by Mike Gulett –
RM Sotheby’s writes “don’t blink” on their web site promoting this rare auction- meaning you should not miss this opportunity to buy a real Ferrari GTO.
This appears to be a one item auction, unlike when Bonhams auctioned one in August 2014 for $38,115,000 in Carmel it was part of their Quail auction during Monterey Car Week. I suspect RM Sotheby’s is attempting to break the auction record and certainly the Ferrari record with this GTO.
1962 Ferrari 330 LM/250 GTO by Scaglietti – Chassis No. 3765
They are really pushing this very rare opportunity to acquire a Ferrari 250 GTO (except it is really a 330LM) but that is good because it has a larger engine – 4-liter instead of 3-liter. One question I would have is does it have the original engine?
RM Sotheby’s also writes,
One Lifetime. One Car. One Chance.
THE ONLY GTO TIPO 1962 RACED BY THE SCUDERIA FERRARI
CLASS WIN AND 2ND OVERALL FINISH AT THE 1962 NÜRBURGRING 1000 KM
DRIVEN BY MIKE PARKES AND LORENZO BANDINI FOR THE SCUDERIA FERRARI AT THE 1962 24 HOURS OF LE MANS
1965 SICILIAN HILLCLIMB CHAMPIONSHIP RUNNER-UP
FORMERLY OWNED BY A CHAIRMAN OF THE FERRARI CLUB OF AMERICA
BENEFITS FROM 38 YEARS OF FASTIDIOUS CARE UNDER CURRENT OWNERSHIP
WINNER OF AN FCA PLATINUM AWARD; AND THE COPPA BELLA MACCHINA AT THE CAVALLINO CLASSIC
2ND IN THE GTO CLASS AT THE 2011 PEBBLE BEACH CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE, AMONG 23 TOTAL GTOS
BEST OF SHOW AT THE AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE
DESIRABLY DOCUMENTED WITH COPIES OF FACTORY BUILD SHEETS, OWNER’S CORRESPONDENCE, PERIOD RACING COVERAGE, AND MAGAZINE FEATURE ARTICLES
13 NOVEMBER 2023
1334 YORK AVENUE. NEW YORK, NY 10021
5PM DRINKS • 5.30PM AUCTION
It will be interesting to see if the money shows up in New York. Stay tuned.
Let us know what you think in the Comments.
Photos compliments of RM Sotheby’s – visit their web site here.
Mike,
I work as a doorman/concierge in a Manhattan apartment building, and one of the tenants knows I am a car buff, and just showed me the pictures she took of this car at Sotheby’s only about 15 minutes ago – their auction house is only about 13 blocks from this apartment building. Sotheby’s “implies” that this engine is the original engine, with the Colombo architecture, only enlarged from 3 liters to 4 liters. I have no doubt that despite any doubts, its racing provenance shown on their site will ensure that it will indeed probably set an auction record.
Glenn in Brooklyn, NY.
Hi Mike – This is an interesting, nicely-kept car. I don’t know which motor it has now, but as I understood it at the time, during the 2011 Pebble concours, Mr. Jaeger had had an “original” type-163, 4-liter engine installed. I didn’t see the engine bay and so don’t know whether it was fitted with three Webers or six. In any case, it will be exciting to watch the auction results, and how the sale stacks up in this rarified market.
Larry
I wonder if the gentleman who hammered out these ever realized that they were working on the Mona Lisa of the automotive world ?
John,
No they did not as Giotto Bizzarrini did not realize the future potential of his creation as many early owners did not either.
Indeed, the 62 Comp (later sardonically dubbed “GTO” by the British press) was strictly conceived as a faster upgrade to the successful but aging SWB. It’s objective was to win the World Championship for Sports Cars while awaiting development of Enzo’s long-resisted 250 LM mid-engined car.
It’s achievement as a work of art was accidental, owing to the Italian intuitive sense of aerodynamics and innate inability to create an ugly car – or shoes or crockery or a plate of carpaccio or anything else.
At the end of their competitive run, in 1965, GTOs were literally non-starters and could be had for $3000 or so. One was left on a city street and narrowly escaped doom in the car crusher. Another was donated to a high school shop class, where it endured unspeakable insults and was abandoned in an empty lot for years!
But parts for these cars were as rare as chicken lips, they were expensive to maintain, they had no luxurious creature comforts, and you really wouldn’t want to dazzle (sizzle, actually) your date with a ride in one.
Even now, their appeal is a bit mysterious, but driving one transports you to an era when this front-engined, solid-axled, wire-wheeled, hand-hammered screamer made everyone sit up and pay attention.
So much for our automotive Mona Lisa. (We called mine “Sophia” after guess-who?)
$51,705,000 USD | Sold
The one that Hill ran at Sebring in 62 was available at Grossmans for $1500.00
Yep, that’s the second chassis, 3387 GT. With a sort of after-thought tacked-on spoiler, Phil and Olivier knocked everybody’s socks off. We all said “Whaaat?!” and began to pay attention. GTOs definitely became the hot tip.
Lots of stuff happened, of course, and by 1965 it and its siblings were just a bunch of “wore-out ol’ race cars!”
3387 is nicely restored today, with a faired-in spoiler.
Just as I predicted, this car set a record for a car sale at public auction. There have been other Ferraris that have sold for more, in private sales from one owner directly to another owner. This is definitely one for the books!!!
It reminds me of several years back when Phillips Auction House put up Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona wristwatch up for auction, and they expected it to fetch $1 million to $3 million. It sold for $17.8 million, and at the time set a record for a wristwatch sold at auction.
Glenn in Brooklyn, NY.
I imagine if Ralph Lauren’s 250GTO is ever sold it will be priced $3-5 million more than a comparable GTO, just because of it belonging to a fashion innovator, it is in itself a “fashion accessory.” Just as the owner of Paul Newman’s watch , when asked where he got it can say “It was Paul’s. Paul Newman” and get the recognition of being a true connoisseur, then the next owner of Ralphie’s ride can say :”It was Ralphs.” Enuff said. (Say do you think the current owner of GTC/4 #14801 is saying “it was Wally’s…?”