Page 1 of 2 Next >> For many years, Ferrari offered the company's wealthiest clients top-of-the-range models like the 375 America or the 410 Superamerica that could be finished to suit the customers' particular needs, usually by Pininfarina. By the mid-1960s, even these luxurious Ferraris had succumbed to mass production and the three dozen 500 Superfasts built in this period differed only in detail.
The last hurrah for the truly exclusive luxury Ferrari came in 1966 with the introduction of the 365 California Spyder at the Geneva Motor Show. At a rate of around one a month, only 14 examples were built by Pininfarina between 1966 and 1967. Never again would a Ferrari road car be built in such small numbers. At 4.9 metres in length, thanks to the massive front and rear overhangs, the 2+2 convertible also remained the longest Ferrari ever built until the introduction of the four-seater 612 Scaglietti in 2004.
Designed at Pininfarina by Tom Tjaarda, the 365 California Spyder body combined some familiar lines like the elegant nose with covered headlights with more futuristic cues like the pop-up headlights and the crease running over the fenders from the front to the back. The cut-off tail with highly unusual light clusters was unlike anything else created by Pininfarina for Ferrari. Although they would become a familiar and functional sight on future mid-engined Ferraris, the air intakes on the doors served an aesthetic purpose only. Page 1 of 2 Next >>