Born of Bureaucracy: The Ferrari 208 GTB Turbo Story

Throughout automotive history, some of the most interesting cars were born out of necessity. Whether it was the need to make a car for the masses, like Volkswagen did with the Beetle, or post-war austerity and a fuel shortage that paved the way for the MINI, or to get around government taxation, such as Ferrari with its first turbocharged production car.

In the early 1980s the Ferrari landscape worldwide was dominated by mid-engine V8s and 12-cylinder flagships with big, matching displacement and performance figures. However, in Italy’s domestic market, there were other, less exciting models like the 208 GTS and GTB with a shared underpowered carbureted V8 due to very heavy VAT (Value Added Tax) on cars with engines over 2.0 liters. This law forced the Ferrari to come up with a clever idea to dodge government smothering while improving performance without increasing displacement. Thus, the 208 GTB Turbo was born.