A tribute to the past
Few Ferrari on show
The highlights
Some other examples of interest
Verdict
A tribute to the past
The “Techno Classica” which is held annually in spring in Essen, Germany,
claims to be the world’s largest classic car exposition and is described as an
”international swap meet for oldtimers, classic cars, motorcycles, spare parts and
the restoration industry”.
However, it is at least the most important show of its kind in Europe, and thus the
Techno Classica usually attracts many dealers who have one or several Ferrari on
offer. This year, the exhibition was hosted between April 6 and 9.
Few Ferrari on show
Very briefly: This year’s Techno Classica mirrored the situation on the Ferrari
market perfectly. There are almost no really important cars on the market, others
are overpriced, and even the number of ”normal” classic road models of the
marque like the 330 GTC, 365 GTC/4 or 365 GTB/4 Daytona which are for sale is
very, very small.
The highlights
The real star among the few Ferrari automobiles which had been brought to
Essen – I counted only 16 examples! – was the very rare 625 Targa Florio Spider
Vignale, s/n 0304TF, of noted classic car specialist Klaus Werner of
Wuppertal/Germany. This car looks like one of the so-called Series II
spyder-bodies by Vignale which clothed the better known 166 MM/53s, 250 MMs or
340 MMs, but it has the 2,5 liter four-cylinder engine which was also installed in
the formula cars of that period. Prior owners of s/n 0304TF include the well-known
Ferrari historian Antoine Prunet.
Jack Braam-Ruben of Maastricht/Netherlands again showed his incredibly original
212 Inter Coupé Vignale s/n 0217EL which he had already displayed during the
Rétromobile show in Paris about two months earlier. At the Techno Classica, s/n
0217EL – which has been dug out from a barn in Cuba – was shown by noted
auctioneers Coys of Kensington. Any future owner of this timepiece should think
about restoring the mechanical components only while leaving the exterior and
interior in the original state.
The Automuseum Deventer, Netherlands, presented the 250 GTE s/n 3611GT
which has been rebodied many years ago using the spectacular Drogo body
which had originally dressed 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Competizione s/n 2735GT. I
understand that s/n 3611GT is American-owned at present; in 1998, the car had
been badly crashed in a historic race at Imola. In Essen, the car was tagged
650.000,-DM, which is WAY too much in my opinion. Well, the Drogo body is
flamboyant and the design is often being regarded as one of the most beautiful or
desirable ever used on a Ferrari, but basically s/n 3611GT is ”only” a 250 GTE
whose engine has been upgraded to competition specs.
The German classic car dealer C. F. Mirbach of Riedering near Munich showed an
immaculate 250 GT Coupé Boano. This early example (s/n 0505GT) has been
restored to perfection and has reportedly been based in Austria for many years
already. I was told that the price was between 400.000,-DM and 450.000,-DM,
which is unfortunately at least 75.000,-DM to much, even for this car.
Some other examples of interest
French dealer Michel Mhitarian had brought several Ferrari from Paris. He
reportedly sold a nicely made 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Replica, based on 330 GT
2+2 Series II s/n 8441GT. This replica had been manufactured by the famous
bodywork expert Allegretti in Italy; some years ago, 8441GT had passed into
French ownership through well-known German Ferrari specialist Mario Bernardi.
Mhitarian’s company ”MMC” also displayed a 288 GTO and an F40. The 288
GTO’s serial number 52729 easily identified the car as an early example which
was sold new to former Ferrari Club Italia-president Emilio Cassinielli of
Allessandria/Italy. S/n 52729 is in a good, but not excellent state, and with about
38.000 kms on the clock, the asking price of 480.000,-DM was slightly too high.
The ”Oldtimer Garage” of Memmingen/Germany offered a nice 250 GT Coupé
Pininfarina (s/n 1097GT) which had been imported from Sweden by a classic car
enthusiast living in northern Germany. He once told me ”I bought it because it was
cheap.”, and now being priced in the region of 115.000,-DM, this restored example
still isn’t overpriced.
What I found somehow amusing was the idea by a man living in
Wuppertal/Germany of selling his Dino 246 GT at about 135.000,-DM. This is the
price-range of the Dino 246 GTS, but s/n 04246 on offer is a coupé which had
been imported from the U.S. a number of years ago. At a first glance, the light
metallic blue Dino looked quite nice, but a close look on how the front wheels fit
into the arches revealed that this car very probably once had a heavy accident
which has been badly repaired. So... at least 60.000,-DM too much on the sticker!
Verdict
As mentioned earlier, the turnout of Ferrari automobiles was meager at the
Techno Classica 2000. But this simply proved that one does not need classic car
shows to sell interesting and collectible Ferrari.
|
