Project Car: A Ferrari-Powered 1967 Fiat Dino Spider

This 1967 Fiat Dino Spider is being offered for sale as a project car, these Fiat Dinos were fitted with the same Ferrari-designed V6 as the Ferrari Dino from the same era, but they typically sell for much less money.

The Ferrari Dino and its Fiat Dino siblings were all built to homologate the 2.0 liter V6 for Formula 2 racing. Homologation requirements were such that at least 500 production cars with the engine intended for the race car needed to be built and sold and Ferrari didn’t have the capacity – so they struck a deal with Fiat to allow them to also use the engine.

Fast Facts – The Fiat Dino Spider

• The Fiat Dino’s genesis stems from Ferrari’s requirement to homologate a V6 engine for Formula 2 racing in the 1960s. The regulations demanded at least 500 production cars with the engine intended for the race car. Ferrari didn’t have the capacity to produce that quantity, so a collaboration with Fiat was formed. The engine was designed by the legendary Vittorio Jano and named “Dino” in honor of Enzo Ferrari’s late son, Alfredo “Dino” Ferrari.
• The Fiat Dino was produced in two distinct body styles: a spider (convertible) version designed by Filippo Sapino at Pininfarina and a coupe version designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro at Bertone. Both variants carried the same 2.0 liter V6 engine initially, but their aesthetic designs were entirely different, with the spider being more streamlined and the coupe having a more angular design.
• The initial 2.0 liter V6 produced approximately 160 bhp and featured an alloy block and heads. In 1969 when homologation was no longer a concern the engine was upgraded to a 2.4 liter V6 with 180 bhp, which had a cast iron block in place of the earlier aluminum unit.
• The Fiat Dino was produced between 1966 and 1973. In total, around 7,800 were made, with a larger number of coupes than spiders. Because of their limited numbers and the uniqueness of their Ferrari-designed engines, they have since become highly sought-after classics though they still sell for much less than their Ferrari Dino counterparts.
• The 1967 Fiat Dino Spider you see here is being offered for sale out of Tuscarora, New York as a project car. It appears to be complete and just needs a restoration, after which it’ll be a highly-desirable classic.

The Original Dino V6

The Dino name comes from Enzo Ferrari’s son Alfredo “Dino” Ferrari who is credited with coming up with the concept of Ferrari’s Formula 2 V6 racing engine in the 1950s, and working on the design with Vittorio Jano. Tragically, Alfredo would die from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy at the age of just 24 in 1956.

His death left a scar that would never heal for Enzo, and for decades after his death he was still ensuring that Dino would be remembered by using his name on a series of production cars designed to compete with the Porsche 911 and other cars in that class.

In the mid-1960s when Ferrari introduced the new 206 GT they named it the Dino as a reference to the V6 in the rear, but this name wasn’t just a model name, it was the name of an entirely new sub-marque. Many purists refuse to refer to the car as the “Ferrari” Dino today due to this fact, however it’s become the more widely used name for the cars as it helps to distinguish them from the Fiat Dinos from the same era.

The Fiat Dino Spider

When Ferrari decided to take their 2.0 liter V6 racing in Formula 2 they needed, as mentioned above, to build and sell at least 500 of them in production cars in order to homologate it. They lacked the capacity to do this, and so they struck a deal with Fiat.

The terms of this deal were that Ferrari would design the engine, Fiat would mass-produce it, and then Fiat would sell the engines in a series of road cars. This would mean that Ferrari met their F2 homologation requirement, and it gave Fiat a nice halo car to elevate their brand image.

Two primary body styles would be offered for the Fiat Dino, a spider (convertible) version designed by Filippo Sapino and built by Pininfarina and a coupe version designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro and built by Bertone. There was no clear stylistic link between the two cars, though under the skin they did share the same engine and drivetrain.

The Fiat Dino Spider had a breathtakingly beautiful design with flowing lines from front to rear. It offered nimble handling, and the 2.0 liter V6 reached a peak output of 160 bhp at 7,200 rpm.

This V6 had an aluminum block and heads, double overhead cams per bank, two valves per cylinder, a 65° bank angle, a 9:1 compression ratio, and it was topped with three twin-choke downdraught Weber carburetors.

Power was sent back through a 5-speed transmission to the rear wheels and the suspension consisted of independent double wishbones up front and a line axle in the rear – although later cars did get an independent rear suspension arrangement.

Approximately 7,800 Fiat Dinos were made, the majority of which were the Giugiaro-designed coupe. As a result the Spider is now typically worth a little more, with many collectors preferring the earlier cars.

The 1967 Fiat Dino Spider Shown Here

The car you see here is a first generation Fiat Dino Spider fitted with the all-alloy 2.0 liter V6. It’s finished in red over black vinyl upholstery, it’s wearing 14″ Cromodora center-lock wheels, a Ferrari-branded steering wheel, and it has a black folding soft top.

This car is being offered for sale as a restoration project, it does appear to be complete and the seller notes that while the engine isn’t currently running, it did last run as recently as early 2023 when it was fueled via a remote gas tank.

It comes with a trunk full of removed and spare parts and it’s being offered out of Tuscarora, New York with a New York registration, which expired in February 2023. It’s now listed on Bring a Trailer and you can visit the listing here if you’d like to read more about it or register to bid.

Images courtesy of Bring a Trailer