Sought after: Ferrari's 250 GT SWB California set a new auction price record.
Ferrari's original California Spider fetches record $11 million at Maranello auction.
JUST one week after Ferrari revealed first photos and details of its new California roadster, an original 1960s model has sold at Maranello in Italy for more than $11 million – double the pre-auction estimate.
The 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California was owned for many years by Hollywood actor James Coburn and is one of Ferrari’s best-loved models, with a 3.0-litre V12 single-cam engine mounted under the bonnet.
It was bought by British broadcaster Chris Evans and auctioneers RM Auctions say it was the highest price ever paid for a car at auction.
Original estimates for the car were between Euro 3.2 and 3.6 million, but when the hammer came down the winning bid was an incredible Euro 7.04 million ($11,577,000).
Almost 50 new and historic Ferraris, including three Formula One cars, went under the hammer at the Ferrari Legend and Passion auction held at the factory’s Fiorano test track near the famed Prancing Horse factory.
Another star performer was a 1964 250 LM, a mid-engined ex-racing car that was raced by Austrian former world champion Jochen Rindt to victory in his national Grand Prix, which sold for Euro 4.51 million ($7.42m).
However, there was less interest in the F1 cars, with only an ex-Gerhard Berger 1987 model F1/87 selling, for a relatively modest Euro 247,500 ($407,000), while two others were passed in – a 1995 ex-Jean Alesi 412 T2 at Euro 400,000 and a 2000 ex-Michael Schumacher race-winning F1-2000 at Euro 800,000.
JUST one week after Ferrari revealed first photos and details of its new California roadster, an original 1960s model has sold at Maranello in Italy for more than $11 million – double the pre-auction estimate.
The 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California was owned for many years by Hollywood actor James Coburn and is one of Ferrari’s best-loved models, with a 3.0-litre V12 single-cam engine mounted under the bonnet.
It was bought by British broadcaster Chris Evans and auctioneers RM Auctions say it was the highest price ever paid for a car at auction.
Original estimates for the car were between Euro 3.2 and 3.6 million, but when the hammer came down the winning bid was an incredible Euro 7.04 million ($11,577,000).
Almost 50 new and historic Ferraris, including three Formula One cars, went under the hammer at the Ferrari Legend and Passion auction held at the factory’s Fiorano test track near the famed Prancing Horse factory.
Another star performer was a 1964 250 LM, a mid-engined ex-racing car that was raced by Austrian former world champion Jochen Rindt to victory in his national Grand Prix, which sold for Euro 4.51 million ($7.42m).
However, there was less interest in the F1 cars, with only an ex-Gerhard Berger 1987 model F1/87 selling, for a relatively modest Euro 247,500 ($407,000), while two others were passed in – a 1995 ex-Jean Alesi 412 T2 at Euro 400,000 and a 2000 ex-Michael Schumacher race-winning F1-2000 at Euro 800,000.
By DAVID HASSALL 23 May 2008
