RM Auctions sold the 1958 Ferrari 412 S race car for $5.61 million at the Monterey Sports and Classic Car Auction on Saturday, August 19, at the Portola Plaza Hotel. This one-of-a-kind racing Ferrari was the top car sold at auction during the Monterey Classic Car Weekend, August 18 and 19, where 191 cars were sold for a record total of $43 million; including eight cars that went for over $1 million and the 1957 Ferrari 500 TRC Spider that sold for $2,282,500.
“Very rarely do cars of the 412 S’s significance cross the auction block, which led to considerable bidding, not only domestically but from an international audience,” said Rob Myers of RM Auctions.
The ex Scuderia 1958 Ferrari 412 S with coachwork by Scaglietti was one of the only examples Ferrari built specifically to challenge American racers on the North American SCCA circuit. The 412 S was raced by a who’s who of famed drivers such as Phil Hill, Olivier Gendebien, Richie Ginther, Skip Hudson, Fred Knoop and Steve Earle, who used it to promote the first Monterey Historic Races in 1973. Hill described the sound of the 440 HP Vittorio Bellantani-designed, four-cam, 12-cylinder engine as “the most delicious sound of any vintage Ferrari.”
Eight cars in total surpassed the million dollar mark including a 1929 Bentley speed six dual cowl Tourer that brought $1.82 million; 1994 McLaren F1, $1.71 million; 1930 Duesenberg model J sport Berline, $1.65 million; 1937 Bentley 4¼ liter fixed head sport coupe, $1.27 million; 1964 Shelby Cobra “B” production racing car, $1.24 million; and a 2004 Maserati MC12 (the first in the United States), $1.07 million.
Another historically significant offering at the Monterey auction was Pope Paul VI’s 1964 Lincoln Continental Limousine. This Papal limo’s distinctive “bubbletop” design is a lasting image of the Pope’s landmark US appearance, the first by a Pontiff to the Western Hemisphere. The $319,000 sales price showed the value a celebrity, political or religious figure can add to a collector car.
All prices quoted include the buyer’s premium.
Rounding out the Monterey weekend, RM’s restorations division captured the “Best of Show” honors at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance for the 1931 Daimler double-six 50 Corsica Drophead coupe owned by Robert M. Lee of Reno, Nev.
For information 800-211-4371 or www.rmauctions.com.
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