Should I move this post to the Humor section? This Burnt-Out Crumpled Ferrari Sold For $1.8 Million

[Twisted Shifter]

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/this-burnt-out-crumpled-ferrari-sold-for-1-8-million/ar-AA1fsMnv?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=33257482555e45c8b7b4d80a8f84c846&ei=150#image=2

[edinmass]

Photo doesn’t do it justice, it’s 50 times worse than it looks.

[Crusty Trucker]

Here's what it would take to restore the rusted remains of a 1954 Ferrari purchased for $2 million to its glory days...

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/here-s-what-it-would-take-to-restore-the-rusted-remains-of-a-1954-ferrari-purchased-for-2-million-to-its-glory-days/ar-AA1fvuNJ?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=1de9aafc8bec45119149e4c765ec4b0e&ei=41

[Dave Wells]

I'm no mathematician nor financial wizard, but it seems to me that you could save a million or two by having Ferrari build a brand new from the ground up 1954 clone. You could even flip it for a profit, if the restoration story above is true. But it's probably not a decision I will ever have to make.

 

 

 

[Fordy]

Some people have way too much money to chuck about. Several squillion $$$ bank accounts and what's a few million on this? Probably the equivalent of me buying a new set of tyres.

[West Peterson]

Other than being a V-12 Ferrari (oops, I've just been corrected that it was a 4-cylinder car), it's only claim to fame is that it finished 14th in the 1954 Mille Miglia? Top that with very little of the car's original components will actually be preserved, and it ends up being a mostly replicated car with not much historical value. But, with "real" Ferraries of that era fetching tens of millions of dollars, I guess it's a poor man's way of rubbing elbows in that circle... risking the chance of ending up with holes in the sleeves.

[billorn]

I believe it's actually a 4 cylinder Ferrari.

[West Peterson]

1 minute ago, billorn said:

I believe it's actually a 4 cylinder Ferrari.

My bad... but its original engine doesn't even come with it.

[Gunsmoke]

C'mon fellas, we all are in this for the same reasons, hobby, pleasure, fun of bringing old, and often rare cars back to life, and in most cases then cherishing them. Most of us I suspect don't keep track of the expense (within reason) or time (often thousands of un-priced hours) too carefully, as the enjoyment and camaraderie is worth it all.  So this buyer is no different. Has the money, so expense is not too big a deal, and likely the time will be someone else's. So I say great news, another rare Ferrari will technically be back on the scene in full glory, and even if it is only 10%-30% original, who will really care, maybe only the 1/2 dozen other '54 Ferrari owners, who will not have anywhere near as interesting story to tell!. Better than leaving that crushed dream just sitting there.

[1912Staver]

A genuine competition Ferrari for under two million ? Sounds like a amazing deal. What's that you say... it needs a bit of work. Still at that price how can you go wrong ?

 

Actually to a certain , small , select group of people this is probably looked at as a  " decent " deal.  To put it in context if this was a similar situation { same condition, 100% genuine car , no quibble serial tag etc } Lotus 23 for say $15,000 - $20,000 I would be trying my best to raise the cash. Some people have deep enough pockets to dream about $4 million racing Ferrari's rather than $100,000 Lotus sports racers like the rest of us are limited to.

Edited August 20, 2023 by 1912Staver (see edit history)

[Terry Bond]

My guess- it was bought strictly for novelty value/bragging rights. I'd bet it remains as is and well see it again in another auction.  Remember the Plymouth that was dug up? Remember the Bugatti found at the bottom of a lake?

Sounds like someone just having fun in the hobby.

Teery

[West Peterson]

22 minutes ago, Terry Bond said:

My guess- it was bought strictly for novelty value/bragging rights. I'd bet it remains as is and well see it again in another auction.  Remember the Plymouth that was dug up? Remember the Bugatti found at the bottom of a lake?

Sounds like someone just having fun in the hobby.

Teery

Yes, but the Bugatti, also with race history, sold for "only" $370,000. That sounds more like "having fun" money than $1.85 million. I think in a museum setting "as is," it would certainly attract a lot of attention, especially if they kind of put it back together with some wheels under it to make it at least look like a car as opposed to a Dempsy Dumpster. 

[Terry Bond]

6 minutes ago, West Peterson said:

Yes, but the Bugatti, also with race history, sold for "only" $370,000. That sounds more like "having fun" money than $1.85 million. I think in a museum setting "as is," it would certainly attract a lot of attention, especially if they kind of put it back together with some wheels under it to make it at least look like a car as opposed to a Dempsy Dumpster. 

I guess it means junk Ferraris are worth more than junk Bugattis. Always wondered about that (LOL). Perhaps the idea will catch on and we'll see a museum someplace with a special exhibit of junk cars. Yeah, a classic car junkyard! What a cool idea. 

Terry

[1912Staver]

If the Bug in question was a Type 57 SC or similar the prices would probably be quite similar. Brescia's are very nice cars, but far from the most treasured Bugatti's.

[JamesR]

Quote

Should I move this post to the Humor section?

 

Yes...but only because there isn't a Horror section. 

Edited August 20, 2023 by JamesR (see edit history)

[Gunsmoke]

Do the math, someone buys for $1.8M, spends $2M rebuilding, and with a correct serial # has invested $3.8M on a car likely worth $4.5-$5M when finished, if the plan is to sell at all. What better and more enjoyable way to park your money when you have it to spare. The videos and rebuild process will be fascinating to many of us. Oh to be in that league! 

[West Peterson]

Correct serial number, but not correct engine. But then, how many race cars have their original engine.

[James Peck]

I was at an estate auction ~40 years ago where a Mercedes gull wing that had taken a front hit went up for sale. Many were sobered by the price

[dodge28]

This is the joke of the Century. May be the buyer is suffering from climate change.

[oldcarfudd]

The car, at least, appears to have suffered from a very local and concentrated climate change.

[Rusty_OToole]

Ferrari owners are masochists. For all the cars Leno owns he refuses to buy a Ferrari because they treat their customers so badly. Enzo Ferrari was well known for insulting abusing and exploiting his millionaire customers, so much so that at least 3 of them built their own sports cars out of spite.

[1912Staver]

That's true to a point. Road car Ferrari owners were not on Enzo's " good friends " list. The competition cars were quite another thing. Where Enzo's heart truly was.

[Bhigdog]

7 hours ago, Gunsmoke said:

Do the math, someone buys for $1.8M, spends $2M rebuilding, and with a correct serial # has invested $3.8M on a car likely worth $4.5-$5M when finished, if the plan is to sell at all. What better and more enjoyable way to park your money when you have it to spare. The videos and rebuild process will be fascinating to many of us. Oh to be in that league! 

And the new owner will have a lot of fun restoring it and his sense of accomplishment at personally doing all the work will make the price well worth it.....bob

[Frank DuVal]

57 minutes ago, Rusty_OToole said:

so much so that at least 3 of them built their own sports cars out of spite.

I know of the Lamborghini story, who are the other two?

[Rusty_OToole]

I was thinking of Iso Rivolta and Bizzarini. There may be others.

[Buffalowed Bill]

The price indicates that there was more then one bidder. That says that there must have been some spirited bidding. Most of these cars have just disappeared. What the buyer purchased was the chance to do something special and he had the money to back it up. More power to him. At least he may use some of his money to save something worth saving. 

[8E45E]

14 hours ago, oldcarfudd said:

The car, at least, appears to have suffered from a very local and concentrated climate change.

If the buyer restores it, think of the potential for all the vintage cars salvaged from the California wildfires to get restored, and not written off!!

 

Craig

[8E45E]

On 8/20/2023 at 2:03 AM, Vinny... said:

I'm no mathematician nor financial wizard, but it seems to me that you could save a million or two by having Ferrari build a brand new from the ground up 1954 clone. You could even flip it for a profit, if the restoration story above is true. But it's probably not a decision I will ever have to make.

As per the text, having Ferrari's own restoration shop rebuild it would be the only way to make it authentic, in that it's so far gone.  

 

 It has been argued here previously over the percentage of original bits & pieces left over from a car either totaled in an accident, or a rusted out basket case besides all the serial number and body number tags that constitute the restored result being a "restoration" or a "clone".

 

Craig

[edinmass]

3 hours ago, Buffalowed Bill said:

The price indicates that there was more then one bidder. That says that there must have been some spirited bidding. Most of these cars have just disappeared. What the buyer purchased was the chance to do something special and he had the money to back it up. More power to him. At least he may use some of his money to save something worth saving. 

What makes anyone think the sale number was real? After fifty years of watching old car auctions, the only certainty is the blur between fact and fiction. I looked it over closely. In my humble opinion there was no car there, and there was no “project” there. No serious collectors wants a car that was so publicly displayed in that condition to be in their garage. It’s either a marketing gimmick of some sort of self promotion. Got two million for a random pile of scrap, and another two million to assemble it and make it drive? Then you have the money to buy a decent car………weather a millionaire or a “B” nobody, and I mean nobody throws money away like that on a car.

 

 

 

 

[8E45E]

25 minutes ago, edinmass said:

 Got two million for a random pile of scrap, and another two million to assemble it and make it drive? Then you have the money to buy a decent car………weather a millionaire or a “B” nobody, and I mean nobody throws money away like that on a car.

Some pay that same kind of money for an 800 square foot loft in NYC just because it overlooks Central Park.   And I don't think it even includes a space to park a Ferrari!!

 

Craig

[Alex D.]

48 minutes ago, edinmass said:

Got two million for a random pile of scrap, and another two million to assemble it and make it drive? Then you have the money to buy a decent car………weather a millionaire or a “B” nobody, and I mean nobody throws money away like that on a car.

I believe it's all relative on how much money that you have. Take the person that won the 1.5 billion lottery in Florida. What are you going to do with that kind of money. You can buy that pile of scrap crash/floor sweepings and have it rebuilt by Ferrari on just the interest earned.  If I had won that lottery, I could see me donating, sharing and doing all kinds of stupid stuff like buying and rebuilding crashed Ferrari's and Pierce Arrows, Because I can.

Edited August 21, 2023 by Alex D. (see edit history)

[Dave Wells]

Maybe there's resurrection hope for James Dean's Porsche:

 

and this McLaren

[West Peterson]

37 minutes ago, Vinny... said:

Maybe there's resurrection hope for James Dean's Porsche:

 

 

Only if there's hope that it will ever be found. If/when found, it will be rebuilt. 

[CChinn]

Imagine what the $$ mark up would be if the car was found, restored/rebuilt and proven to be James Dean’s Porsche?

[KURTRUK]

3 hours ago, West Peterson said:

 

Only if there's hope that it will ever be found. If/when found, it will be rebuilt. 

The building it is pictured in still exists, just drove by it today.  (Used to be Cockrum's Towing and garage--different business in it now.) The car aint there, though.  Most parts were scavenged and carted off soon after.

[Buffalowed Bill]

10 hours ago, edinmass said:

What makes anyone think the sale number was real? After fifty years of watching old car auctions, the only certainty is the blur between fact and fiction. I looked it over closely. In my humble opinion there was no car there, and there was no “project” there. No serious collectors wants a car that was so publicly displayed in that condition to be in their garage. It’s either a marketing gimmick of some sort of self promotion. Got two million for a random pile of scrap, and another two million to assemble it and make it drive? Then you have the money to buy a decent car………weather a millionaire or a “B” nobody, and I mean nobody throws money away like that on a car.

 

 

 

 

You may be right, but that doesn't explain why any major Classic gets restored today. But we know that are are still being restored, and often at cost far exceeding any current market value. The search for excellence seems to be inexhaustible, the cost for which seems to be no object for some. It's hard to quantify something that is unquantifiable. I don't know what motivates a Bill Harrah, JB Nethercutt or a Leno, but I know that they exist and thank god that they do (did).

[Twisted Shifter]

10 hours ago, West Peterson said:

Re: James Dean's Porsche---

Only if there's hope that it will ever be found. If/when found, it will be rebuilt. 

Here's an interesting article about Volo Museum's reward offer and search for the "Little Bastard".

 

https://www.slashgear.com/996974/the-reason-nobody-knows-what-truly-happened-to-james-deans-cursed-porsche-550-spyder/

 

 

This is another article claiming major parts of this car have been found:

https://yourtestdriver.com/porsche-james-dean-found/#google_vignette

[West Peterson]

John Woolfe ran to his 917 Porsche at the famous Le Mans running start in 1969, hopped in, closed the door and took off without strapping himself in to save time. He crashed and died in the first lap. This 1969 Porsche 917 was built relatively recently, replicating the John Woolfe car. Interestingly, John Woolfe's original serial number plate was used during the build (917-005). Ironically, when the car was finished a few years ago and run at the Le Mans Classic, it was involved in a serious crash. I wonder what it's value is (after re-restoration) compared to other more original 917 Porsches.

[TAKerry]

Not sure I would want to give that S/N a third go round!

[Scooter Guy]

The balled-up Ferrari is certainly an interesting conversation piece. 

 

I'm not sure that it was purchased with the intention of being restored or if it ever will be. 

 

I actually see it less like a restoration candidate and more as being a static display piece in as-is condition, almost like a sculpture, in a multi-vehicle collection.  

If thought of that way and compared to works and prices in the contemporary/modern/industrial art world for large scale pieces and "installations," then $1.8M is a relative bargain. 

 

Or, I guess the buyer could spend a ton more and forever be the guy that restored the wrecked Ferrari.