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Bonhams Gstaad Ferrari et les Prestigieuses Italiennes" Auction & Related Automobilia

Gstaad, 20 Dec 2008 at The Palace Hotel, Gstaad, Switzerland

Keith Bluemel and Bjoern Schmidt attended the Bonhams Gstaad Auction, and noted the results and high bids ... more during the next days ... some cars looked very well and other's condition did not convince ... which partly was reflected in the results ... the circumstance that the Mille Miglia deadline was antedated from the 31st December to the 20 December demotivated the potential buyer of the Ferrari 212 Moto Spyder ... which demonstrates once more the new MM organizers have plenty of room to improve in the area of customer friendliness ... but the private sales from the last 4 weeks ... 4 early even numbered Ferraris went to new stables ... encouraged an Europaen Ferrari Collector to buy the Ferrari 121 LM in an after sale transaction


Keith Bluemel words

“Ferrari et les Prestigeuses Italiennes”
The annual Bonhams auction at the prestigious Palace Hotel in Gstaad, Switzerland, was held on Saturday 20 December. The imposing building with its majestic spires and towers dominates the skyline through the trees above the town centre, and with thick snow on the ground there was a picturesque, almost fairy tale, setting for the international gathering of collectors and dealers.

Prior to the main part of the auction for the automobiles, there was an “Antipasto” comprising of an eclectic selection of 120+ lots of related memorabilia, ranging from sales brochures, through artwork, photographs, large scale hand built models, to a ½ scale Violetta Riva Ariston Junior pedal boat. Bidding was brisk in this section of the auction, with the majority of the items on offer finding new homes. The star sale was lot # 58, “A set of original documents relating to the ex-Noblet/Guichet Le Mans GT winning Ferrari 250 GTO, # 3705 GT”, which sold for a within estimate price of CHF11, 600. The 250 GTO must have been in favour, as a 1/8 scale 250 GTO model by Patrice De Conto achieved CHF8,120. A set of original factory papers for the Ferrari 121 LM achieved an above estimate CHF3,248, whilst at the lower end of the scale CHF46 would have won you a pair of 1993 and 1994 Ferrari range brochures.

It can only be said that the automobile section did not set the world on fire, whether this was due to the constantly worsening economic climate, or just that the vehicles offered didn’t stir the imagination of the attendees is hard to say, as other recent auctions have performed quite well. Only one of the three “star” lots found a new home, this being the Ferrari 121 LM, which sold in post sale negotiations for CHF3,895,380. The 250 GT “TdF” berlinetta had an ill fitting front screen, and the section of the stripe across the roof didn’t line up with the one on the bonnet, which seemed a strange restoration oversight on a car of this value. The fibreglass 308 GTB made strong money for what looked like a cosmetic re-spray, with a grubby engine bay taking the shine off it, although the Lupi restored interior looked good. The post sale of the 250 Testa Rossa Replica, made a surprising CHF230,700, as the shape was not good around the rear, much to square, and the egg-crate grill in an incorrect shape opening also did it no favours, but the buyer probably bought a lot of fun for the money, which was probably well below the construction cost.

Of the non Ferrari lots, there was a very elegant and beautifully restored Lancia B24 Aurelia Spider America, which didn’t sell. One that did, was the Maserati 3500 GT Vignale Spider, complete with factory hardtop, another beautifully restored car and equally elegant, which sold for CHF346,050. The 1933 Castagna bodied Alfa Romeo 6C Gran Sport Cabriolet, was another post auction sale, selling for CHF376,575. Maybe their upcoming sale at Retromobile in Paris in February 2009 will prove more fruitful.

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