Magnum P.I.’s Ferrari 308 Could Be Yours, Though You will Still Have To Grow The ‘Stache Yourself

The opening credits of “Magnum P.I.” featured Tom Selleck peeling out in a Ferrari 308 GTS. It’s probably one among the photographs that made many non-car people aware of Ferrari within the Nineteen Eighties (“Miami Vice” being the opposite). It isn’t day by day you get the possibility to own a automobile this famous, but Barrett-Jackson is putting Magnum’s automobile up for auction. Technically, it belonged to the unseen show character Robin Masters, voiced by the legendary Orson Wells, but he gave Thomas Magnum free reign to drive it like a maniac on his private investigator side gigs for reasons that only make sense in ’80s motion show logic.

This is not just any Ferrari 308 GTS that some show fan made to seem like Magnum’s Ferrari, either. That is one among the cars utilized in the actual show, authenticated by Ferrari historian Marcel Massini and F-Register. We do not know needless to say if that is the actual automobile from the opening credit scene, but there is a likelihood, because it was utilized in the pilot episode that shot got here from in addition to the early a part of the primary season. Most TV and movie cars lead a tough life, but with so little screen use, this automobile avoided the grizzly fate of most Pontiac Trans Ams from “Knight Rider” and tons of of Dodge Chargers from “The Dukes of Hazzard.”

Some cars are highly modified for screen use, however the only modification this Ferrari received was seat alterations in order that Tom Selleck, at six-feet, four-inches tall, could fit inside. In accordance with Magnum Mania, this involved removing padding from the seats so Selleck would sit lower within the automobile, in addition to moving the driving force’s seat so far as possible from the steering wheel. Miata track day enthusiasts are likely quite conversant in these mods. Hagerty says the seats have been returned to original condition, however the auction listing doesn’t confirm this.

This 308 GTS has a 2.9-liter quad-cam V8 engine, 4 Weber carburetors (cars used later within the series were fuel injected), and electronic ignition, making around 240 horsepower. That was quite a bit for its time. My Subaru WRX made more power, but didn’t look nearly nearly as good doing it. These cars are reportedly not terrible to drive, and so they do have the enduring Ferrari gated shifter.

None of that basically matters, though. That is Magnum’s Ferrari. It might be your Ferrari. It’s going up on the market at Barrett-Jackson’s Palm Beach, Florida auction, which runs from April 16 through 18. While we have seen these cars sell for between $58,500 and $67,500, Hagerty says a Magnum 308 GTB sold for $115,000 last 12 months, so be prepared to grow an enormous mustache and pay a premium for the privilege.