Ferrari 456 GTA Blu Le Mans

This might be the most stylish Ferrari ever built: the 456 GTA is born to be classic and exclusively made for the genuine ladies and gentlemen among us. The letter “A” in GTA stands for “Automatica”, but could as well have stood for the quality of this beautiful Prancing Horse. The Ferrari 456 Grand Tourer was delivered new in Belgium and carefully maintained by Ferrari Dealer Monza. Thanks to their effort the natural aspired Ferrari V12 still sounded like new when it went Dutch. The gorgeous color combination and included history ensure that the Ferrari 456 GTA is one of the most desirable machines we offer for sale. However, not for long, we guess…

History
It took about 12 years, but in 2008 finally the time had come: the original Belgian 456 GTA was discovered by the Netherlands and stayed with us ever since. One of the reasons that the Italian was – and still is – in the right place here is because of the professional services by Ferrari specialist Guus van Eijk. He adopted the technical responsibility from Ferrari Monza and took the job extremely serious. You may consider the service documents as the ultimate proof.

Exterior
We remember the 1980s as the era of many angular designed icons. Take the Testarossa for example. The following decade seemed to be dominated by (over)compensation, because the 1990s cars were generally round in shape. So is this 1996 Ferrari 456 GT Automatica. Its biggest advantage? The super smooth exterior is more timeless than the masterpieces of Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci all together. You’re looking at the pre-facelift version, recognizable by the wider indicator units in the front bumper. The Ferrari 465 GTA is not a car, it’s a sculpture: the doors are set deeper into the bodywork, which automatically creates an air intake in the front wings. In addition to the beautiful curves, the Blu Le Mans lacquer is really something to bow for. And if we say the 90s, we say pop-up headlights. In case of the Ferrari 456, cooling slots are masterfully integrated behind them. In one word: magnifico!

Interior
No way the 456 GTA was put together on a blue Monday. Yet that’s exactly what the Blu Le Mans exterior and Blu Scuro leather interior would like us to believe. Seats, doors panels, dashboard and even the floor carpets are dark blue. Very stylish, especially in combination with the chromed gear lever of the automatic transmission plus rings around the many analogue instruments. The tunnel console is wide enough to offer space for a radio. Each of the 4 seats in the Ferrari 2+2 has embossed logos in the headrests. The model designation in the dashboard makes further explanation unnecessary.

Technique & performance
Nevertheless, we can imagine that this Prancing Horse raises lots of questions. Like: why would we ever say goodbye to the magic of non-turbo V12 power? The 5.5 liter 12-cylinder delivers 550 Nm torque and needs 5.5 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h. In front lie 442 horses, pulling the Grand Tourer to a top speed of 298 km/h. On a good day, it will be member of the 300+ elite club. It’s also certain that all power disappears towards the rear axle via an automatic gearbox. And the smile on your face is as permanent as the great character and value of this “grande” Ferrari. Tell us, have you ever been to Holland before?
Kind regards, Prins Classics.