The opening credits of “Magnum P.I.” featured Tom Selleck peeling out in a Ferrari 308 GTS. It’s probably one of the images that made many non-car people aware of Ferrari in the 1980s (“Miami Vice” being the other). It’s not every day you get the chance to own a car this famous, but Barrett-Jackson is putting Magnum’s car 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 action show logic.
This isn’t just any Ferrari 308 GTS that some show fan made to look like Magnum’s Ferrari, either. This is one of the cars used in the actual show, authenticated by Ferrari historian Marcel Massini and F-Register. We don’t know for sure if this is the actual car from the opening credit scene, but there’s a chance, as it was used in the pilot episode that shot came from as well as the early part of the first season. Most TV and movie cars lead a hard life, but with so little screen use, this car avoided the grizzly fate of most Pontiac Trans Ams from “Knight Rider” and hundreds of Dodge Chargers from “The Dukes of Hazzard.”
All show, some go
Some cars are highly modified for screen use, but the only modification this Ferrari received was seat alterations so that Tom Selleck, at six-feet, four-inches tall, could fit inside. According to Magnum Mania, this involved removing padding from the seats so Selleck would sit lower in the car, as well as moving the driver’s seat as far as possible from the steering wheel. Miata track day enthusiasts are likely quite familiar with these mods. Hagerty says the seats have been returned to original condition, but the auction listing does not confirm this.
This 308 GTS has a 2.9-liter quad-cam V8 engine, four Weber carburetors (cars used later in the series were fuel injected), and electronic ignition, making around 240 horsepower. That was a lot for its time. My Subaru WRX made more power, but didn’t look nearly as good doing it. These cars are reportedly not terrible to drive, and they do have the iconic Ferrari gated shifter.
None of that really matters, though. This is Magnum’s Ferrari. It could be your Ferrari. It’s going up for sale at Barrett-Jackson’s Palm Beach, Florida auction, which runs from April 16 through 18. While we’ve seen these cars sell for between $58,500 and $67,500, Hagerty says a Magnum 308 GTB sold for $115,000 last year, so be prepared to grow a huge mustache and pay a premium for the privilege.
