RM Sotheby’s announced a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO / 330 LM (estimate $60 million plus) for the New York 2023 Modern and Contemporary Art auction.
NOTE: Sold for $51,705,000 as the most expensive Ferrari ever sold at public auction.
RM Sotheby’s made a surprise announcement at the Monterey 2023 classic car auctions that a 1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, chassis 3765, will be offered for sale at the Sotheby’s New York 2023 Modern and Contemporary Art auction. The car was the only Series I GTO owned by the factory and raced by the Scuderia Ferrari team. It has a unique specification and a well-known history. The pre-auction estimate is “In excess of $60 million” — a result which would make it the most expensive Ferrari ever sold at public auction.
1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO at Sotheby’s New York 2023
The 1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, chassis 3765, estimate “In excess of $60 million”, will be offered for sale in New York on 13 November 2023 during Sotheby’s marquee sales of Modern and Contemporary Art.
“The 1962 Ferrari GTO we’re bringing to market is more than a classic; it’s a legend. Being the only series I GTO to ever race as a factory campaigned car, it represents an unparalleled piece of automotive history. Its appeal transcends the automotive sphere and reaches every kind of collector. This is the one — the car that collectors can only dream of acquiring and we’re thrilled to be able to provide someone the chance to make a dream come true. To me, there is no better place to showcase this automotive icon than New York City at Sotheby’s.” – Gord Duff, Global Head of Auctions, RM Sotheby’s
1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, Chassis 3765
Only 36 Ferrari 250 GTOs were ever built, making them among the world’s most expensive and collectible cars. No two GTOs are the same but the 1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, chassis 3765, has a particularly interesting provenance. It is one of only two originally fitted with the 4.0-liter 330 LM engine.
Chassis 3765 was the only factory-owned Series I GTO raced by the Scuderia Ferrari. It achieved a class win and 2nd overall finish at the 1962 Nürburgring 1,000 KM. It was also driven by Mike Parkes and Lorenzo Bandini for the Scuderia Ferrari at the 1962 24 Hours of Le Mans, where it retired after six hours due to overheating. Under private ownership, it was the 1965 Sicilian Hillclimb Championship runner-up.
The 1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, chassis 3765, benefits from 38 years of fastidious care under the current ownership of James Jaeger. Details are still sketchy, but it might be sold with a 3.0-liter V-12 engine fitted and an extra 4.0-liter engine similar to the one used at Le Mans.
In recent years, the 1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, chassis 3765, was
- 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, and
- Blue Ribbon winner at the Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance.
Ferrari 250 GTO Prices at Public Auction
Only two Ferrari 250 GTOs were sold at public auction for at least the past decade. These two are the two most expensive Ferraris ever and two of the three most expensive cars ever. The only car sold for more in a more-or-less public auction was the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé that achieved $143 million in the RM Sotheby’s special auction at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart in 2022.
1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, chassis 3413
The 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, chassis 3413, sold at RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2018 for $48,405,000 as the most expensive car at the time and in 2023 still the most expensive Ferrari ever sold in a public auction. (Privately, Ferrari GTOs have been rumored to sell for $70 million and even more.) It was the third of only 36 Ferrari 250 GTOs ever built and one of only four cars upgraded in period by Scaglietti to the more aggressive and successful Series II GTO/64 coachwork.
This 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO was driven by amongst others Phil Hill in preparation for the 1962 Targa Florio but it was most extensively and successfully raced in the 1962 season by privateer Edoardo Lualdi-Gabardi. He raced the car in Italy to six overall victories and a further five class wins to take the Italian championship in 1962. The GTO also finished first in class at Targa Florio in both 1963 and 1964. The GTO won its final race outright too – the 1965 Redex Trophy at Brands Hatch driven by David Piper.
1962-3 Ferrari 250 GTO, Chassis 3851
The 1962-3 Ferrari 250 GTO, chassis 3851, sold at Bonhams Quail Lodge 2014 for $38,115,000 to take the world record price from a 1955 Mercedes-Benz W196R Silver Arrows Formula 1 racing car that Bonhams sold for $29,650,000 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed Sale in 2013.
This Ferrari was the 17th 250 GTO produced and originally belonged to French privateer Jo Schlesser, who with Henri Oreiller as co-driver finished second in the 1962 Tour de France Automobile race. After Oreiller crashed fatally at Mothlhery, the car was rebuilt and thus often termed a 1962-3 car. Schlesser sold the car to Paolo Colombo, who achieved 12 class victories in 14 hill-climb races entered in 1963. This Ferrari also participated in many historic races leading to the claim that it might be the most-raced GTO ever.
Ferraris at Sotheby’s Art Auctions
Why is the 1962 Ferrari 330 LM / 250 GTO, Chassis 3765, offered at a Sotheby’s art auction rather than at the RM Sotheby’s Monterey classic car auction? Apparently, the modern art sales are where the real big money is. RM Sotheby’s had fantastic successes with two Michael Schumacher Formula 1 cars at such sales — the two most expensive modern F1 cars sold to date:
- The 2003 Ferrari F2003-GA F1 racing car in which Michael Schumacher secured his sixth championship (and won five Grand Prix races) sold for an astonishing CHF 14,630,000 (US$ 14,880,000) at Sotheby’s Geneva Luxury Week sale in 2022.
- The previous record car was Michael Schumacher’s Grand Prix-winning Ferrari F2001 sold in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Auction in November 2017 for $7,504,000.
