Ferrari 412i With $142,500 Price Tag Is Replica-Proof

The Ferrari 400 has long been regarded as the most ungainly Ferrari ever made, thus leaving it vulnerable to custom car builders who would rather hack it up to build 250 GTO replicas.

Prices for anything with a Ferrari badge are rising, however, disqualifying even the most undesirable models from donor car designation. At $142,500, this 412i for sale from Autosport Designs through eBay might be expensive enough to be replica-proof.

Ferrari’s four-seater began as the 365 GT4 2+2. Unveiled in 1972, the front-engined V12 grand tourer was first available with six Weber carburetors and produced 335 horsepower.

As the car evolved, it gained fuel injection in 1980, which changed the model designation to 400i (“i” for injection). In 1985 the engine displacement was bumped to 4.9 liters, which Ferrari thought was close enough to 412cc per cylinder to change the name for a final time to 412i.

With its sedate sedan styling and lazy transmission, the 412i was doomed from the start in the eyes of the enthusiasts, and its low value meant that many were cut up to make replicas of the famed Modena brand’s golden era sports cars, such as the 250 GTO, 250 SWB, and the 250 GT California.

Built as a grand tourer, most examples of the 412i featured GM’s Turbo-Hydramatic 400 3-speed automatic transmission, which was sure to nerf any sportiness that the vehicle left the factory with. This example, however, features a 5-speed manual transmission, returning some of the gallop to this prancing horse.

The Ferrari features $100,000 in repair receipts from the previous owner, including a bare-metal repaint in its original color of Grigio Ferro. Showing just 27,908 miles (44,900 km), the 412i has changed hands a number of times, and was most recently in the ownership of a 412i collector.