Yours for upwards of €7m: a rare Ferrari 250 GT with a Pininfarina body
Not long ago it was big news if a classic car sold for a million pounds. When the financial crisis hit, much doom was peddled about the prospects for the classic car market, as well as nearly any other place you might choose to invest.
But the collapse did not materialise, and now there are regularly several seven-figure lots offered in the same auction. In the last few years, dozens of cars have been sold for more than ten million dollars. And those are just the ones sold in public – many other big deals are done in private, no doubt brokered during the less energetic moments of some Eyes Wide Shut-style party.
Of all the very top lots, more than half are Ferraris, and of those most are one or other variant of the 250, produced during the 1950s and early 1960s. The Ferrari 250, with its a race-bred V12 engine, appeared in a wide variety of body styles – coupé, berlinetta and cabriolet. This was the era of coachbuilding; Ferrari built the chassis, then the bodies were crafted by Italy’s finest carrozzerie like Sergio Scaglietti and Pininfarina.
Race-prepared 250s, like the Testa Rossa then the GTO, brought Ferrari unprecedented success on the track. And as the hard-won victories notched up, the world’s most glamorous people lined up to get their hands on a car that was not just at the very far leading edge of motoring technology, but had film-star looks to rival the performance.
Most highly prized among the roadgoing 250s are the cabriolets, with the top prices achieved by the short-wheelbased California model, such as the famous example owned by the Hollywood star James Coburn. But even rarer than the California is the Series 1 Cabriolet by Pininfarina, the car pictured here. And it could just be the pick of the bunch.
This is one of 40 examples built, and one of just 11 complete “matching numbers” cars – i.e. those that retain the original engine, gearbox and axle. Compare it with pictures of the California. They are both absolutely gorgeous, but to these eyes the subtly more curvy Pininfarina might just have the edge.
You can never call a car like this a bargain. The multi-million-euro estimate does put it in very rare company, but still well below prices that have been achieved by some of its siblings. So it is very far from cheap, but depending which way you choose to look at it, this car could be saving you a fortune.
The 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet Series 1 by Pinin Farina is Lot 95 in the Artcurial Rétromobile sale in Paris on Friday 9th February 2018. Estimate €7,000,0000 – €9,000,000; artcurial.com
