Though for many years Ferrari had been constructing mid- engine racing cars, it was not until the end of the 1960s that Enzo Ferrari agreed to offer a midengine road car. Ferrari’s first was the lower-displacement 246 GT Dino, leaving the larger V-12-powered road cars like the 365 GTB Daytona to remain front-engined. But finally, in 1973, Ferrari was convinced of the merit of building a 12-cylinder, midengined road car. The result was the 365 GT4 BB, or Berlinetta Boxer, which featured a 4.4L flat-12 engine similar to that used in Ferrari’s Formula 1 car. Styled by famed Pininfarina designer Leonardo Fioravanti, the design was an evolution of Pininfarina’s 1968 Ferrari P6 Berlinetta Speciale concept car. Under Fioravanti’s shapely body was built a steel semi-monocoque chassis with independent suspension, similar in design to the mid- engined 246 Dino that came before it. Mounted longitudinally amidships, behind the driver was the 4.4L, 4-cam, flat-12 engine mated to a 5-speed transaxle with limited-slip differential. The 365 GT4 BB was offered from 1973-76, when it was updated with a larger 4.9L Tipo F102 flat-12 engine and then rebadged as the 512 BB. The 512 BB was produced from 1976-1981, when the engine was upgraded from its four Weber carburetors to a Bosch K-Jetronic CIS fuel-injection system, at which point the car was renamed the 512 BBi. In all, 1,007 examples of the 512 BBi were produced from 1981 to 1984, when the model was succeeded by the new Testarossa. One of the 1,007 produced with fuel injection over a four- year production run, this 1984 Ferrari 512 BBi is finished in the unmistakeable Rosso Corsa over a beige leather interior and sports just 5,128 miles on its odometer. Imported into the United States in 1994, the car has only been registered in California ever since. It’s powered by the fuel-injected, 4.9L/340 HP Tipo F110A flat-12 engine and a 5-speed manual transaxle with gated shifter, while independent suspension and ventilated 4-wheel disc brakes keep all that power in check. Rolling on center-lock, metric, five-spoke wheels, this exceptional BBi also features Daytona-style seats, air conditioning, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and Veglia instruments, and it’s accompanied by an owner’s manual, service records and a tool kit.
