The world of motorsport has its fair share of iconic Ferraris, from its formative years via Formula 1 and sports cars but one car in particular would (and should) appear in any expert’s top three; the ex-Rob Walker/Stirling Moss 250 GT SWB, know both by its chassis number – 2735GT –and, a few decades later, by its road registration number ‘1 SWB’.
It was ordered from the factory in 1961 by team owner Rob Walker who considered Moss required a sports car worthy of his talent. At the time, Ferrari was eager to secure the services of Stirling so special attention was paid to the precise construction of the car with an extra 24 horsepower being coaxed from its single-cam 3-litre V12 Colombo engine to give 299bhp at 7700rpm. The car was delivered to Rob Walker at the Le Mans 24-Hours in June 1961 and Moss would go on to win five of the six races he entered including his seventh Goodwood TT with a final outing in the Bahamas where, in December 1961, the pair drove to victory in the Tourist Trophy in Nassau. Moss considered the car “the best GT car in the world”.
It was then sold to Chris Kerrison who campaigned it from 1962 to the close of 1964. During 1962 it was rebodied by Piero Drogo’s Carozzerria company with bodywork that resembled a Ferrari GTO. In the late 1960s it was written off in a crash at Mondello park and the damaged car changed hands until, in 1983, it was rebuilt and reunited with the correct SWB bodywork. The following year it was purchased by marque expert Clive Beecham who would later commission Ferrari Classiche to undertake a total rebuild to return it to its original specification, even ordering a new engine block to be caste at the factory to replace the incorrect engine that was installed in 1967. It is shown here in the Goodwood paddock during the 2009 Revival meeting where it was part of a display and driven around the circuit by Sir Stirling Moss.
