Words: John Mayhead
Images: Ferrari
Gioacchino Colombo’s wonderful 60-degree V12 engine powered Ferraris for over forty years, growing from under 1.5 litres to nearly five in that time, and resulting in some of the world’s most important racing and grand touring cars. Some of these rank amongst the most valuable and collectable cars in the world, including such automotive gems as the 250 GTO, the 250 LM, the 275 GTB, the 365 GTB/4 Daytona and the sublime 400 Superamerica.
Although you’ll need deep pockets to buy any of those models, there are more reasonably-priced ways of owning a car that emits the instantly-recognisable growl of the Colombo engine, and the very last of the line – the Ferrari 400 and 412 – combine relative affordability with a recently strong performance in value growth.
The wedge-shaped 400 was launched in Paris in 1976, almost a carbon copy of its predecessor, the 365 GT 2+2. With a 4823cc version of the Colombo V12 fed by six Weber 38 DCOE carburettors, it was the first Ferrari offered with the option of an automatic gearbox, and three years later gained Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection, becoming the Ferrari 400i. In 1985, the engine was enlarged again, to 4943cc and Pininfarina modernised the body, adding colour-coded bumpers, new wheels and an improved interior. On the back, the new designation: the Ferrari 412i.
As these cars become older, they struggled to find their place. They fell between the glorious curves of the 1960s Ferraris and the cutting-edge modernism of the side-straked Testarossa and 2+2 Ferraris have never really captured the hearts of the passionate especially those lacking the chrome-gated manual gearbox, as many of these did. When we started the UK Hagerty Price Guide in 2012, even a concours Ferrari 400 was listed as worth under £20,000. With low values came neglect – maintenance costs that make sense for a multi-million-pound car don’t when the annual service costs more than the car. Rust was also an issue, often patched up or just left to blister.
But over the past few years, they have achieved a remarkable turnaround. As we’ve seen at Hagerty’s RADwood celebration, wedgy cars are cool, especially when clad in the russet brown and metallic blue hues of the 1970s. Plus, the two rear seats are now seen as a positive, placing these cars firmly in the category of usable grant-tourer classics. Those that survived the barren years and are still running have often had a lot of their issues rectified, and values have been rising rapidly, especially since Covid. In percentage terms, they’re risen far more than all the other top V12 Ferrari models listed above and are currently 221 percent of the value they were a decade ago.
Current UK Hagerty Price Guide values range from £36,000 for a ‘fair’ 400 up to £86,600 for a ‘concours’ 412i, but we’re in the process of reviewing those upwards following a spate of high-value sales around the world. Most notable were three cars sold at auction in Paris in February – a 1985 412i sold by RM Sotheby’s for €120,750 (£100,000) and two 1981 400i examples, both sold by Bonhams, one for €82,800 (£69,000) and the other, a stunning metallic green car, for €92,000 (£76,400), double its top pre-sale estimate.
The outlook for these cars is good, and it’s been selected as one of the Hagerty USA Bull Market List picks for 2025. Find one in good condition that has been mechanically well maintained, and it will be worth spending more to purchase than a ‘cheap’ car that has been left to suffer. Then, drive it, and enjoy the most affordable of all Enzo- era Ferraris.
Have you owned a Ferrari 400 or 412? We would love to hear from you in the comments below!
