News & Features December 13, 2007, 12:09PM EST

Ferrari's Winning Boxer

The highly successful 1982 Ferrari 512 BBi "Boxer" was hand-crafted car with mid-engined performance and aesthetic appeal

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1982 Ferrari 512 BBi "Boxer"

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Introduced at the 1981 Frankfurt Show, the 512 BBi was the last derivation of the 1973 365 Berlinetta Boxers. Almost identical to its 512 BB predecessor, it retained the wider rear track and wider and longer body. It also kept the front spoiler and NACA ducts to the rear brakes, but its flat-12 featured Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection instead of carburetors. Detail improvements were made to the suspension and aerodynamics.

With 344 hp at 6,300 rpm and an overall weight of just 3,304 pounds, the car performed in Ferrari style and was a major sales success. At the close of production in 1984, some 1,007 units had been built. It also marked the passing of an era in Ferrari history, for as coachbuilder Sergio Scaglietti sadly remarked, "It was the last car where we made everything by hand."

The car on offer is in traditional and unmarked Rosso Corsa, it was delivered new in Switzerland, and it has a Swiss title. All of the original documents are included with the Ferrari wallet. The odometer indicates it has covered 17,143 miles, or 27,568 kilometers. Since 2001, it has been in a private collection. Recent work includes a full examination, new electronic control unit, new battery, etc., at a cost of $4,385. As such, this is a fine opportunity for a discerning owner to acquire a genuine, fine original-condition, low-mileage 512 with all the benefits of the later production series.

The SCM Analysis

This car sold for $118,700 at the Sportscar Auction in Geneva, Switzerland, on October 6, 2007.

This is a substantial price, as Sports Car Market's 2007 Price Guide pegs the BBi at $65,000–$85,000. But as Publisher Martin said in a recent article: "As the top-flight cars like the Maserati A6GCS and Ferrari 250 SWB continue to accelerate, we are seeing the first signs that the far lesser cars, such as Maserati 3500 GTs and even unloved Ferrari Boxers, are beginning to be caught up in the froth."

Indeed, recent sales of Boxers, such as RM's 2007 sale of a 365 BB at Amelia Island for $176,000 (SCM# 44688), contrast vividly with Bonhams's sale of a very nice 13,000-mile injected Boxer in December 2000 in Switzerland for $44,800 (SCM# 10710). This would indicate how robust the Boxer market has become, which is perhaps fitting -- and more realistic -- for a hand-crafted car with so much mid-engined performance and aesthetic appeal. Even at the new prices, Boxers are still less than half the cost of a Daytona.

The 365 Boxer introduced in 1973 was revolutionary for Ferrari and designed to meet the competition of the mid-engined Lamborghini Miura and Maserati Bora. Some 2,313 Boxers were sold over a ten-year run, while it took the factory only five or so years to produce 1,273 Daytona coupes. No Boxers were ever sold by the factory in the U.S.; all had to be modified to meet DOT and EPA requirements.

Injected Boxers seem to bring less

An entirely new car, and the first road-going Ferrari not to have a "V" configuration engine, the Boxer used a 4.4-liter, 4-cam flat-12 derived from the 3-liter Formula One car. The mid-mounted engine and 5-speed transaxle were housed in a tubular/monocoque chassis clothed in Pininfarina's elegant Berlinetta coachwork. Some 387 were produced from 1974 to 1976.

These early Boxers were followed by 929 carbureted 512 Boxers with slightly enlarged engines, but they were detuned for better mid-range torque. Then, 1,078 injected 512s were produced from 1982 to '84 with considerable changes. Dick Fritz, whose company Amerispec imported and modified more Boxers than anyone else, once said that the stock 512i cars had "100 changes -- 50 for the mechanic and 50 for the customer." But while it is a considerably better car for the average driver -- and easier to modify to meet EPA regulations -- the injected car seems to bring less than the carbed 512s, while the more untamed, high-revving 365 brings the highest prices.