This Ferrari Daytona was driven at Le Mans – and could be yours for £5.5m

Race-proven prancing horse to be sold at Le Mans Classic

Ferrari’s fabled Daytona might have taken its unofficial moniker from the US raceway, but the iconic sports car was no stranger to Le Mans. In fact, this very 365 GTB/4 finished 5th in the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans – and now it could be yours.

A stunning and storied piece of Prancing Horse heritage, it’s an incredibly rare racing prototype built by the Ferrari factory and raced in the early-’70s.

Now it’s heading to auction with Artcurial at – where else? – the Le Mans Classic.

When the hammer falls on 7 July, it’s expected to fetch upwards of £5.7m – and some estimates suggest closer to £6.6m. With Ferrari prices climbing of late, such a rare model could easily go all the way.

Ahead of what could be a staggering sale, then, here’s everything you need to know about chassis 12467.

What's in a name?

The Ferrari Daytona launched at the 1968 Paris Auto Salon as the 365 GTB/4. Its ‘Daytona’ moniker is in fact unofficial, coined by the press in honour of the marque’s 1-2-3 finish at the 1967 24 Hours of Daytona.

Touring machine

In roadgoing form, the Daytona was a stunning two-seat grand tourer styled by Pininfarina. With a 4.4-litre V12 engine under the hood, the 365 GTB/4 was good for a top speed of more than 170mph.

Private stallion

Naturally, Ferrari decided to create a competition version of the Daytona – but it wouldn’t be raced by the official team. Instead, the lightweight racing model would be built by the factory then delivered to privateers.

Lightweight and limited

Just 15 of the racing Daytona were built between 1970 and 1973. Three batches were produced with slightly different specifications, but all carried lightweight aluminium bodies and the same engine as the road car – albeit tuned to different degrees.

First attempts

Before those official 15 machines, though, Ferrari also built two prototype versions. The first, chassis 12547, was an aluminium-bodied machine that crashed in testing and never made it to Le Mans.

Famous first owner

The second prototype? That’s chassis 12467 – the very car being auctioned by Artcurial. It was finished in 1971 and shipped to famed Italian-born racer Luigi Chinetti.

Glass and steel

As a prototype, it had a different specification to the later models, including a steel body and a glass windscreen, together with larger headlights and plexiglass windows. It also kept its air-conditioning system, which contributed to the 1400kg kerb weight.

Straight to the track

According to the transport bill, the Daytona was prepared by Ferrari and delivered directly to Chinetti at the Le Mans circuit, ready for the 1971 running of the 24 Hours race. It had been built to comply with Group 4 regulations at the time, which included the addition of a roll-bar.

Hired help

With a couple of mechanics borrowed from proven racer Charles Pozzi, Chinetti put his son 'Coco' and Bob Grossman in the car. They were ready to tackle the world’s greatest endurance race.

Incredible debut

The Daytona proved itself a worthy machine, running without fault to a remarkable fifth place finish overall at the 1971 Le Mans 24 Hours, beating a fleet of Porsche 911S machines and a Ligier JS3 driven by Guy Ligier himself.

Better than expected

Not only did it finish highly, but its pace was seven seconds quicker in the race than in testing. What's more its fuel consumption was surprisingly efficient: at 40 litres per 100km, it actually topped the race's Energy Index.

Racing refinements

After this glorious debut showing, the car was sold in 1972 to Clive Baker, owner of the Baker Motor Co. racing team. Changes he made to the Daytona included giving it wider wings, a front spoiler and an orange-and-white colour scheme.

Making the weight

Thus kitted out, it was entered into the Daytona Six Hours, where it claimed a 15th place finish, before heading to Sebring for the 12 Hours race. At this point, new FIA regulations necessitated the addition of glass windows and a new spoiler to take it up to the 1350kg minimum kerb weight.

Quiet retirement

After a mechanical problem prevented the Daytona from starting at Sebring, the Ferrari retired from racing to spend its life stabled with various collectors, included renowned car man Bill Kontes and former Walmart chairman Rob Walton.

Back to where it started

It spent several decades in the USA before heading back to Europe for inspection by Pozzi in Paris – a Ferrari dealership established by Charles Pozzi himself – with a view to gaining Ferrari Classiche certification.

One and only motor

The winning bidder will receive the Daytona with its original engine block, alongside a weighty file documenting the car’s colourful past, including its delivery to Le Mans in 1971 for its fabled 5th place finish.

As rare as they come

A truly storied car, there’s little wonder that this racing Ferrari – one of just two prototypes built ahead of the 15 factory cars – is expected to fetch at least €6.5m (£5.7m) at auction on 7 July.

Big, big numbers

Artcurial has organised the auction to coincide with the Le Mans Classic 2018. Given rising Ferrari prices, the rarity of the Daytona and the smell of classic petrol in the air, we wouldn't be at all surprised to see it meet and exceed its staggering €7.5m (£6.6m) upper estimate.

We'll let you know how it does after the sale on 7 July.