240 bhp, 2,953 cc single-overhead camshaft V-12 engine, four-speed manual gearbox, independent front suspension with coil springs, solid rear axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs, and four-wheel disc brakes. Wheelbase: 102.4 in.

• The most commercially successful Ferrari of its time

• One of only 229 Series 1 cars produced

• Matching-numbers

To keep Ferrari’s racing efforts alive, it was necessary for the Italian sports car company to invest in automobiles that could appeal to a larger audience and generate greater sales revenue. The solution would be to design a road car that could accommodate more than two people.

The 250 GT/E was Ferrari’s first attempt to enter the luxury four-place, fast tourer market segment. The new design was first seen in public at the 1960 Le Mans race, where a prototype was used as a course control vehicle. The GT/E was officially launched that fall at the Paris Auto Show, and it became a commercial success, with over 900 examples in three series built and sold through 1963. The GT/E was based on the 250 GT coupé, with its wheelbase stretched to accommodate two reasonably-sized rear seats, and its three-litre, Colombo-designed V-12 moved forward by eight inches to maintain acceptable interior space. Overall, the body was longer as well as wider, which allowed generous storage in the boot, but at the same time, the roofline was lower than that of the 250 coupés, which maintained the 2+2’s proper proportions.

This particular car was produced under Pinin Farina body number 39867. It was delivered new to Swiss dealer Italauto SA, the garage that was owned by Baron Emmanuel Toulo De Grafenried, who was a famous Swiss Motor racing driver taking part in 23 World Champion races. The first owner of the car in Switzerland was a gentleman by the name of Mr Schnyder, before it was exported to the U.S.A. in 1977. The car then passed into the stewardship of Jack Montgomery, of Jackson, Wyoming. The last owner, a Mr Walter Stock from Connecticut, owned the car from at least 1996 onward, using the car on a regular basis.

Presented in off-white and retaining its handsome and suspected to be mostly original blue leather interior, 2697 is an early numbers-matching Series 1 Pinin Farina GT/E 2+2 that, according to the Register, has been in the hands of its present owner since 1996. He has driven the car on a regular basis, and it is described as in good operating order. Its cosmetics are excellent with good chrome trim and a largely unmolested interior showing a patina consistent with its age. The engine bay area is very attractive, having been properly detailed. Mechanically, the cylinder heads have been overhauled, receiving fresh valve guide seals. Overall, this is a particularly original example of the 250 GTE and is presented very nicely throughout. As Ferrari’s first four-seater, it also benefits from a sporting GT appearance and is fitted with the all-important twelve-cylinder engine from the masters in Maranello.