Widely considered one of the most beautiful body designs created by the Prancing Horse firm, the 250 Testa Rossa is for many Ferrari experts the most beautiful ever built. And although tastes are very subjective, what is unquestionable is that it is one of the rarest, most desirable and sought-after models of those that have left the Maranello facilities in 70 years.
On February 21, 22 and 23, RM Sotheby’s will put out to tender in Detroit (Michigan) one of the 19 units manufactured of this automotive gem. The procedure will be through the most exclusive acquisition method; by means of a sealed envelope in which secret offers will be recorded. The prestigious auction firm has estimated that the value of this car will be between 34 and 38 million dollars.
It is a so-called “Pontoon Fendered” unit, completed in early 1958. With chassis number 0738 TR, it is one of 19 special examples built by the renowned Italian coachbuilder Sergio Scaglietti. With almost 20 races in his competition record, which lasted for more than a decade, he has four overall victories. It should be remembered that the Testa Rossa was for years the most successful racing sports car in Ferrari’s illustrious history, achieving four World Championships and four outright victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1958 to 1962.
This particular unit underwent a complete restoration in 2013 by Ferrari Classiche specialists, where it obtained “Red Book” certification as one of the few remaining TRs that still retains its original engine and gearbox. , what is known as “matching numbers”. Offered for sale by RM Sotheby’s for the first time in over a decade, it comes from a prominent American Ferrari collection and represents a rare opportunity for the world’s leading collectors to acquire one of the car manufacturer’s all-time great icons. Maranello.
It is very difficult to estimate the final price of such an exclusive piece, with its characteristics and pedigree, and it is also difficult to establish its price, since specimens like this rarely appear for sale. As with most other variants of the 250, records achieved in similar transactions have skyrocketed in recent years.
A 250 Testa Rossa sold in 2009 for $16.4 million (at the time a world record for a car sold at auction), while a similar 250 TR changed hands through a classic car dealer in the Kingdom. Joined in 2014 for $40 million. Although it generally does not achieve sales figures as high as the Ferrari 250 GTO, the 250 Testa Rossa Pontoon Fendered is even rarer in terms of the total number of cars produced, as only 19 units were manufactured between 1957 and 1961, while the GTO 36 were built between 1961 and 1963.
The Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa was the more powerful successor to the 500 TRC, introduced at the end of the 1957 racing season in response to new FIA regulations that would allow engines with up to 3.0 liters of displacement in the World Sport Championship. Prototypes. It shared many components with the 500 TRC, to which it added the legendary V12 “Colombo” Type 128 engine, much more powerful, with six carburetors. This mechanical combination led Ferrari to the World Manufacturers’ Championship title in 1958, 1960 and 1961.
Shelby Myers, global director of private sales at RM Sotheby’s, said in relation to the upcoming February auction that “this 250 TR is on par with the most revered prancing horse model, the 250 GTO. No world-class collection is complete without the masterpiece that is the Ferrari 250 TR, the epitome of rolling art. Its rarity, open-top experience and iconic ‘pontoon fender’ design elevate the 250 TR to the level of the art of Michelangelo or Bernini. “These opportunities rarely arise, which is why we offer it through Sotheby’s Sealed, our most exclusive acquisition method.”
