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Rally-Winning All-Original 1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Is a Timeless Masterpiece

Ferrari’s berlinettas that were so stripped down it was easy to get them to race in stock condition are the stuff of automotive history legends. And the Prancing Horse’s 250 GT Coupe series packing the famous Colombo V12 (3.0-liter Tipo 128) actually goes beyond that, considering its heritage and the fact that it was actually built by very interesting coachbuilders.
1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA 16 photos
Photo: Kidston SA
1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA1957 Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe on sale by Kidston SA
When it was time to start the limited series-production of the 250 GT Coupe, Ferrari discovered that Pininfarina wasn’t capable of handling the manufacturing process because its Grugliasco, Italy plant wasn’t ready yet. The new model was then outsourced to Carrozzeria Boano, a company set up by former Ghia employees Mario-Felice Baoano and Luciano Pollo.

This particular 1957 Ferrari 250 GT comes from the Boano era (not the later Ellena period), and according to the consigner, chassis 0645 GT was first purchased back in July 1957 sporting a Marrone 1115 (dark brown) paint job. Because it quickly changed hands several times before coming in possession of Jean Bonnet, it was still essentially brand new when it became a fitting Verde Riviera 1160 car (it is believed that it spent most of its life on the Côte d'Azur).

By the way, Bonnet (a.k.a. Jean Lucienbonnet by his racing name) competed in this green on Grigio Arbo Tan 682 unit to great success during 1958, and the car racked a little over 60,000 km (37,000) miles on the odometer since. It currently resides in Switzerland, where it has been lovingly taken care of to make sure it preserves its time capsule standards.

Those include rare public apparitions since its racing days, just a couple of owners for around half a century, and the fact that it’s the very first time it’s offered for public sale. Granted, as far as we can see, it’s a bit rough around some edges, but every scratch and stone chip most likely has its own marvelous story.

Unfortunately, Geneva-based “boutique advisory firm” Kidston SA doesn’t give us a quotation for this period benchmark Ferrari. Still, one can imagine it certainly doesn’t come cheap when considering that previous owners went through the trouble of having both Ferrari Classiche and FIVA A2 certification (A stands for standard as in unmodified, while the numeral signals its originality).
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About the author: Aurel Niculescu
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Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution.
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