$6,875,000! 1962 FERRARI 250 GT SHORT WHEELBASE SPECIALE AERODINAMICA

1962 FERRARI 250 GT SHORT-WHEELBASE SPECIALE AERODINAMICA
Chassis no. 3615
Sold for US $6,875,000 Including Premium
Bonhams Auction, Monterey, CA. 2014
Coachwork by Carrozzeria Pininfarina
*One of only four Aerodinamicas on 250 GT SWB chassis
*Peerlessly luxurious lightweight 3-litre V12 two-seater
*One of the most exclusive Ferraris by Pininfarina
During the turn of the 1950s to the 1960s, the Ferrari 250 GT family of Gran Turismo designs with their front-mounted 3-litre V12 engines provided the Maranello company with a firm foundation to expand their manufacturing volume. Limited production of the parallel Superamerica series of 4-litre V12-engined prestige models was continuing to satisfy what has been described as "the fastidiousness of a few perfectionists who demanded even more performance, comfort and refinement, and who wanted even more of an image of prestige and exclusivity than could be provided by the 'standard' Ferrari".
In November 1960, at the Turin Salone dell'Automobile exhibition, Ferrari and Pininfarina had absolutely stunned the automotive world by releasing their breathtaking Superfast II model, launching an entirely new body shape for a fastidiously-detailed performance car, in effect an aerodynamically sleek Gran Turismo limousine...
Ferrari authority Antoine Prunet has described the Superfast II as follows: "This experimental creation by the great Torinese coachbuilder was actually quite remarkable for the completely new style which it proposed. Born in a wind tunnel, this harmonious design resembled the profile of an airplane wing. The leading edge was, in fact, the nose of the car, in the middle of which was the air intake for the radiator, an ellipse of very reduced dimensions resembling that of several sports Ferraris. The trailing edge was represented by the rear deck, streamlined to a point, upon which converged the curves of the roof.
The graceful curve of the hood, devoid of all harshness, was particularly remarkable, as was the shape of the windshield, whose posts, very noticeably curved inward, reinforced the effect.... This marvelous two-place Coupe can certainly be considered as one of the most significant examples of the art of coach building...".
At the Geneva Salon of 1962 a Superfast III revision of the innovative, aerodynamic, high-performance limousine was unveiled, offering a more open 'greenhouse' cabin window treatment. A Superfast IV followed, but the design of Pininfarina's peerless 'Coupe Aerodinamica' would also be applied to only four, we believe, 250 GT Berlinettas with shorter 2.40-metre wheelbase – the Passo Corto or 250 GT SWB chassis length - of which this fine example is one. And it is from the Coupe Aerodinamica theme that the so-called GTO Prototype car was produced to compete at Le Mans in 1961, leading ultimately to the legendary Ferrari 250 GTO itself.
THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

To quote directly from the Collezione Maranello Rosso booklet on this startlingly beautiful aerodyne: "Enzo Ferrari used to welcome top politicians, sports heroes and entertainers to his kingdom at Maranello, when these Ferrari enthusiasts came to pick up their (new car) directly from the hand of its creator. Just three of these sports cars were ever built. Chassis no. '3615' was assembled like a bespoke suit – this was the one and only time that this colour appeared on a Ferrari – for one of the world's greatest car collectors, the Shah of Persia. This is a truly unique vehicle, an amalgam of a 250 SWB chassis and engine in a body specially designed by Pininfarina and inspired by the Superamerica model...".
Well, ignore the delusory Shah of Persia attribution and puff, but - bodied in similar form to the 4-litre V12-engined Superamerica - this gorgeous example of Italianate automotive high fashion was supplied new in 1962 to businessman F. Gatta, finished to Pininfarina and Ferrari's highest standards and liveried in dark blue with tan interior upholstery and trim. Its Pininfarina body number was '99541', it has left-hand drive and its 'Special 400SA-type bodywork' with open headlights.
Factory records indicate that the chassis was consigned to Carrozzeria Pininfarina's Turin plant on April 7, 1962, and it was signed off as complete on June 18,1962. In July that year it was repainted into 'Grigio Marrone Italver 20563 Acryl' livery. Its Maranello factory completion date is July 23, 1962, and its formal Certificato d'Origine was issued three days later, on July 26.
It was sold new by SEFAC SpA on that same day to first owner Ferdinando Gatta, "born in Torino on 1st March 1919, resident at Strada Michele 8 in Moncalieri (Torino), Italy, price paid Italian Lire 6,950,000" as the illustrious Swiss Ferrari specialist and historian Marcel Massini's records describe
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Robert Myrick Photography