This Ferrari From the First Season of ‘Magnum P.I.’ Is up for Grabs

There has been no shortage of Ferrari models starring in TV shows. Yet none is as iconic as the targa-topped 308 GTS driven by actor Tom Selleck in the hugely popular 1980s television series Magnum P.I., set in sunny Hawaii. Now, one of the very first 308s to appear in the hit detective drama, a 1979 example, is crossing the auction block at Barrett-Jackson‘s upcoming sale in Palm Beach, Fla., which will be held April 16 through 18.

While an estimated 15 Ferrari 308 cars were used during the show’s 163-episode run—from 1980 to 1988—this Barrett-Jackson example is arguably one of, if not the, most collectible. That’s because it was driven by Selleck in the original Magnum P.I. pilot episode, amusingly titled “Don’t Eat the Snow in Hawaii,” and the subsequent first season.  

An added bonus is that it’s believed to also be the 308 driven from New York to Los Angeles by the late author and political satirist P.J. O’Rourke, who used it for a 1980 road-trip story assigned by Car and Driver magazine. The vehicle was originally supplied by Ferrari North America dressed in Fly Yellow, and was repainted in Rosso Corsa for the show. It still has a Ferrari color-change tag on the door jamb.

“This is one of the most iconic cars in both cinema and automotive history,” Craig Jackson, chairman and C.E.O. of Barrett-Jackson, tells Robb Report. “Every kid dreamed of being Thomas Magnum, racing around Hawaii in a Ferrari, in hot pursuit of the bad guys.”

What further adds to the car’s provenance is its 28251 serial number. According to research by Ferrari expert Mathias Urban, of F-Register, the car was authenticated as one of the three carbureted examples from 1979 that were used in the first season. While the carbureted 308s were used in season one, new variants were supplied by Ferrari as the show progressed; the fuel-injected 308 GTSi was the successor for seasons two through six, and the 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole was given the role for seasons seven and eight.

As with all of the 308 GTS action cars used in the show, this one was returned to Ferrari North America in New Jersey after filming. It was there that the bodywork was repaired and repainted, and the car serviced before being sold as used. The driver’s seat, which had been modified to accommodate Selleck’s height of 6 feet 4 inches, was returned to standard spec, and the interior was reportedly color-switched from its original Crema tan to Nero black.

While the Ferrari’s seats and door cards were recently returned to original Crema leather, the car is still very much unrestored and patinaed. There’s a little bubbling on the  dashboard vinyl, an aftermarket Dual CD stereo has been fitted, and there’s a non-original aluminum shifter knob. At the rear, the quad exhausts poke out of an aftermarket, perforated black shield. As for usage, the odometer currently shows just over 93,000 miles.

The original 2.9-liter quad-cam V-8 engine, producing 237 hp, features four twin-choke Weber 40DCNF carburetors and is mated to a five-speed manual transaxle. The entire package rolls on classic 15-inch, five-spoke Cromodora alloy wheels (slightly scuffed).

Barrett-Jackson’s Palm Beach sale won’t be the first time this 308 has been offered to the public. In March of last year, it sold for $115,000 in a Bring a Trailer online auction. And just last month, it was presented again at a GAA Classic Cars auction in Greensboro, N.C., where it failed to sell after bidding topped out at $120,000.

Other Prancing Horses from Magnum P.I. have fared better. A meticulously maintained 1984 Ferrari 308 GTS Quattrovalvole, with 36,000 miles, sold through Bonhams in 2017 for $181,500. Notes Jackson: “This example will cross the block in Palm Beach with no reserve, allowing the new owner to literally sit in Selleck’s seat and channel their inner Magnum P.I.—in the vehicle they aspired to own as a youth.”

Click here for more photos of this 1979 Ferrari 308 GTS from the show Magnum P.I.