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New Record: Ferrari 250 GTO 4153 GT Sold for $80 Million

Thanks to the Internet, we have Wikipedia. And thanks to a Wikipedia entry titled “List of most expensive cars sold at auction,” we know that chassis 3851 GT of the Ferrari 250 GTO was sold at auction for a mind-boggling $38,115,000 by Bonhams.
Ferrari 250 GTO 4153 GT 31 photos
1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT1962 Ferrari 250 GTO s/n 3387GT
The thing is, some people prefer to keep things private, thus overlooking auction houses in their hunt for the most collectible Ferrari out there. Serial number 4153 GT is the perfect example, selling in private for “a bit less than” 80 million Swiss francs to WeatherTech chief executive officer David MacNeil.

Why 4153 GT isn’t featured in Wikipedia’s list needs no explanation now that you know how the cookie crumbles. The information regarding the price and who bought the car (by means of private sale) comes courtesy of Marcel Massini, marque specialist and know-it-all of all things 250 GTO. If Mr. Massini wasn’t fantasizing and the selling price is indeed that high (around $80 million at current exchange rates), then the silver-painted Gran Turismo Omologato is the new king of the hill as far as classic cars valuation is concerned.

Massini believes 4153 GT could be valued at $100 million within five years, though it remains to be seen if the classic car bubble will keep it together until 2023. Even in the most pessimistic case, the 250 GTO will remain a blue-chip investment for a long time after the bubble burts. It’s that kind of car.

Well documented throughout its life, 4153 GT was raced in its first years by Ecurie Francorchamps and Equipe National Belge. The Belgian teams are responsible for the yellow stripe over the silver bodywork. In 1963, the V12-powered blast from the past finished that year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans in fourth. Also in 1963, the Ferrari won the Tour de France ten-day road race. Fast-forward to 2000, and that’s the year a Swiss collector sold the car to German gentleman, mister Herr Grohe, for an estimated $6.5 million.

On Ferrari Chat, supercar consultant Joe Sackey said: “the sale is both recent & confirmed, and I was privileged to be informed in person by my client, a 250 GTO owner of 35 years, party to the deal.” He then replied this to one of the more skeptical forum members: “My client's friend (a VIP USA Ferrari collector and large-scale industrialist with a world-renowned facility in Illinois) has recently concluded the deal for the purchase of 4153 GT for $80 million.”
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Editor's note: 3387 GT pictured in the gallery.

About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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