One of the Big Five of Ferrari history is the Super Sports Car 288 GTO. The GTO letters stands for Gran Turismo Omologato and reminds us of the most prestigious Ferrari ever: the 250 GTO. The other cars of the Big Five of Ferrari are the direct successor of the 288 GTO, the F40 but also the F50, the Ferrari Enzo and the La Ferrari.
Initial build for the new FIA regulations of the new Group B race cars which should race both the Rally World Championship but also the Endurance Races. The homologating regulations were to build 200 cars and finally 272 Ferrari 288 GTO were build between 1984 and 1985. But the 288 GTO never had been part of a race because the Group B was banned from motor racing due to several fatal accidents.
In 1986 the last 288 GTO, number 273, was a gift for Niki Lauda, three times F1 World Champion, two times with Ferrari in 1975 and 1977.
At the presentation of the 288 GTO on the Geneva Auto Salon in 1984, the car was the strongest and fastest Ferrari for the use on public roads. The design and shape of the car reminds of the 308 or the 328 GTB, but the complete construction was pretty new. The wheelbase was longer by 110 mm, which made the look of the 288 GTO more elegant. All of the 273 cars were delivered in Rosso Corsa. The chassis has a tubular steel frame, the bodywork is made by fiberglass reinforced synthetic material. The 288 GTO was the first road Ferrari shown the Cavallino Rampante at the front fender. The shape of this Ferrari looks very strong, elegant but also powerful, in my opinion it looks more than a race car but a road car.
The engine was a 2.8 l turbocharged V8 with 400 bhp at 7000 rpm and a maximum torque of 496nm at 3800 rpm. There was a lot of trouble with the fuel pipes due to the pressure in there.
So nearly 70 cars were burned, but all of them were rebuild.
The 288 GTO Evoluzione was developed from the 288 GTO and only five times realized as a real race car for the entry at Group B races, but this type did not appear at any race event too.
The Evoluzione is one of the most rarest Ferrari’s ever and is the „mother“ of the F40 which was presented at the 40’s anniversary of Ferrari in 1987.
At the end of the development the 288 GTO Evoluzione had 650 bhp and a top speed of 370 km/h. The bodywork is kevlar and fiberglass.
Years ago I had the opportunity to shoot one of these rare cars, it doesn’t is a real beauty, but it has a pretty brutal attitude and an aggressive look, born to race. Very special.
The „normal“ 288 GTO is also a very rare guest in public, – this car represents the combination of elegant car design with a powerful and sportive attitude. One of my favorites of Ferrari history and only in Rosso Corsa delivered it is the star of the Big Five. Find out more about our photographer Ralph Lüker.
288 GTO – TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION
MODEL 288 GTO
TYPE Coupé
YEAR OF PRODUCTION 1984-1986
NUMBER OF BUILD CARS 273 + 5 x 288 GTO Evulozione
ENGINE F114B mid-mounted longitudinally inclined V8 – 90º
BORE AND STROKE 80 mm x 71 mm
CUBIC CAPACITY TOTAL 2855 cc
VALVE TRAIN DOHC, 4 Valve per cylinder
ASPIRATION Twin IHI Turbo + Intercooler
TRANSMISSION 5-speed + 1 reverse
HORSEPOWER 400 bhp at 7000 rpm
TORQUE 496 nm at 3800 rpm
FUEL FEED Electric injection by Weber Marelli
LUBRICATION dry sump
CLUTCH multi disc
CHASSIS tubular steel
BRAKES discs all around
SUSPENSION FRONT independent, double wishbones, coil springs
SUSPENSION REAR independent, double wishbones, coil springs
LENGHT 4290 mm
WIDTH 1910 mm
HEIGHT 1120 mm
WHEELBASE 2450 mm
TRACK FRONT / REAR 1559 mm / 1562 mm
WEIGHT WITHOUT FUEL 1160 kg
FUEL CAPACITY 120 liters
TYRES FRONT / REAR Goodyear 8J x 16 225/55 VR16 / 10J x 16 265/50 VR16
MAXIMUM SPEED 305 km/h
0 – 100 KM/H 4,9 sec
0 – 200 KM/H 15,2 sec
