The Ferrari 250 GTO, manufactured between 1962 and 1964, became the second most expensive car in history, after being sold for $51.7 million at a private auction held in New York City.
The car was built with the aim of being part of competitions such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, 24 Hours of Daytona, the Nürburgring, Brands Hatch and Monza 1000 km race. Only 39 vehicles were built.
The 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO is special because it was the only car built in the 330 LM configuration to have a larger engine fitted to be competitive at Le Mans. In this race, vehicles were required to have engines larger than 4 litres.
The most expensive Ferrari car in history
It is also added that this car was the only one of the 250 GTO examples that was the official car of Scuderia Ferrari, the motorsport division of Ferrari responsible for Formula competitions. In addition, it included drivers such as Italian Lorenzo Bandini and Briton Mike Pix.
The sports car participated in Le Mans in 1962 with Lorenzo Bandini. There he encountered difficulties in the sand barriers, which caused him to finish fifth. Although he returned to the race, he was forced to retire on lap 56 due to overheating.
By 1965, it had won a competition and became the property of Fred Leidorf, president of the Ferrari Club of America (FCA), who decided to restore it to its original form; 3 liter V12 engine.
After 38 years of use, it was auctioned off at RM Sotheby’s, and although they were expecting to fetch $60 million, the amount it sold for made it the second most expensive car in history, behind a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Coupe Ohlenhout from 1955. Which was listed in May 2022 for $143 million in Stuttgart.
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Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Coupe Uhlenhout from 1955
This car was created with the W196 (1954), two Formula 1 gems. The 300 SLR Coupé Uhlenhaut was powered by a big 3-litre engine and was named after Rudolf Uhlenhaut, the head of the testing department who used it as his vehicle. Daily.
Ferrari 333 Sport Scaglietti from 1957
This model was sold in 2016 for $35.71 million, thanks to the fact that it was known to have been driven by Stirling Moss and Mike Hawthorn. This car was designed to be the ultimate expression of the sportiness and elegance of Italian racing cars of the 1950s.
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