Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | July 10-18, 2020
Photo – Mecum
The 275 is the best classic Ferrari. It replaced the 250 series and was a huge leap forward. It was offered between 1964 and 1968, originally in 275 GTB form, which included a 280 horsepower, 3.3-liter V12.
In 1966, they updated the car to 275 GTB/4 specification, which meant that the 3.3-liter V12 now had four overhead camshafts, instead of two. That upgrade from SOHC to DOHC bumped power to 300 horses. The GTB/4 was also the basis for the legendary N.A.R.T. Spider.
This car is said to be unrestored and original apart from a 1970s repaint in Grigio Mahmoud. Only 330 examples of the GTB/4 were produced, and they’ve been seven-figure cars for some time now. You can read more about this one here and see more from Mecum here.
Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | July 10-18, 2020
Photo – Mecum
The F512 M was the final version of Ferrari’s iconic Testarossa, which was actually first introduced for the 1984 model year. It is one of the most mass-produced Ferraris, and, at the time, it was the second-most-produced Ferrari after the 308 series.
In 1991, the original Testarossa was replaced by the 512 TR, which is among my favorite Ferrari road cars. In 1994, that car was supplanted by the F512 M, which was still powered by a 4.9-liter flat-12, capable here of 440 horsepower. The styling changes are the biggest giveaway. The pop-up headlights were gone, and the car was stuck with these ugly wheels.
Only 501 examples were produced, making it the rarest of the three Testarossa derivatives by some margin. Only 75 were built for the U.S. market. You can read more about this one here, and see more from Mecum here.
A 237 horsepower, 3.0-liter V12 drives this long-wheelbase car. But none of this is the story here. It’s the fact that this is a police car. And was when it was new. But how? Well, the story is that Armando Spatafora (an Italian cop) was dispatched to a high-performance driving program alongside three other officers.
After he completed the course, he was given this car, siren and all. Ferrari actually built a second example, but it was destroyed after only a few weeks on the job. This one remained with the Polizia for six years. It’s never been restored, just preserved by a series of owners. It’s possibly the coolest 250 GTE there is. You can read more about it here.
Ferrari’s 1994 World Championship car was the 412 T1, so naturally, 1995’s car was the 412 T2. The Scuderia retained their driver lineup of Jean Alesi and Gerhard Berger, but they also prepared for the future and let their 1997 driver, Michael Schumacher, test this very car prior to him taking a race seat with the team.
This car’s 3.0-liter V12 was the last 12-cylinder powerplant to win an F1 race. Ferrari was the only team still running a V12 during this season, while others ran V10s and V8s. Too bad we can’t have such variety in the sport today.
This was the second 412 T2 chassis built, and its competition history includes:
1995 Brazilian Grand Prix – 5th (with Jean Alesi)
1995 Argentine Grand Prix – 2nd (with Alesi)
1995 San Marino Grand Prix – 2nd (with Alesi)
The car was later tested by Schumacher at Fiorano and Estoril, and it was sold into private hands directly from team leader Jean Todt. To be able to say you own the “first Ferrari F1 car driven by Michael Schumacher” would be a pretty cool thing to be able to brag about. And now you can. Check out more about the car here.
The 1907 Renault Vanderbilt Racer was another big sale, bringing $3,332,500. Two old German cars sold, but the final sales prices were not listed, presumably because the new buyer is weird. They were the Opel Phaeton and the Demarest Benz. The other Benz failed to sell, as did a previously-featured Boyer and Knox.
RM’s Amelia sale boringly saw this 2003 Ferrari Enzo sell for the most money (there were so many cool classics here, so a late model Ferrari is kind of a bummer). It sold for $2,782,500.
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
All of our feature cars sold, led by two Duesenbergs. The Stationary Victoria sold for $1,325,000, and the Convertible Coupe brought $1,132,500. Cars that crossed the $100k mark included the Talbot-Lago at $250,000 and the Muntz Jet at $117,600.
Aguttes’ March sale might just be the last one we get to recap for while, considering that most sales in late March and heading into April and May have been either canceled or postponed until later in the year. You know, pandemic and all.
1952 Ferrari 225 S Berlinetta ‘Tuboscocca’ by Vignale
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Elkhart, Indiana | May 1-2, 2020
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
Well if you’re wondering what the biggest dollar car from RM’s Elkhart Collection sale is, you’re looking at it. Selling at no reserve, this car is one of just 21 examples of the 225 S produced by Ferrari in 1952.
The 225 S could be had with two different chassis types: a spaceframe or a tubular semi-monocoque, aka the Tuboscocca. This car has the latter and is one of just four Berlinettas produced on that chassis (of 12 total Tuboscocca cars). It is the fifth of the 21 cars produced, and power is from a 210 horsepower, 2.7-liter V12.
Because the Tuboscocca was a competition-geared chassis, it’s no surprise that this car has some racing history, including:
1952 Mille Miglia – 10th, 2nd in class (with Franco Bordoni-Bisleri and a Mr. Geronimo)
1952 12 Hours of Casablanca – 2nd (with Jean Lucas and Jacques Peron)
There were some other successes before the car was repaired by Ferrari and sold to an SCCA privateer in Ohio through Luigi Chinetti Motors. The current owner purchased it in 2012 and has used it extensively in historic events. You can see more about the car here and see more from this sale here.
Before we dive back into February, we need to backtrack to Worldwide Auctioneers in Scottsdale. The top sale was this 1936 Auburn 852 SC Boattail Speedster for $880,000.
Artcurial also had a sale during Retromobile, and the big Mercedes and Alfa Romeos we featured both failed to sell. Top sale territory was cornered by Ferrari, and this 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB sold for $2,753,831. The 126 C3 F1 car we featured brought $1,583,200.
The results of Silverstone Auctions’ Race Retro sale included this 1964 Aston Martin DB5 that brought $918,184, more than anything else in the sale. The Countach we featured failed to sell, and more results are available here.
Photo – Silverstone Auctions
And finally, for this round, we have Brightwells Leominster Classic & Vintage Cars sale. The TVR we featured failed to sell, and the overall top sale was this 1988 Porsche 911 Turbo for $109,611.
We kick off in January with RM Sotheby’s in Arizona where the top sale was this 2018 Pagani Huayra Roadster that sold for $2,370,000.
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
All of our feature cars sold, with the V-16 Cadillac leading the way at $1,105,000. Following that was the Hispano-Suiza at $445,000 and the Shelby Series I at $91,840. Other sales included the Chalmers for $61,600, the Locomobile for $58,240, and the Kaiser for $10,080. Click here for complete results.
Next up, Gooding & Company, also in Arizona. This auction proved that bedroom wall car posters are key indicators of what’s going to skyrocket in value. In this case, it was a 1995 Ferrari F50 that outsold a Tucker at $3,222,500. It also way outsold the 250 GT Cabriolet that brought $1,462,500.
We move on to Barrett-Jackson, where the top sale was a charity lot: the first mid-engine Corvette. A 2020 Stingray that hasn’t even been built yet. This red pre-production car crossed the block, but the actual first one will be black.
Photo – Barrett-Jackson
I couldn’t even tell you what their overall top sale was that wasn’t a charity lot because the results page isn’t sortable :(. I have strong feelings on these moonshot charity auctions, but I will keep them to myself.
Every car we featured sold, which is no surprise because this entire sale is 99.9% reserve-free. The Superbird brought $313,500, the L88 Corvette $330,000, and the Kuzma-Offy $165,000. The Aerocar went for a lot less than I anticipated, bringing only $275,000. I think, had it sold 15 years ago, it would’ve gone for much more.
On the other side of things were the Lawil at $12,100 and the Bremen Sebring at $7,700. Click here for all of the results.
Finally, we have Bonhams at Retromobile. The top overall sale was this 1931 Bugatti Type 55 Supersport that sold for $5,045,740.
Photo – Bonhams
Other big-dollar sales among our feature cars included the Pegaso for $782,089, a previously-featured Delahaye for $227,058, a previously-featured Talbot racer for $964,997 (less than half of what it sold for in 2014), and a BMW-Glas prototype for $229,581.
Not a lot of action in December, but Mecum did wrap up a sale in Kansas City that saw this 2005 Ford GT sell for $247,500. Gotta love it when the consignor of this car couldn’t be bothered to provide halfway decent photos (these are extremely pixelated). Hopefully, the car fared better during that ownership than the pictures show.
Photo – Mecum
The Graham Series 97 we featured sold for $22,550. More results can be found here.
Into 2020 we go with Mecum’s Kissimmee sale. No surprises here that the top sale was the Bullitt Mustang for $3,740,000. The Duesenberg we featured from this sale sold for $522,500. Not too far behind that was the Dodge Charger Daytona that sold for $346,500. I think we have to award Most Interesting to the 1968 Challenger 2 land-speed record streamliner that sold for $561,000.
BH Auction had its first sale of 2020 in January, and the Lotus 88B we featured is still available. The top sale was this 1987 Ferrari F187 that sold for $1,717,578. More results are available here.
Photo – BH Auction
Finally, we have Bonhams in Scottsdale, where the top reported sale was a Ferrari we featured a while back, a 1951 212 Inter Cabriolet for $1,930,000. Leading the way among our feature cars was the 1901 Winton at $142,800. This 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24S Spider America brought $810,000 and is awarded Most Interesting, mostly because it’s beautiful in this color.
Photo – Bonhams
The other Winton brought $140,000, and the Boyer and a previously-featured Kurtis failed to sell. More results from this sale can be viewed here.
Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 7, 2020
Photo – Artcurial
Ferrari’s 126 series of F1 cars were used between the 1981 and 1984 Formula One seasons. The 126 C3 was one of two cars used by the Scuderia for the 1983 season. The first was the 126 C2B, which was essentially their 1982 car with a flat bottom.
The C3 was a lighter version of the 126 C2B and used a carbon/kevlar shell. A 600-horsepower turbocharged 1.5-liter V6 provided the power. The car debuted halfway through the season, and four chassis were built. The competition history for this car includes:
1983 Austrian Grand Prix – 2nd (with Rene Arnoux)
1983 Dutch Grand Prix – 1st (with Arnoux)
The car fell back into reserve car status and was sold at the end of the season to the French Ferrari importer. But this car helped Ferrari win the constructor’s title for the 1983 season. It should now bring between $666,600-$1,111,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.
