The 250 GTO (Gran Turismo Omologato) was the evolution of the 250 GT series into a competition car in the Gran Turismo category. A road-legal racing car was created, with which the drivers often traveled to their races on their own. The basis for the 250 GTO was the Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta SWB model. The 250 stands for displacement in cubic centimeters per cylinder. Ferrari presented the vehicle for the first time as part of the annual press conference in January 1962 in Maranello.
The development of the GTO ran under Giotto Bizzarrini and was carried out at Scaglietti, where almost all vehicles were later built. What was new compared to the 250 GT Berlinetta “SWB” was the completely redesigned front end. The rear fenders got wider and longer, as did the rear. In contrast to the first prototype, all later examples received a riveted spoiler at the rear, which was an aerodynamic innovation at the time. Never before has so much effort been put into the aerodynamic design of a GT racing car.
The rear rigid axle of the 250 GT Berlinetta “SWB” was retained, but no longer guided by the leaf springs, but on parallel trailing arms and a Watt linkage. The proven Tipo 168/62 3.0 L V12 from the 250 Testa Rossa was carried over.. The interior of the 250 GTO is extremely spartan – a tribute to low weight, which in connection with almost 300 hp and low air resistance makes the GTO to go up to 280 km/h.
The successes of the 250 GTO were impressive, there were victories at the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Targa-Florio, the 1000 km of Spa-Francorchamps and at Le Mans, where they also finished second in 1962 and 1963 and won the GT classification.