There are so many hot cars auctioned off every day that it can be difficult to keep up with them. You may see an article here and there about a celebrity’s classic car heading to auction, but unless you are a vintage vehicle enthusiast you may never know! Thankfully, Montway Auto Transport has got your back, and every Wednesday we will be posting on the latest and hottest cars going to auction or have recently been auctioned off.
Ferraris seem to be the type of car that are auctioned off frequently, so it would take a lot for one to stick out enough to be reported on, right? Well, when a Ferrari- or any car for that matter- sells for $11.9 million people start talking. That’s what happened when the 1953 340/375 MM Berlinetta Competizione Ferrari sold for that much just two weeks ago.
Why Is It So Famous?
The vintage set of wheels that was once driven by the likes of Mike Hawthorn and Emilio Giuseppe “Nino” Farina was up for auction at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este in Cernobbio, Italy and was sold by British collector Paul Vestey.
$11.9 million is a number that likely wont be forgotten, but you should know that this is only the third most expensive car sold at an auction ever. In fact, the most expensive car ever auctioned off was actually another Ferrari: a 1959 Ferrari Testa Rossa prototype that went for $16.9 million in 2011. For this Berlinetta Ferrari though, it took 20 minutes for bidding to end and for the vehicle to be handed over to the winning anonymous bidder.
So why did someone decide to fork out nearly $12 million for this old-school Ferrari?
Well for one, the car was driven by Mike Hawthorn and “Nino” Farina who are both extremely well-known in the race car driving circuit. Hawthorn won the 1955 24-hour of Le Mans race and Farina was the first ever Formula One World Champion. Aside from that, the car represented Ferrari in 1953 at the 24-hour of Le Mans and was driven by Farina and Hawthorn in the race before it was disqualified during the 12th lap.
For race-car enthusiasts, that is enough to reach deep down into pockets and hand out millions for this red cruiser. Do you think they’ll be taking it for a smooth Sunday cruise on a hot sunny day? For that much money, we’d guess probably not!
IMAGE: Courtesy of Flickr by exfordy
