February 2016 - European auction previews
19 January, 2016
The main auction activity in Europe next month takes place in Paris, centred around the annual Rétromobile event. RM Sotheby’s will open proceedings at Place Vauban with their 61-lot sale on 3 February, where the star attraction is destined to be a 1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica LWB Coupé Aerodinamico (estimate €3,000,000 – 3,300,000). Chassis no. 3931 SA is the first of just 18 Series II long-wheelbase examples produced and was used as the 1962 Earls Court Motor Show and Chicago Motor Show car, subsequently being sold by Luigi Chinetti Motors in New York for $13,017 to its first owner. In 1995 the car became part of the Yoshiho Matsuda Collection, and following its return to Europe it was completely restored from 2003 to 2008 by Berlinetta Motors in Germany.
A 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder, one of just 75 factory-built ‘customer’ 550 Spyders, is set to go under the hammer with an estimate of €2,200,000 – 2,600,000. The car was displayed on the Porsche stand at the 1955 Frankfurt Motor Show prior to being delivered to its first owner, Mike Marshall, a Porsche/Volkswagen dealer and amateur racer in the USA. Marshall enjoyed success with the car in a number of races during ’56 and ’57, and notably finished 3rd in class at the Sebring 12 Hours sharing the wheel with Porsche’s racing chief Huschke von Hanstein.
Rounding out RM’s top three is a 1957 BMW 507, one of only 252 examples produced (estimate €1,900,000 – 2,200,000). The car was delivered new on 1 January 1958 to Mr Carlo Silvestrelli in Switzerland who kept it until 1967 when it was sold having covered 50,600km. The next period of long-term ownership came in 1969 when a Mr Oskar Bloch, who ran a BMW workshop in Basel and had maintained the vehicle during Mr Silvestrelli’s tenure, purchased the car – keeping it for 43 years. The car is complete with its original Rudge wheels, hardtop, books, and original toolbox under the bonnet.
The following day Bonhams host their sale entitled ‘Les Grandes Marques du Monde au Grand Palais’ with 131 lots going across the block, headed by a 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB estimated at €2,500,000 – 3,500,000. This left-hand drive, European-spec, long nose car was sold new to the first owner in Italy in September 1966 - factory records indicating its original colour scheme was Argento (silver) with Nero (black) leather. The car subsequently spent much of its life in Canada and the USA after being exported from Italy in the 70s, after which ownership passed to the current vendor in Switzerland in December 2009.
Supercars on offer include a 3,285-km 2000 Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR, chassis number '23' of just 25 examples produced (estimate €1,800,000 – 2,000,000). The car was supplied new to Switzerland and remained there with its original owner until 2014. Elsewhere a 1990 Ferrari F40, with 14,704 miles on the clock has an estimate of €950,000 – 1,100,000 and a UK-supplied 2005 Porsche Carrera GT that has covered 15,300km is estimated at €800,000 – 1,000,000. Other highlights include; a 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider which was the factory prototype and 1955 Brussels Motor Show car (estimate €900,000 – 1,300,000) and a 1937 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300B (estimate €750,000 – 1,100,000).
The biggest auction of the week is Artcurial’s two-day affair which will see 170 cars on offer, including 49 Citroëns in a special one-marque sale. The star of the show will be the eagerly awaited sale of one of the 1950’s most iconic sports racing Ferraris – a 1957 335 S. Chassis 0674’s first race was the 1957 Sebring 12 Hours where it finished 6th in the hands of Peter Collins and Maurice Trintignant. The car was campaigned throughout 1957, notable highlights included; Wolfgang von Trips’ 2ndplace finish in the 1957 Mille Miglia; and Mike Hawthorn setting the first lap record of over 200 km/h whilst leading the ’57 Le Mans 24 Hours race. Following its sale in January 1958 to Luigi Chinetti, the car won the Cuban Grand Prix, driven by Masten Gregory and Stirling Moss. Rarely seen in recent years, the car has resided in the renowned Pierre Bardinon collection since 1970 and has a pre-sale estimate of €28,000,000 – 32,000,000.
The other ‘big-hitter’ in Artcurial’s line up is a 1963 Ferrari 250 GT SWB, estimated at €9,000,000 – 12,000,000. The car is the last example to be produced and has been in the Antoine Midy collection since 1989.
A unique 1986 Ferrari Testarossa Spider Valeo is also set to go under the hammer. The car is the only official Testarossa Spider to be commissioned and built by Ferrari and was given to the boss of Fiat, Gianni Agnelli. A distinctive feature of the car is the very special gear-change system which allows for normal manual changes using the clutch or, at the press of a button, the clutch pedal retracts and gives way to a Valeo electronic clutch system. The car has covered just 23,000km from new and is estimated at €680,000 – 900,000.
Auctionata will host a 39-lot sale on 26 February in Berlin. Notable highlights include; a 1963 Mercedes-Benz 220 SE Cabriolet (estimate €140,000 – 150,000), a 1960 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL (estimate €120,000 – 150,000) and a 1967 Citroën DS 21 Cabriolet Usine (estimate €120,000 – 140,000).