Tag Archives: ferrari

February 2016 Auction Highlights

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Continuing with our Rétromobile coverage, we have RM Sotheby’s Paris sale. Our top-selling feature car was the 1896 Raynaud for $149,980 while the top sale overall was this 1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica LWB Coupe Aerodinamico by Pininfarina for $3,292,050.

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

All of our other feature cars sold, with the Abarth bringing $131,200, the Créanche $56,240, the Bardon $106,200, and the Vallée $93,700. Click here for more from RM.

The other major sale held in Paris in early February was that of Artcurial. The top sale was the staggering amount of money paid for the Ferrari 335 S: $35,075,200. That puts it #2 (currently) all-time on auction sales. Artcurial claims a record but puts an asterisk on it with something about it being the highest amount paid in Euros. Okay. Other million dollar sales included the Bugatti EB110 Race Car for $1,055,133 and the Ferrari Testarossa Spider for $1,355,870. The Bugatti EB112 failed to sell and a previously-featured Bugatti Brescia brought $400,683.

The five coachbuilt classics we featured all sold, with the Salmson bringing $207,019, the Delahaye $180,307, the Graham-Paige $186,985, the Talbot-Lago $293,834, and the Renault $86,814. Another coachbuilt car is our “most interesting:” this 1952 Delahaye 235 Coupe by Chapron for $333,903.

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Another coachbuilt feature car, the Georges Irat, sold for $64,109. Rounding it out, the Sizaire-Naudin brought $133,561, the Facel Vega $560,968, and the Citroen half-track $40,068. Click here for full results.

Moving on, Christie’s James Bond sale saw the Aston Martin DB10 bring about $3,500,000. And next up, H&H Classics’ first sale of the year, where this 1959 Triumph TR3A was the top sale at $31,290.

Photo - H&H Classics

Photo – H&H Classics

Our featured Birchall McCoy brought $2,222. Click here for more results. And finally, for this post, we have the first half of Silverstone Auctions’ Race Retro sale that saw a bunch of competition cars cross the block. We didn’t get to feature anything from here but this 1964 Ford Falcon FIA race car was the top seller at $93,640. Click here for full results and to see what’s still for sale.

Photo - Silverstone Auctions

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

January 2016 Auction Results

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January means Scottsdale and first up in this rundown is RM Sotheby’s sale. The top sale was the beautiful 540K Special Roadster we featured for $9,900,000. Other feature cars include the Apal-Porsche for $88,000. The Torpedo-bodied Duesenberg sold for $3,000,000 (the Town Car failed to sell). Other million dollar sales included the Porsche 918 for $1,595,000, the SS 100 for $1,402,500, and the Cadillac Ghia for $1,430,000.

Interesting cars included this striking 1931 Buick Series 90 Sport Roadster for $154,000.

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

A few previously-featured cars made an appearance here, including a 1913 Pathfinder that found a new home for $121,000. Others were a 1911 Lozier and a Dragonsnake Cobra that both brought $990,000 and a Roamer at a much-less $66,000. The Jensen-Ford went for $247,500 and Cadillac Town Car $79,750. The Phantom II failed to sell.

Moving across town, we have Barrett-Jackson’s gigantic sale where the top seller was a practically brand-new 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder for $1,760,000.

Photo - Barrett-Jackson

Photo – Barrett-Jackson

All four of our feature cars sold, with the Chevy El Morocco bringing $181,500. The Heine-Velox sold for $99,000, the Talbot-Lago $715,000, and the Saleen S7 $451,000. A previously-featured Renault failed to sell. Check out full results here.

The next big Scottsdale sale is that of Gooding & Company where a 1950 Ferrari 166 MM/195 S Berlinetta Le Mans was the top sale at $6,490,000.

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

Our featured Ferrari brought a little less, at $3,410,000 while our other feature car, the Fiat Mirafiori, brought $143,000. A previously-featured Duesenberg sold for $2,420,000. Full results can be found here.

The final Scottsdale sale we’ll be covering is that of Russo & Steele. The top sale here was a 1973 Ferrari 246 GTS Spyder for $374,000.

Photo - Russo & Steele

Photo – Russo & Steele

Our featured Dodge Charger brought $242,000. Click here for full results.

A week after all of the Arizona madness, Rétromobile in Paris rolls around. First up from there is Bonhams where a few of our feature cars failed to sell including the Adler, Veritas, and Newton-Ceirano. The top sale was this 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB for $2,319,642.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Other feature car sales were the Darmont for $20,619, the ASA for $146,910, and the Iso Rivolta for $103,095. Click here for full results. We’ll have more from Paris in a few weeks.

Ferrari 335 S

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1957 Ferrari 335 S by Scaglietti

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

What you’re looking at could be the second-most expensive car ever sold at auction. This rare Ferrari racer is just one of four made and carries a pre-sale estimate between $30,315,000-$34,650,000. That is some serious dough. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves…

The Ferrari 335 Sport was an evolution of the earlier 315 S that was built in 1957. The 1957-1958 335 S was powered by a 4.0-liter V-12 making a handy 390 horsepower. It was a car built to dominate the Mille Miglia – and it ended up ending the race.

This car began life as a 315 S and in that form competed in two races:

  • 1957 12 Hours of Sebring – 6th (with Peter Collins and Maurice Trintignant
  • 1957 Mille Miglia – 2nd (with Wolfgang von Trips)

After the 1957 Mille Miglia (which was marred by the accident of Alfonso de Portago in a different Ferrari 335 S that killed nine people, including de Portago), this car was upgraded to the 4-liter engine it currently has, bringing it to 335 S specification. It’s factory competition history continued:

  • 1957 24 Hours of Le Mans – 44th, DNF (with Mike Hawthorn and Luigi Musso)
  • 1957 6 Hours of Kristianstad (Sweden) – 2nd (with Hawthorn and Musso)

After this, back to the factory it went for damage repair. Slight modifications were made to add a more “pontoon-fendered” look to it (like the 250 Testa Rossa). Then it was back to the circuit:

  • 1957 Venezuelan Grand Prix – 2nd (with Hawthorn and Musso)
  • 1958 Cuban Grand Prix – 1st (with Masten Gregory and Stirling Moss)
  • 1958 Road America 500 – 1st (with Gaston Andrey and Lance Reventlow)

Those last two races were in privateer hands, once the car had been sold by Ferrari to Luigi Chinetti. It was restored in 1981 and the original nose configuration was put back on the car (although the pontoon-nose was kept as well). This car has been with the same owner since 1970 and a 335 S is not a car you will likely see at auction for years to come. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $35,075,200.

330 GTC Speciale

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1967 Ferrari 330 GTC Speciale by Pininfarina

Offered by Gooding & Company | Scottsdale, Arizona | January 29-30, 2016

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

The Ferrari 330 was a series of cars built by the House of the Prancing Horse over a period of years lasting from 1963 through 1968. The 330 GTC (and it’s convertible sibling, the 330 GTS) were built between 1966 and 1968. The 330 GTC was the second-most-produced model among the few different models built. But this is a Speciale – it wears a special body courtesy of Pininfarina.

The drivetrain is the same: a 4.0-liter V-12 making 300 horsepower drives the rear wheels. Pininfarina bodied four 330 GTCs with this body work. The front resembles the 365 California and the rear features a dramatic, vertical rear windscreen and sloping side panels that make the car look mid-engined when the engine is actually up front.

This is car number three of four that wear this styling. It was sold new to a woman in Northern Italy. Less than a decade later, it was in the U.S. and it would bounce between owners on the two continents for the next twenty years before the current owner acquired it in 1994. It was restored in the late 1980s and hasn’t been shown at many major shows. It should bring between $3,400,000-$4,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $3,410,000.

The Real Testarossa Spider

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1986 Ferrari Testarossa Spider by Pininfarina

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5-6, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The 1980s were a weird time. Cars from that era are just now beginning to be looked upon fondly… because nostalgia can tint things. For instance, Ferrari built a rear-mid-engined sports car (12 cylinders, no less) with zero intentions of ever taking it on a track. It was boxy and angular – the style of the day. And they built a lot of them – 7,177 to be exact.

The Testarossa appeared on Miami Vice and its popularity took off. It was a car that all of the rich people in the 80s wanted. A lot of them wanted convertibles, too, after they saw this car. But Ferrari said no.

So what’s the story here? Commissioned by Ferrari, Pininfarina designed and built this lone authentic Spider and gifted it to Gianni Agnelli, then head of Fiat. Other companies would offer “conversions” where they’d basically hack apart a Testarossa to make it into a convertible, but only one – this one – has a factory history.

The engine is a 4.9-liter flat-12 making 390 horsepower, which doesn’t seem outrageous, but the top speed was still 180 mph. This might be the first time that this car has ever come up for public sale. It is iconic and will likely remain the most valuable Testarossa in the world. Artcurial estimates a sale price between $750,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $1,355,870.

212 Inter by Vignale

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1953 Ferrari 212 Inter Coupe by Vignale

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | New York, New York | December 10, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

This is a very stylish car, but we probably don’t need to tell you that. It looks like something you’d see parked at Villa d’Este (Good news: just read the lot description and this car has not been shown there – so here’s your very hard-to-get ticket to that show).

The 212 Inter was one of Ferrari’s earliest road cars. Only 82 were built between 1951 and 1952 and only six of those were Vignale Coupes. This was the first. The car is powered by a 2.6-liter Colombo V-12 making 170 horsepower.

This car was shown by a Ferrari dealer at the 1954 San Remo Concours d’Elegance before being returned to Ferrari and shipped to Luigi Chinetti in the U.S. (who sold it to a guy in Milwaukee). He ruined the engine and swapped it out. Fast forward to 2009 when the car was owned by an Indiana man who had it restored – and the original engine was located and put back in the car. Now the car is just about perfect – including that beautiful color combination. It can now be yours. Click here for more info and here for more from RM.

Update: Not sold.

Fangio’s Mille Miglia Ferrari

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1956 Ferrari 290 MM by Scaglietti

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | New York, New York | December 10, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Not sure how they do it, but RM Sotheby’s manages to bring some really rare Ferraris to market, including this ultra-rare Ferrari sports racing prototype. The 290 MM was built in 1956 only and competed in the World Sportscar Championship. It was driven by some of the biggest names in racing and in some of the biggest races. The competition history for this car includes:

  • 1956 Mille Miglia – 4th (with Juan Manuel Fangio)
  • 1956 1000km Nurburgring – 3rd (with Phil Hill, Ken Wharton, Olivier Gendebien & Alfonso de Portago)
  • 1957 1000km Buenos Aires – 1st (with Masten Gregory, Luigi Musso & Eugenio Castellotti)

Those are three impressive results with some of the ’50s top drivers. The 290 MM is powered by a 320 horsepower 3.5-liter V-12 that was based on the engine from Ferrari’s Formula One cars.

This was a Scuderia Ferrari race car that finished 4th in the Mille Miglia with Juan Manuel Fangio – that alone is remarkable. That the car has never been crashed and is mostly unrestored (except for the repaint) is incredible. The team used the car in both the 1956 and 1957 World Sportscar Championship and in early 1957 the car was sold to someone in the U.S. It’s had a few owners worldwide since.

This car can be used and hopefully whatever well-heeled buyer walks away with it next month will use it at historic races. Only four 290 MMs were built. This one will bring millions. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $28,050,000.

November 2015 Auction Highlights

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We’ll jump first into November with Artcurial’s sale. The top sale: this 1958 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster for $888,450. Click here for full results.

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Next up, Auctions America’s sale held in Hilton Head on Halloween. The #1 seller was a 1967 Ferrari 330 GTC for $638,000.

Photo - Auctions America

Photo – Auctions America

Both of our feature cars from this sale sold, with the Enduro Mustang coming in at $40,700 and the Nissan 300ZX being the second-cheapest car in the entire sale at $12,100. Click here for more results. And going back to October, we have Dragone Auctions’ Fall sale in Connecticut. Neither of our feature cars (the Mercedes or Exemplar) sold. The top sale was this 1947 Lancia Aprilia Prototype that we should’ve featured but didn’t. It went for $396,000. Click here for complete results.

Photo - Dragone Auctions

Photo – Dragone Auctions

Now, let’s reach way back to August, for Coys’ Nurburgring sale. The top seller was this 1992 Ferrari F40 for $1,315,800. Our featured Giannini failed to sell. Click here for full results from Coys’ much-improved website.

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

And finally, Motostalgia’s Austin Grand Prix sale. The top sale was this 2005 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren for $407,000.

Photo - Motostalgia

Photo – Motostalgia

Both of our feature cars sold, with the De Tomaso Longchamp bringing $39,600 and the Intermeccanica Italia $105,600. Check out full results here.

Ferrari 500 Mondial

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1955 Ferrari 500 Mondial by Scaglietti

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | New York, New York | December 10, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Ferrari race cars from the 1950s – the sports racers, not the Formula cars – are just so sought after. After all these years, they remain some of the most authentic, primal, and fun to drive historic race cars. Their values have skyrocketed and to find one that begs to be raced and not pampered is a rare treat.

The 500 Mondial was the Scuderia’s racer for 1954. It used a 2.0-liter Lampedri straight-four making 170 horsepower (can we all stop and take a second to appreciate how awesome that output is for 1955!). The car was also light-as-air, as far as cars are concerned.

This car was sold new to a Frenchman and was painted in beautiful French Blu – the original paint is still on the car. It is a “Series II” car, hence its late, 1955 production year. The first Mondials were Scaglietti coupes, later cars were open cars from Pinin Farina and Scaglietti.

The original owner of this car took it racing and blew the engine. In 1955, after having it worked on at Ferrari, the owner didn’t pay his bill, so Ferrari kept the car for the next two decades, painting it red and displaying it in a museum. They sold it again in 1975 and it had a series of owners up until 2007, when its new Polish owner had the red paint removed to reveal the beautiful blue underneath. This is a factory-original car – never wrecked and ready to go. It’s a preservation class shoo-in. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

October 2015 Auction Highlights, Pt. II

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Back again for more highlights from October, beginning with H&H Classics’ sale at the Imperial War Museum. They had two high-profile Ferraris on auction at this sale and one of them, a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT SWB, was far and away the top seller at $11,383,680.

Photo - H&H Classics

Photo – H&H Classics

Both our feature cars sold, with the Pope-Tribune bringing $86,240 and the Rally $125,910. Click here for full results.

Next up, from the French Riviera Classic, Stanislas Machoïr’s sale. Our featured Cadillac NART Zagato failed to sell. The top seller here was this 1973 Porsche 911S for $148,700. Click here for full results.

Photo - Stanislas Machoïr

Photo – Stanislas Machoïr

Thirdly, we move to Silverstone Auctions’ Porsche Sale. The top sale was this 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 Touring for $630,340. Click here for complete results.

Photo - Silverstone Auctions

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Next up, Worldwide Auctioneers’ sale of the Ron Brown Estate Collection in Fredericksburg, Texas, where this 1970 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda was the top seller at $220,000. Complete results are here.

Photo - Worldwide Auctioneers

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

And finally, one of our favorite sales of the year, Bonhams’ London-to-Brighton sale. The top seller was this 1903 Clement Model AC4R Rear-Entrance Tonneau for $637,979. Of our feature cars, the MMC sold for $79,383 and the Stanley $61,742. Everything else was over $100k – including a previously-featured Winton for $199,416.

We’ll award “Most Interesting” to one of two sellers we didn’t feature: this 1904 Darracq 8HP Two-Seater that brought $113,947.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Pope-Hartford sold for $126,000. The Star went for $141,463, the Columbia $121,950, and the Albion $225,647. Click here for full results.