 | 330 GT Registry | |
Latest sale results and full rundown of prices and
Conditions with Richard Hudson-Evans
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For the fifth time, the Swiss office of Bonhams set up its rostrum in the chandelier-lit splendour of the Palace Hotel ballroom, Gstaad, for another all- Ferrari buying and selling oppormnin’ And once again, Geneva Bureau chief Simon Kidston and team put on a superbly presented end of European auction season event which has become an accurate annual barometer for the real state of the Ferrari market in particular and the collector car market in general.
The 1947-’48 166 Spider Corsa — the so-called ‘Founding Ferrari’ on account of its chassis number being the first ever to be sold to a private customer — went to a Swiss stable in a £491,402 deal after the sale. In 1972, in bare chassis form, though with engine and some mechanical components included, 002-C passed through Sir Anthony Bamford’s hands. Following completion in the US, it was exercised on the 1997 Mille Miglia Rent by former World Champ Phil Hill.
Three out of four Daytonas also went to new homes. Providing lots of front-engined supercar for the £65,371 and £59,846 paid were two 365GTB/4 fixed heads of 1970 and 1972 vintage; the former, a rare early car with head- lamps behind Plexiglass, the latter with them exposed. An open-top conversion, which had employed a damaged 1971 coupé as a donor, generated a top estimate £117,104, but then it had been superbly detailed. The required £220,000 was not forthcoming, however, for a genuine, factory- executed Spider, first owned in 1971 by stuntman Evel Knievel.
Other significant results for the prancing horse here were the £144,728 minimum guide price paid for a virtually unabused 2001 550 Barchetta in Fiorano spec, £46,937 fora 1991-restored and still nearly mint 1972 246GT Dino, and £35,167 for a cosmetically refurbished 1963 25OGTE Series ifi with Wyss rebuilt engine and ‘box. Dinos and 250GTEs are evidently continuing to appreciate.
Earlier in the same pre-Xmas week in Paris, Arteurial, the new trading name of Poulain, sold a 1967 330 GTC that had been preserved by an American Airlines pilot in Arizona for 20 years, for a way over forecast £47,452, although its shapely 1939 Bug 57 coupé failed to liv. A freshly restored 1982 5I2BBi achieved top estimate of P36,624. A 1957 Facel-Véga, restored in 1990, and a 1955 Delahaye 235 with very original Chapron coachwork both did better than expected, making £33,694 and £29,299.
Back home at Sandown Park meanwhile, Barons’ end-of-2002- sale season results were headed liv a £12,614 1961 Jag Mk2 3.4 manual with overdrive on wires, and a P12,084 1984 Corvette that had been convened to right-hand drive, with just 2250 miles.
Finally, during Autosport 2003 at the NEC, Coys not only provided an entertaining sideshow for showgoers, but also shifted most of the metal on offer which is never easy at an exhibition auction. Although unsold in Buxton in 2002, the last MkIH Lola T70 built in 1968, which was employed by Steve McQueen for filming Le Mans, went to a new home in New Mexico for P89,500.
A 1969 Ferrari 246GT Dino converted from left to right-hand drive made £55,950, £38,350 was forthcoming for a 355GTB left- hooker with full Ferrari service history £38,000 for a repainted 1974 246G’l’S, £34,500 for 1987 Cobra MkIV with just 4000 miles from new, £33,638 for an XK Challenge-ready 1953 XK120 and £31,050 for a 1995 Marcos LM 600 with Le Mans race form.
Almost a full house of F-types changed hands, led by a 1966 Sl 4.2 with hardtop, superbly converted for weekend race work, at P28,750. While the DailyMail prize 1961 Series I roadster sold for £25,875 (see lefty, a well restored 1963 3.8 fixed head fetched £25,300 and an ex-New Zealand 1962 Series I roadster with hardtop £18,975. A well executed Porsche 550 replica with 914 motor did well to raise £12,075 and a 1986 Series Ill XJ6 with only 5000km from new made £6843.
Sale statistics were: Coys, NEC, Birmingham, 39 cars sold from 49 offered — 80 per cent sale rate; Bonhams, Gstaad, Switzerland, 21/34 — 62 per cent; Barons, Sandown Park, 3 7/65 — 57 per cent; and Artcurial/Poulain, Paris, 21/46 —46 per cent.
 GTB BREAKS RECORD A new auction record price for the 275GTB/4 of £290,384 was claimed at Gstaad for a 1967 example with only 14,425 miles from new. Finished in light silver- blue metallic, refreshingly different from the more trad Rosso Corsa, and with pumpkin leather interior this most original Berlinetta had actually been in recent receipt of some clearly very sympathetic refurbishment in Florida. A milestone result. |
| LUSSOS REVALUED Regarded by many as the most beautiful of all Ferraris, the Lusso can only have appreciated after the valuations established of £270,294 for the 1964 Tour de France Competizione shared by Charly Muller and Heini Walter (below) after a baffle between Hong Kong and Swiss bidders with the latter winning, and £150,253 for the road car first owned by Jo Siffert. After his fatal crash in 1971, it passed to his friend Jean Tinguely who stored it inside his house.  |
MARKET PLACE
AUCTION RESULTS
| CAR | YEAR | COND | SALE | PRICE |
| Only vehicles believed sold are listed. Prices include buyer’s premium, but not the VAT payable on it. FEATURED SALES AND PREMIUM RATES GUIDE KEY COACHBUILDERS KEY | |||||
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 Refurbished 1963 Ferrari 250 GTE SIll, £35,167 at Bonhams, Switzerland |  One owner, 1800km 2001 Ferrari 550 Barchetta, £144,718: £203,000 new |
 Inexpensive 1964 330GT, £16,271 at annual Palace Hotel ballroom Ferrari sale |  1953 Jaguar CK120 Competition Roadster, £33,638 Coys Autosport |
 1966 330GTS had been imported from Spain, sold for £113,086 at Gstaad |
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Classic & Sports Car
Copyright 2003, Classic and Sportscar
Published with permission of Classic and Sportscar