Vandenbrink GTO History

Vandenbrink Design unveiled the GTO concept in 2006 as a spiritual tribute to the revered 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO. Rather than starting from a blank sheet, the company acquired donor Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano rolling chassis and commissioned Dutch coachbuilder Alwin Hietbrink to hand-form entirely new aluminium bodywork over them. The styling lifted the 250 GTO's most distinctive cues — the triple nose scoops, shark-fin vents behind the front wheels, and the scalloped rear haunches flowing into an upswept tail — and reinterpreted them in a contemporary, more muscular form.

Two performance variants were offered. The base 599 GTO retained the 599's 5,998 cc naturally aspirated V12 in lightly tuned form producing around 650 hp and 630 Nm of torque. A more extreme 630 GTO used a 6,300 cc displacement V12 enlarged in cooperation with EDO Competition, delivering approximately 750 hp and 680 Nm. Both benefited from the weight savings of the bespoke aluminium body. Vandenbrink asked €993,000 for the coachwork conversion — on top of the cost of the donor Ferrari and applicable taxes, putting the complete car close to €1.5 million.

Production began in 2008 and the first example was delivered to its owner in 2009. In total, only five GTOs were built, making each car an automotive rarity on par with the classic it honoured. The project established Vandenbrink's reputation for technically rigorous, historically literate coachbuilding rather than mere restyling.