brought up in Istanbul which has a climate similar to that of new York and never ever saw Turkish cars rot like this and I am assuming they too were made from the same steel, and it is also common knowledge that Italians were buying steel from the Russians and it was rumoured that they were being extracted from sunken ww2 wrecks!
@@turistomer3702 It wasn't about the climate. It was a particular period of poorly manufactured steel that Fiat, Alfa, Ferrari etc. purchased. A well documented issue. The markets deemed "lesser" got those cars, the markets they deemed more important, British steel.
I have one. Wasn’t it Soviet steel they were buying at that time? For Fiats. I have no idea if mine has the steel in it. But it’s still looking good today. Kept wrapped up and undercover. Really interesting video to see what can happen if left in the elements. Mine is same colour interior. Blue and black, didn’t know blue if faded. Looks the same as this one’s.
Lots of people here wondering how a Ferrari could have ended up in this condition, but in the early 1990s these, the Mondial and 400 weren't sought after at all. They were still very expensive to maintain and could be had relatively cheaply... as a result, they were generally laid up a lot and had very low mileage. I remember being offered a 400 in reasonable condition for around £3,500 back then and thinking it wasn't worth the money because of the expense baggage that would come with it (!)
Ah, Jack... Actually, the air box could possibly be repaired, as the rotten bits seemed to be on the flat parts. A good fabricator might be able to replace those, if the surrounding areas were thick enough to take a weld. Well, maybe not... But somewhere in England there are some well-fed metal termites!
I recall seeing a white gt4 around the Twickenham area in the early 1980s. There were only 547 UK cars and I don't know how many were white. Not my favourite colour but I think these look best in metallic colours anyway. The 308gt4 was the first mid engine V8 Ferrari - so the granddaddy of the 288GTO, F40 and all the modern mid engined cars.
A good thing it has so much rust otherwise there would be nothing to hold the holes together 🤗😁. Thanks Jack for such an entertaining and enjoyable channel. Regards, Bob M. South Wales
I can vouch for that, after living on the North Wales coast for 14 years (just before emigrating to the States) my cars and motorbikes would rust so bloody quickly. I swear in the winter with the added salt on the road, you could actually see the rust creeping along destroying my poor cars and bikes. Now I have to worry about the heat fading the paint and cracking the dash, not to mention the insects and rodents eating wiring etc and making homes in air boxes etc.
Interesting video Jack and as people's comments, some value in the wheels and interior worth salvation. The reason why the Ratarossa BB survived, is because that most of it's body panels are aluminum...
We did actually own this Ferrari GT4 for a year. We had a call in 2014 from a chap who knew we would buy any old Ferrari 308s at the time. He had picked up an old scrap 308 GT4. He told us it was in a really bad way as the previous owner had gone through a divorce and had to hide the car so his wife could not claim it. He had stored it in a barn covered in straw but the straw had been damp and this is what it was like when he eventually went back for it. Anyway we struck a deal and had to forklift the car onto our trailer as even the suspension arms were rusted through so it wouldn't roll. We bought it with the plan to use all the running gear in a 246 replica but none of it was useable and it was not worth the effort and cost to rebuild any of the parts as we had plenty of other cars and parts to use. Over the year we owned it, the prices of anything Ferrari went through the roof so we just sold it on. We have had a few Ferrari 308s and still have one laying in the yard now which is in an even worse state than this one. Just had a look at the pictures from when we collected it and it does look a little worse although the car is sitting a lot straighter in this video so must have patched up the suspension arms.
It’s a 70’s Italian car that was clearly made out of that cheap Russian steel that the Italian’s had done deal on. Lancia’s rusted away in few years at the time. The same with Alfa’s.
I can relate to the enthusiasm you mention as I feel the same way about things that show the passage of time. As to this car, I am not surprised, and expect there may be more of this model around the world in similarly poor states, as these for many years were worth very little, but still cost as much to maintain as a more collectible model.
up north in the states because of salt...etc...it's called the rust belt for more than the manufacturing leaving. you can witness see-through metal on many cars but few look that bad to be sure.
Wow, both horrified and fascinated and at the same time admiring the car. Very good report on it. Amazing how it has its own history and that the story is known about it more or less, albeit a very sad one. Are there any chances of perspective for this car or what is the owner planning to do with it? I never really liked this particular car, but always liked still the fact that it has a V8. Cheers from rainy Belgium.
I share your interest in decay and dereliction. As a teenager in the 1980s I regularly did the train journey from Wolverhampton to Birmingham. It was a fascinating picture of large, rusty disused sidings, overgrown canals and huge factory buildings with broken windows etc. There's an eery beauty in that kind of thing.
I live a few miles from Rothley where Coopers used to be. It ended up being a BMW dealer but is now long gone and a Co op was built in its place. I think they used to sell some exotic stuff as my dads mate test drove an e type there back in the day.
Im guessing it must have been recovered from the sea, or a lake/river at some point in it's life. Left on a slipway with the handbrake not fully on, or conked out in a deep ford, perhaps. In any case, it's quite amazing.
Great content, loving this channel. Makes me piss though when you turn Italian to say Bertone, Pininfarina and Stratos yet you say Ferrari 308 GT4 in your normal accent , you might as well go all out and get the hands going as well 🤌🏻🤌🏻 🤣🤣
Great video, I share your love of glorious patina. Sealed in a vacuum filled Perspex container, to stop it completely rusting away, this would be a thing of beauty.
If this is '77 or '78 this is the era of Russian high carbon rubbish steel which the Italians were buying very cheaply. It killed the Alfa Sud for example. The rest of Europe suffered too and VW were also a victim. I had a '77 Sirocco which had major rust issues due to this same steel. It seemed to rust from the inside out in huge flakes as can be seen here. Ferrari at this time also rather banged the bodywork of their cars together in a very much home spun way. I guess there is still £2k's worth of spares there even so. Wheels, instruments, etc.
Can we stop with this rubbish about Russian steel. The steel used in many of the Fiat, Alfa Lancia cars, came from the big plant in Taranto, southern Italy.
Can never understand how somebody can let a car like this deteriorate. Reminds me when I spoke to a car park attendant at a underground car park in Mayfair. He showed me Ferraris from the 70s (under canvas) that rich Arabs had just left there - they still pay the parking fees - but it means nothing to them to leave such cars there for decades.
Don't be too quick to judge! Museums like the Peterson have iconic cars just sitting doing nothing. The few 'Arab' owned cars will be sold eventually, unlike the museum sad ones...
My Father had one when I was a child (now 57) awesome cars people just didn’t get them which I love, so don’t big them up too much!! One of the best interiors, very cool! I know what you mean about keeping it as art, it’s like a run down stately home beauty in a strange way!! 👍
The 512 was on tarmac/concrete. The GT4 is on dirt/gravel. Maybe that's the difference? The one got night dew and rain on the top surface, whereas the other got significant moisture from underneath as well.
I was right about the Stratos reference on Insta then ! 😁...part of me was waiting for the "it's a complete wreck.....and that's why I've just bought it"...😁
Don't think I've ever seen such a rusty car, so sad. These are becoming quite sought after now because people have realised that they're actually one of the best driving Ferraris of the era. The Bertone design, like everything they did, has aged really well too.
Great video...it immediately had me wondering how much they wanted for it. But as your story progressed, it was sadly obvious it could never be resurrected...only preserved as is. Very much like a Bugatti pulled from the bottom of a lake after decades of being there. It now resides, unrestored and as found, in the Mullin Museum in Oxnard California. Would be nice if this could find some value somewhere and not just end up in a crusher.
This car is in perfect condition almost. Look at this channel for this Bentley series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-m_kn1h-svV4.html It was much, much less with what they started ....
Have you ever visited the Llanberis Slate Quarries Jack? If you love Industrial History, it's a bit of a must, one shed still has jackets hanging up and teacups where they were left! Great roads on the way there too 👍
There are actually the remains of two air cleaner housings there. The top is just an oblong plate with a lip. Yes it did have aircon; you can see the Borletti knobs ahead of the gear lever. Although the grill has gone you can tell it's a Mk2 Ferrari-badged car as the Dino-badged original cars have air vents on the rear edge of the roof. And by the V5 of course. Is it on a SORN??
It's incredible to see that a ferrari has been left to rot like this, pretty sad! Although I guess there was a point where these dinos weren't worth that much pretty sad none the less! Also what external mic do you use and what editing software if you don't mind me asking?
The whole thing should be dipped in resin to preserve whats left, the worlds biggest paper weight?? Brilliant example of I'm going to around to it!! Sure my step dad would buy this as a 'fixer upper'. Mini cooper in worse condition sold on eBay for £7k in the last 12 months, they're out there!!! Keep it up Jack!!!
Sad. The body's beyond even Fitzee's Fabrications to recover. It might have been kept in a location with a corrosive atmosphere, e.g. downwind of a coal-burning plant, or an oil refinery. The interior might be a source of parts to someone restoring a well-used specimen.
Interesting to say the least....Weird that there is mystery how the car of such class and cost was left to decay....Looking forward to more info on the said car...Excellant video again.....
Get the car on CAR SOS Fuzz would do his nut! Then fix it up like new. Great video Jack, it's hard to believe someone would let a Ferrari get into that kind of state.
Seeing that phone on a suction cup with the lead dangling down. I really don’t think I could go back to a modern classic now I’ve been spoilt by a built in screen with carplay 😂… Although I guess aftermarket din headunits can do that now.
Fab. Helps to explain why values of classics have soared over the past 30 years: it's cost tens of thousands to keep anything vaguely roadworthy. A GT4 when I was a teen was well under £10k rotting, and laughed at. Today's GT4s are £50k and desired. But someone has spent the difference...
why would you care about the history of this car at all? they are not that special and its beyond repair! i kmow about one in a warehouse / private collection (sitting for 30 years), that is in bad condition as well, but nowhere close as bad as this one!
You would love my coffee shop in the states. It sits in a 60yr old aluminum warehouse surrounded by all brand new condos and apartments. We tried to keep as much of the original construction as we could.
'Honest honey, once I build that pergola I'll move on to the GT/4 project and get it out of the hay shed'.... cue spongebag's French Segway voice.... "40.... years..... later"
I can't say I share your enthusiasm for this particular car but can relate to the fascination of old buildings and factories etc. The car just seems sad like a missed opportunity and the only positive thing I can see is the potential to make use of the few parts that can be salvaged in order to preserve another GT4.
Lovely Jubbly video Jack. It was a car built in the 1970s, anyone who was around then like me knows that cars built and designed then were made of steel that was probably the worst steel ever made, have a look at Harry's Garage Lancia which is being restored.
@@Number27 i know exactly where ur 'coming from' - "when a car isnt perfect when its clearly been through time...it just tells a story" - its been owned driven looked after or not & the wrecking yard looms large as its next port of call. i also dont fall in luv with new cars i fall completely for cars with a history be it dark or lite & i too have scored sum beauties though not as exotic as urs. But its clearly obvious by the intense joy you exhibit where ur luv lies.!!! Thats fantastic Yes i am in luv with cars & so keep em coming Jack Im amazed by the excellent condition of Le Tomato its amazing it shouldnt really be here but for u rescuing it ::))
You can see the fiat influence in the ownership of Ferrari. And it's not just the door handles. They use the same under body protection. ( a salt wash over the bare steel). My brother worked for fiat in the UK in the late seventies. The undersides of the cars were visibly rusted when the new cars came off the ships.
No, no, no! You have failed to realize that what you have found is the fabled Ferrari 308 GT4 Ultra-Legerra. They started life as a normal 308 GT4, and then were acid-dipped. Unfortunately this one went into the acid bath late on a Friday, and the workers all p*ssed off for the weekend and forgot about it!
Jack no no no don’t even think about it the tin worm has possibly won I’ve just bought an Audi TT that’s been parked for a long time and I thought that was bad 🙈great vid 👍👨🏻🏭
I don't really know what to make of this. Does the fact it's so rusty but still holding together show how well built it was or does all the rust show how much of a piece of junk it was? These are the questions that keep me up at night. lol
