Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona
1968–1973 · Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona — Grand Tourer, V12, designed by Leonardo Fioravanti.
The Story
The 365 GTB/4 — universally known as the ‘Daytona’ — was the last of the great front-engined V12 grand tourers from Maranello before the marque committed to the mid-engine era. Unveiled at the 1968 Paris Salon to replace the 275 GTB/4, it married Pininfarina’s sharp-edged, Leonardo Fioravanti-penned bodywork (built by Scaglietti) to a 4,390cc Colombo-derived four-cam V12 fed by six Webers, making 352 PS at 7,500 rpm. With a claimed 280 km/h (174 mph), it was at launch among the fastest production cars in the world.
Its arrival was a direct answer to Lamborghini’s mid-engined Miura, which had stunned the establishment in 1966. Where Lamborghini reinvented the supercar layout, Ferrari doubled down on the classic front-engine formula and made it work spectacularly — proving a front-engined car could still be the quickest thing on the road, even as the industry tipped toward the mid-engine future the Boxer would embody.
The name itself is one of motoring’s enduring quirks. ‘Daytona’ was never an official Ferrari designation — it was a press nickname honouring Ferrari’s 1-2-3 sweep of the February 1967 24 Hours of Daytona (a 330 P3/4, a 330 P4 and a 412 P). Ferrari to this day refers to it as an unofficial name, yet, almost uniquely among Ferraris, the nickname stuck and became the car’s identity. As the last front-V12 supercar of the pre-Fiat era, it stands as a hinge point in Ferrari history.
The Numbers
Benchmarked against its class
Each dial ranks this car within its Grand Tourer class — fuller means higher, and the tick marks the class midpoint.
Signature Colors
The Designer
Leonardo Fioravanti
Engineer-turned-stylist; rose to MD of Pininfarina Studi e Ricerche. The defining hand behind Ferrari road shapes from the late-1960s to mid-1980s.
Studio Motors POV
The Daytona is the perfect last word for an era — proof that the front-engine V12 went out not with a whimper but at 174 mph, outrunning the future even as it arrived. It’s the most charismatic full-stop in Ferrari’s history.
The Engine
Ferrari Colombo V12
Lineage
Where it sits in the bloodline
Market & Value
Values on cars like this move monthly. Our brokers price from real transactions.
What Reviewers Said About 365 GTB/4 Daytona
Worth Knowing About the 365 GTB/4 Daytona
3 Things You Didn’t Know
- • 'Daytona' is an UNofficial nickname Ferrari never adopted — coined by the press after Ferrari's 1-2-3 finish at the Feb 1967 24 Hours of Daytona (330 P3/4, 330 P4, 412 P).
- • The early cars (~1968–1970) wore fixed headlights behind a transparent acrylic 'Plexiglas' nose strip; replaced with pop-up headlights from 1971 (partly for US lighting rules) — and the early 'Plexi' cars are now the most coveted.
- • In Nov 1971 Dan Gurney and Brock Yates won the first Cannonball Run in a Daytona coupe (35h 54m coast-to-coast) — and the 'Daytona Spyders' in early Miami Vice were NOT real Ferraris but Corvette-based McBurnie fibreglass replicas (Ferrari sued, then gave the producers Testarossas).
5 Fast Facts
- • ~1,284 berlinetta coupes built, plus 122 365 GTS/4 Spiders (1968–1973).
- • 4,390cc Colombo-derived four-cam V12, six Webers, 352 PS at 7,500 rpm.
- • Top speed ~280 km/h (174 mph); 0–60 mph in ~5.4 s.
- • Bodywork designed by Leonardo Fioravanti of Pininfarina; assembled by Scaglietti.
- • The last front-engined V12 two-seat Ferrari supercar before the mid-engine Boxer era.
Provenance
Owners & what to look for
Famous Owners
Sir Elton John — documented owner of a 1972 RHD Rosso Chiaro 365 GTB/4 (chassis 14271), bought new in 1972/73 and kept until 1975 (believed his first Ferrari, with original order/build sheets); sold at Silverstone Auctions in 2019 (Motor Authority / The Drive). Steve McQueen — a 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spider was built for him in 1974 via Chinetti/NART (chassis-level claims carry some source variance; he’s more famously tied to his 275 GTB/4). (A ‘Daniel Simon’ owner claim could not be verified → excluded; the Miami Vice cars were replicas.)
Studio Buyer’s Brief
Coupe vs Spider: the genuine 365 GTS/4 Spider (only 122 built) is far rarer and more valuable than the berlinetta — verify it’s a FACTORY Spider, not a coupe-to-Spider conversion (many conversions exist at a steep discount). Headlights: early ‘Plexiglas’ fixed-lamp cars (1968–1970) command a premium over the later pop-up cars. Insist on Ferrari Classiche and matching numbers; documented celebrity/competition history adds a real premium. Coupes broadly run ~$600k–$1.5M+ (Plexi, condition, provenance; some exceptional cars ~$2.3M); genuine Spiders run into the multi-millions.
Full Specifications
- Make / Model
- Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona
- Class
- Grand Tourer
- Production years
- 1968–1973
- Units built
- ~1,284 coupes (+122 GTS/4 Spider, 15 comp; ~1,406 total)
- Variants
- 365 GTS/4 (spider)
- Engine layout
- Front
- Engine
- V12
- Engine family
- Ferrari Colombo V12
- Displacement
- 4390 cc (4.4 L)
- Power
- 347 hp
- Torque
- 318 lb-ft
- 0–60 mph
- 5.4 s
- Top speed
- 174 mph
- Power-to-weight
- 271 hp/tonne · 8.1 lb/hp
- Transmission
- 5-speed manual transaxle
- Drivetrain
- RWD (IRS; 4-wheel disc) · Petrol
- Curb weight
- 2822 lb
Questions
365 GTB/4 Daytona FAQ
What do the numbers and designation 365 GTB/4 mean in the Ferrari Daytona?
The 365 encodes the per-cylinder displacement: approximately 365cc per cylinder across twelve cylinders gives 4,390cc (4.4 litres). GTB stands for Gran Turismo Berlinetta and the /4 denotes four overhead camshafts — two per cylinder bank. Ferrari officially called the car the 365 GTB/4; the Daytona nickname was applied by the press and public, never by Ferrari itself.
Where does the Daytona nickname come from?
‘Daytona’ is an unofficial nickname derived from Ferrari’s famous 1-2-3 finish at the 1967 Daytona 24 Hours. Ferrari identifies the finish as two 330 P4s and a 412 P; other histories frame it as 330 P3/4, 330 P4, and 412 P. The nickname stuck despite being unofficial — Ferrari’s formal name is 365 GTB/4.
How does the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona compare to the 275 GTB it replaced?
The Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona replaced the 275 GTB (comparing to the earlier two-cam 275 GTB), moving from 3.3L V12 to 4.4L V12 (352 hp vs ~280-300 hp), a higher top speed (~174 mph vs ~155), and a wider, more aggressive body. Both the Daytona and the 275 GTB/4 are four-cam engines — the Daytona wasn’t first to add four cams to the lineage.
What is a Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona worth at auction?
Daytona market: Hagerty references about $655K for a coupe and $2.4M for a factory Spider. Classic.com shows Daytona market averages consistent with those bands. Factory Spider (~124 built, mostly for the US market) commands the strongest premium; well-documented coupes and Competizione versions above.
Can you source a Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona through Studio Motors?
Yes. The 365 GTB/4 Daytona was the fastest production car in the world at its 1968 launch and the last front-engine Ferrari V12 road car before the mid-engine era — a historically pivotal model produced in approximately 1,284 coupes and 122 factory Spiders.
The Ferrari Lineup
Explore every Ferrari
250 Europa / Europa GT ’53250 GT Berlinetta 'Tour de France' (TdF) ’56250 GT Coupe 'Boano' / 'Ellena' ’56250 Testa Rossa (TR) ’57250 GT California Spider LWB ’57250 GT Cabriolet ’57250 GT Coupe (Pininfarina) ’58250 GT Berlinetta SWB ’59250 GT Berlinetta 'Interim' ’59
250 GT California Spider SWB ’60250 GTE 2+2 ’60250 GTO ’62250 GT Lusso (GT/L) ’62330 America ’63275 GTB ’64365 GTB/4 Daytona ’68Dino 246 GT ’69
365 GT4 BB / 512 BB ’73308 GTB / GTS ’75
288 GTO ’84Testarossa ’84328 GTB / GTS ’85F40 ’87348 ’89
F355 ’94F50 ’95550 Maranello ’96360 Modena ’99
575M Maranello ’02Enzo ’02360 Challenge Stradale ’03612 Scaglietti ’04F430 ’04599 GTB Fiorano ’06430 Scuderia ’07California ’08458 Italia ’09
599 GTO ’10F12berlinetta ’12LaFerrari ’13458 Speciale ’13F12tdf ’15488 GTB ’15GTC4Lusso ’16812 Superfast ’17Portofino M ’17488 Pista ’18Monza SP1 / SP2 ’18F8 Tributo ’19SF90 Stradale ’19Roma ’19
812 Competizione ’21296 GTB ’21Purosangue ’22Daytona SP3 ’22SF90 XX Stradale ’2312Cilindri ’24F80 ’24296 Speciale ’25
Buy, sell, source or lease this 365 GTB/4 Daytona.
Studio Motors operates outside the dealership model — nationwide and off-market sourcing, custom lease structures, trade-in coordination. Tell us what you’re chasing.
