If you plan to be in New York City on November 13 and have easy access to about $60 million, why not take a chance bidding on a one-of-one Ferrari? The RM Sotheby’s Modern and Contemporary Art auction will offer a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO that’s also known as the 330 LM. The car was built to suit a new race class at the time, which allowed replacing the 25 GTO’s 3.0-liter V12 with a more powerful 4.0-liter. Ferrari kept this special GTO for its own Scuderia Ferrari race team. Will this car surpass the reported $70 million a private collector paid for a 250 GTO in 2018? We shall see on November 13.
Bentley was born racing, and while most of its 100+ years have been spent away from the track, the company is going back with one of the 1929 Bentley Blower Continuation Cars it has built. The car, created using blueprints and 3D scans of an original car in Bentley’s Heritage Collection, will compete at three major historic automobile races through September. Bentley is also celebrating the 20th anniversary of its sixth and final victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with a limited-edition series of 48 “Le Mans Collection” Continental GT and GTC models.
Audacious in its design and engineering, the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing made sports car history at its 1954 New York International Motor Sports Show debut.
Upon hearing that a fastback coupe powered by a Ford big-block V8 sold for $173,600 at the Bonhams Quail Lodge auction in Monterey, you might think, “Must be a Shelby.” The car was, however, something completely different, yet distantly related: a 1971 AC 428 coupe.
In 1964, Porsche introduced the 904 Carrera GTS for competition. It was a more focused track machine with an eye on FIA GT racing, and had immediate racing success. This model put Porsche on an endurance racing path that would culminate with its first Le Mans overall wins with the astounding 917 racers in 1970 and 1971.
Sir Stirling Moss was one of the sport’s greatest competitors. Moss won over 40% of the races he competed in, totaling a winning number of 212 races. He won the 1955 Mille Miglie and many races in Formula 1, all before the age of 32.
Ford vs Ferrari’s racecar sports hero Carroll Shelby is know for beating the racing establishment with simpler, less expensive and sometimes cruder machinery. He got his racing start driving other peoples’ cars and went on to build a business empire that has continued and grown beyond his death.
The 2005-2006 Ford GT was an homage to Ford’s 1960s endurance racecars, but intended for the street. One is currently up for auction in Scottsdale at Gooding & Company, featuring Carroll Shelby’s signature on the dashboard.
Supercar highlights this year include a McLaren Senna, Saleen S7, three Ford GT’s,two McLaren 650’s a SRT Viper GTS, and a Dodge Viper at the 49th edition of Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale.
