Breadvan – The Ferrari that had to beat the GTO, a new book by Heseltine

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Built as a Ferrari 250 GT Short Wheelbase Competizione, chassis number 2819 GT only became famous after its conversion into the instantly recognisable ‘Breadvan’. This legendary car is so well known that it was written in the stars that sooner or later books would be published about it. This book goes far beyond what has been published before.

Let me give you a brief glimpse into this masterful reference work on the ‘outlaw Ferrari’.

This Ferrari 250 GT Short Wheelbase Competizione was delivered new in 1961 to Olivier Gendebien. Olivier was a Belgian racing driver who apparently could turn a wheel because he was noticed by Enzo Ferrari. He was given a contract as a Formula 1 driver by the Suderia Ferrari where he only participated in 14 races. With the Ferrari 250 GT SWB he took part in the tough Tour de France (no, not the cycling race).

Count Giovanni Volpi di Misurata

Shortly after this rally, the Ferrari 250 GT SWB with chassis number 2819 GT was bought by the charismatic Italian aristocrat Count Giovanni Volpi di Misurata. Where he would be part of his Scuderia Serenissima team.

Volpi was one of Enzo’s best customers for many years. However, but his involvement with the upstart ATS team – established in the wake of the notorious ‘Palace Coup’ at Maranello – had left Count Volpi in financial difficulties. As a result, Enzo refused delivery of the two GTOs Volpi had ordered for 1962.

Revenge

This did not please Volpi and he decided to take revenge by converting the 2819 GT into something that could beat Ferrari’s latest Berlinettas. Volpi was not a novice and enlisted the help of Giotto Bizzarrini. The latter had done the early work on the GTO and had become at odds with Enzo.

Revenge seemed a good motivator as Giotto Bizzarrini applied all his technical knowledge to Volpi’s Short Wheelbase and rebuilt it into the Breadvan we know today. The Breadvan made its racing debut at the 1962 24 Hours of Le Mans, driven by top Italian drivers such as Ludovico Scarfiotti and Carlo Maria Abate. Outside of racing, Volpi and his glamorous friends such as Gunter Sachs and Gianni Agnelli also used it as a sensational road car.

The story

This book tells the full story of the Breadvan’s long and fascinating life. Starting with its pre-conversion period through its competition to its return to racing in the UK in the 1970s. As well as its starring role in some of the greatest historic motorsport events of the 21st century. Author Richard Heseltine has uncovered a wealth of new information, such as the 2819 GTs that were overlooked at Daytona and Sebring in 1962. He has also spoken to owners and drivers from all over the life of the car – right down to Emanuele Pirro and the Halusa family.

Keith Bluemel, known as one of the world’s foremost Ferrari historians, contributed a chapter charting the development of the legendary 250 GT line. Nicola von Dönhoff wrote an entertaining account of the Breadvan’s summer adventures on the French Riviera. Ranging from Gianni Agnelli painting the car black to Gunter Sachs being arrested in it …

Richard Hesseltine

Richard Heseltine is a journalist and author specialising in classic and contemporary racing cars as well as motorsport history. As a former contributor to Classic & Sports Car and Motor Sport, he has contributed widely to titles such as Octane, Magneto, Classic Cars, Autosport and RACER. His work can also be found on numerous websites and in newspapers. Richard has written books on subjects as diverse as small British sports cars and Italian coachbuilding. The history of Ferrari design and a biography of racing driver and team boss Graham Warner. Richard lives in Shropshire and has owned a whole range of classic cars with engines ranging from flat-twins to V12s. For more information, please visit his website.

What we think

This book reads very well, even though it contains a lot of technical information. It actually reads like a documentary/story. It is very broad and covers almost every driver who has come into contact with the 2819 GT.

Chapter 10, for instance, is about life on the French Riviera where the Breadvan regularly stayed. The funny thing is that the author is so thorough that he also draws almost all the women who came into contact with the drivers of the Breadvan into the story. Brigitte Bardot, Jacqueline Kennedy and so on. They are all in it.

This reference work should not be missing from your collection, especially at the price of £45.

The book is filled with over 220 archive photos, plus a brand new studio photo shoot by John Colley. This makes it an appropriate celebration of a unique Ferrari that continues to be a favourite of fans around the world.

Published by Porter Press International, the book counts 224 pages and has a hardcover. And you can order the book directly from them.

Breadvan – A Ferrari To Beat The GTO was recently launched at the Goodwood Festival of Speed from 8-11 July 2021.

Report: Patrick Verheeken
Photo’s: Porter Press International