Description
1980 - Ferrari 308 Gr. B "Michelotto" Chassis no. 30525 Italian registration This car has just changed the history books and can be considered the 5th Gr. B Michelotto produced, and without doubt the most authentic of all!
The end of the 1973 season marked an absolutely radical turnaround for the Prancing Horse firm, since, in the face of several failures in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and elsewhere, Enzo Ferrari decided to turn all the Scuderia's efforts to Formula 1... Despite this difficult decision, some customers and private teams knocked on the door of the Maranello maestro with the aim of taking part in Group 4 races: Enzo Ferrari asked Giuliano Michelotto to work with his Officina to build a brand new car based on the 308. On 2 March 1978, the wizard from Padua presented his new baby, the now legendary 308 Gr. 4 Michelotto. While the bodywork, made of fibreglass and Kevlar, was enlarged, very few parts were actually modified. Despite this, the beast boasted a weight of around 1 tonne, and a power output of almost 300 bhp... Success followed, culminating in two victories in the 1981 and 1982 Tour de France Automobile. After 11 cars had been produced, FIA regulations changed and the 308 Michelotto moved up to Group B (a combination of Group 4 and Group 5). A number of changes were made: the body was modified, with narrower wings and the retention of certain steel parts (making the car 30 kg heavier than the Gr. 4s), and above all the Kugelfischer mechanical injection system was replaced by a Bosch K-Jetronic electronic injection system. Only four Ferrari 308 Gr. B Michelotto were produced, and all were commissioned by Pro Motor Sport, an Italian racing team. In addition to Michelotto, a large number of tuners tried their hand at preparing 308s, but it was only the wizard from Padua who succeeded in making this car even more precise and agile, thanks to some very special work on the chassis... The 308 GTB that illustrates these pages was delivered in January 1980 to a certain Caterina Fassio, who lived in the province of Piedmont, in a rare shade of Blu Dino. She sold the car in April 1981 through the Turin Ferrari dealership to Claudio Pernini, who sold it in September to Scuderia Automobilistica Città di Milano, a Milan-based association run by Virgilio Facetti (no relation to Carlo Facetti, another 308 tuner). It was in fact the Panettoni Maina-Retequattro racing team that had instigated a programme to race Ford RX3s, Opel Kadett GTEs and a Ferrari 308. They enlisted the help of Virgilio Facetti and his Scuderia Città di Milano to manage the project and drive the Ferrari 308 in the races. It was Facetti who first prepared the 308 GTB #30525 via Effegi, a workshop he had set up shortly before in Milan. On its first outing, at the 1st Rally di Limone Piemonte on 7 July 1984, the car finished in 7th place. On its second competitive outing (the car had in the meantime opened the Rally Valli del Bormida), the car performed well and reached 3rd place in the 1984 Rally Tre Laghi, just behind a Lancia 037 and a Porsche 911 Gr. 4! After that, the car took part in the 7th Rally dell'Autodromo di Monza, this time without much success.
On 19 December 1984, Virgilio Facetti asked Giuliano Michelotto to make the chassis and body of #30525 lighter. The two Italians had in fact met on the car's first outing, at the Rally di Limone Piemonte, where Michelotto had asked who had prepared the car's engine to find out how it worked so well! So Michelotto sent #30525 to Lino Cazzola's factory, so that it could be given the same treatment as the four other 308 Gr. Bs already produced by his factory (copies of the invoices are on file). On the agenda: change of bodywork to polyester and carbon Kevlar, and above all, upgrading of the chassis to meet Michelotto standards! The chassis was then numbered 18, a stamp still visible on the rear left-hand side of the frame. After leaving the Officina Michelotto, #30525 was repainted yellow and twice took part in the Rally dell'Autodromo di Monza, before being sold to a certain Fabio Penariol, director of Pro Motor Sport (the team that had ordered the four other 308 Gr. Bs)! Fabio Penariol put #30525 into Gr. 4 configuration (mechanical injection), and sold the car to Jean-Louis Préhoubert in 1988.
Shortly afterwards, the car was bought by Maurice Barale, an influential member of the Belgian Ferrari Club in the 1990s. He took part in many club meetings between 1990 and 2005, and numerous photos have been found. The car was red with a blue stripe and Gr. 4 wings. In 2010, the car was bought by a French gentleman driver who made the wise decision to send it to Lino Cazzola for a complete restoration. The body panels, still made of polyester at the time, were replaced and set aside (sold with the car) to make way for steel panels as originally fitted. After these three years of work, the car received its PTH, and was entered in a number of ASAVE events, before being sold in 2015 to the current owner, a very fine Ferrari enthusiast... Since then, the car has been driven very little, but has been kept in optimal conditions, leaving the whole in excellent condition. Of course, a complete overhaul and updating of the safety features would be in order if the next owner's aim was to race the car.
After extensive research by historian Cyrille Jaquinot (History Book available on request), #30525 now appears to be the only 308 prepared for racing by Michelotto in the period on the basis of a road car, but also and above all the only one that has not been involved in an accident. Its chassis components, specific to Michelotto's work, are still original, as are its engine block and even its body (traces of yellow paint still visible)! Presented for the first time at public auction since the discovery of its history and its relationship with the Officina Michelotto, #30525 is a unique opportunity for any collector looking for the perfect tool to take to the starting line of the Tour Auto 2026 and the Modena Cento Ore, or for an authentic rally beast with a proven track record. Drivers, collectors and enthusiasts, make no mistake... now it's your turn to bid!
Est. 700 000 - 1 100 000 € This vehicle will be auctioned at the sale of classic cars organised by the AGUTTES firm on Monday 7 April 2025 in Paris at the start of the Tour Auto. The digital catalogue is available on our website. Please do not hesitate to contact us for any further information.
