Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer (BB) History
Catalog record
This is a brief catalog introduction with limited source documentation. A licensed, identity-checked lead photograph has not yet been added for this page. Detailed year, configuration and ownership coverage must be identified separately; this page is not a complete vehicle catalog.
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Revealed as a concept at the 1971 Turin Motor Show and entering production in 1973, the Ferrari 365 GT4/BB ('Berlinetta Boxer') was the company's first mid-engine production V12 car. Its horizontally opposed ('boxer') flat-12 engine was mounted longitudinally amidships, producing 344 hp from 4.4 litres.
The 512 BB replaced the 365 in 1976 with a 5.0-litre engine, and was itself succeeded in 1981 by the fuel-injected 512 BBi. The BB family was not officially imported to the United States due to emissions and safety regulations, but grey-market examples arrived regardless and the car's Pininfarina styling — wedge-shaped with NACA ducts and a wide, squat stance — became a motif of 1970s supercar design.
Total production spanned approximately 2,323 cars across all three variants. The BB was supplanted in 1984 by the Testarossa, which used a wider, quad-cam version of the flat-12.
Generations
365 GT4/BB · 365 BB
4.4-litre naturally aspirated flat-12; 387 built.
512 BB
Enlarged 5.0-litre flat-12; 929 built — more mid-range torque and revised cooling.
1977 Photo: “Rétromobile 2015 - Ferrari 512 BB Pininfarina - 1977 - 001” by Thesupermat / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
1978 Photo: “1978 Ferrari 512 BB at Quail 2022 front” by Prova MO / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
1979 Photo: “1979 Ferrari 512 BB in Rosso Chiaro, front right (Greenwich 2025)” by Mr.choppers / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
512 BBi
Fuel-injected 512 BB; Bosch K-Jetronic injection, 929 built.
Body styles
- Coupé
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