The 288 GTO was introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in February 1984. It was based on the younger 308 GTB model and many details were unified, Pininfarina also worked on the design. The model was the last to have the prefix GTO in the name until the appearance in 2006 of the 599 GTO, which took its name from the GTO series and had nothing to do with road racing. The car was developed for the new "group B" series of races to participate in which the company had to perform the so-called homologation - to make at least 200 cars for public roads. However, after the crash and death of driver Henri Toivonen and co-driver Sergio Cresto at the Tour de Corse Rally in a Lancia Delta S4, FISA (now FIA) canceled Group B, leaving only the Group A Rally Championship. As a result, the 288 GTO never competed
