Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

  • AMMpro
  • AMM Fantasy Collecting Game
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us

RM Follows Up Ferrari Success in California with $22m Race Classic

October 22, 2018 by Marion Maneker

RM Sotheby’s is holding an auction at the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles on December 8th. They’ve added a classic Ferrari campaigned by Scuderia Ferrari in 1956 and 57. The Ferrari 290 MM was driven by many but most famously Sir Stirling Moss.

Ferrari is the lifeblood of the classic car market. This consignment comes as a follow up to RM Sotheby’s success at Pebble Beach with a 1962 250 GTO that made $48.4m.

The 290 MM was developed by Ferrari to contest the 1956 World Sports Car Championship and the Mille Miglia, hence the MM initials, and to reclaim dominance over past and present competitor—Mercedes-Benz—and its great domestic rival, Maserati. For Enzo Ferrari, this was just as important as his efforts to win the Formula One World Championship. Chassis no. 0628, set for RM Sotheby’s Petersen Museum sale, was the fourth and final example ever built. Equipped with an all-new powertrain, composed of the Tipo 130 V-12, 3,490 cc engine, with highly developed cylinder heads, high-lift camshaft, bigger valves, twin spark plugs, 9:1 compression ratio and dry sump, coupled with the Tipo 520 transaxle, the 290 MM was the car to bring the manufacturer title back to Maranello for the third time. Bodied by Scaglietti, the 290 MM is a truly impressive, brutal, and beautiful machine, and is estimated to achieve $22 million to $26 million in Los Angeles this December.

In serving for the Scuderia Ferrari team, the racing history of this 290 MM speaks for itself. At its debut in the 1956 Mille Miglia in 860 Monza specifications, chassis no. 0628 finished 2nd overall while wearing number #551, piloted by Peter Collins and Louis Klemantaski. In the same year, Olivier Gendebien and Hans Hermann took the car to 4th at the Targa Florio in Sicily, while Umberto Maglioli finished in 2nd place with the car in the XVIII Aosta-Gran San Bernardo Hillclimb, also in Italy. The legendary Fangio raced the car in the Swedish Grand Prix just months later. Upgraded to 290 MM specifications by the factory in 1957, its remit outside Italy extended as Alfonso de Portago, Wolfgang von Trips and Eugenio Castellotti finished 3rd in the 1000km Buenos Aires, and two months later the car entered the 12 Hours of Sebring with Phil Hill and von Trips at the wheel.

Now under private ownership, Sir Stirling Moss slid behind the wheel at the 1957 Bahamas Speed Weeks and drove the car to victory in both the Memorial Race and the Nassau Trophy Race. The car spent the next five decades in America, first earning multiple podium and first-in-class finishes at a variety of national races between 1958 and 1961, and then spending time in several highly notable private collections. From there, chassis no. 0628 was sold to a collector in England in 2008 and driven in the Tribute to Juan Manuel Fangio Parade during the Goodwood Revival in 2011. Later that year it was passed to its current owner, before undergoing a full, concours-quality restoration by Ferrari Classiche in Italy to its 1957 12 Hours of Sebring configuration, the final race it entered as a Scuderia Ferrari Works car.

“We’re delighted to bring this highly significant Ferrari 290 MM to our Los Angeles auction,” said Augustin Sabatié-Garat, Auction Manager, RM Sotheby’s Europe. “The 290 MM is certainly one of the most important Ferraris to grace the halls of the renowned Petersen Automotive Museum and will be right at home in an auction set to present some of the most notable moments in motoring history across numerous categories. The car represents the golden age of the sports two-seater, having taken part in some of the most famous races ever held. Moreover, the sheer number of legendary drivers who have been at the helm of this car make it truly remarkable. The opportunity to acquire a proper Scuderia Ferrari works barchetta in the realm of the 290 MM, 315 S, or 335 S rarely ever comes along in such exceptional form.”

RM Sotheby’s Ferrari Sale = $76m with 92% Sell-Through

September 12, 2017 by Marion Maneker

​Capitalizing on Ferrari’s 70th Anniversary, RM Sotheby’s held a 38-car all-Ferrari sale over the weekend that totalled €63,068,110 ($76,312,413) with all but three lots finding buyers.

Highlights of the sale included a rare “barn find,” a car once owned by Keith Richards and a recent production supercar:

  • 2017 LaFerrari Aperta that made €8,300,000. According to Sotheby’s, the sale “was free of all commission; a world record for a 21st century automobile, all of which will generously be donated to Save the Children for an international program focusing on education.”
  • 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider by Scaglietti, chassis no. 1503 GT. had only one owner for the last two decades. The car was rarely shown and made €7,855,000.
  • 1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinetta Alloy, was offered in complete ‘barn-find’ condition, having been discovered in Japan after being hidden for almost 40 years. With documented history,, the bidding reached €1,807,000, becoming the most valuable Daytona coupe ever sold at public auction.
  • 1983 Ferrari 400i, offered directly from the collection of Keith Richards, had attracted huge pre-sale attention. The Rolling Stones legend had owned the car from new and it is preserved in exceptional, original condition with only 3,267 km on the clock. This desirable five-speed manual example made an outstanding €345,000; a world-record for the model.

Classic Car Sales Down Slightly at Pebble Beach 2017

August 21, 2017 by Marion Maneker

The August classic car sales in Monterey, California held to coincide with the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance are a benchmark measure of the classic car market. The LA Times spoke to the people at Hagerty who keep the records on these sales, including the $22.55m Aston Martin DBR1/1 that RM Sotheby’s sold.

This year the sales were off slightly from the previous year showing a continuing consolidation of the classic car market after the rapid rise that peaked in 2014.

[T]he total dollar value for the week’s auctions was $317.6 million, according to numbers gathered by the vintage insurance company Hagerty. That’s off last year’s total of $338 million, and far below the $400 million in sales during a heated 2014 car week. […]

The average sale price this year was $438,000, compared with last year’s $466,000. The sell-through rate was about 57% for both years.

“It isn’t that overall prices are down, but that we saw fewer seven- and eight-digit cars available this year,” Hagerty said.

In her pre-sale story on Bloomberg, Hannah Elliott predicted growth in the lower ranges:Continue Reading

Arizona Auctions Show Move to Middle Market in Classic Cars

January 24, 2017 by Marion Maneker

The Globe and Mail says the Arizona classic car auctions were up slightly in 2017 from 2017 with the total rising to $259m from last year’s $250.8m. More lots sold even if the top end prices were softer. Of the 3486 lots offered at six auction houses, 2900 sold or 83% sell through. The average price was $89,601.

The year before the sell through was 75% and the average price was $115,729.

The Globe and Mail’s overall take was that the classic car market, like the art market, has shifted focus to pursuing middle market objects. In the car world, that means low six-figure cars often of American makes. Or, as the Globe and Mail put it: “Collectors in the sub-$250,000 estimate range were bidding like America was great again.”Continue Reading

Sotheby’s Puts Real Estate, Classic Car, Jewelry and Watches Under One Executive

January 9, 2017 by Marion Maneker

maarten-ten-holder
Maarten ten Holder in the box at an RM Auctions sale

Sotheby’s made an announcement this morning that continues the process of rationalizing the company’s various efforts. One of CEO Tad Smith’s regular refrains has been to expand the Sotheby’s brand into non-art areas.

That brand benefits greatly from a licensing arrangement with Realogy that puts the auction house’s name on a huge global network of real estate affiliates. It has also acquired a stake in classic car maker, RM Auctions. The jewelry and watch sectors remain important across the auction industry.Continue Reading

LiveArt

Want to get Art Market Monitor‘s posts sent to you in our email? Sign up below by clicking on the Subscribe button.

  • About Us/ Contact
  • Podcast
  • AMMpro
  • Newsletter
  • FAQ

twitterfacebooksoundcloud
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
California Privacy Rights
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Advertise on Art Market Monitor
 

Loading Comments...