Artcurial sold a 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport at €32 / $35.7 million as the most-expensive car ever at public auction in euro terms – second if priced in dollar. The 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport was an official Scuderia Ferrari works team car that helped secure the world championship in 1957. Artcurial set seven auction world records including most-expensive car ever sold in euro, and model records for the Ferrari 335 S and Ferrari Testarossa. Six cars sold for over a million dollar with four breaking the million-euro mark.
Artcurial Paris Rétromobile Sale 2016
Artcurial’s annual Paris Rétromobile classic car auction was held on 5 and 6 February 2016. On offer were around 124 cars plus a further 50 Citroens in a single-marque sale. Artcurial had a sell-through rate of 73% for the first part of the auction earning almost $77 million. The Citroen sale had a sell-through rate of 98% earning $1.7 million.
As usual, a fantastic variety of cars were on offer – many little known and rare European models – but as in 2015, Artcurial offered a couple of top Ferraris. Artcurial was not expected to repeat the tremendous success of the 2015 auction when the barn-find Baillon collection sent 59 cars to auction including a world-record $18.6 million for a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider.
However, with the 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport by Scaglietti, Artcurial again stole the headlines in 2016 when it set a new world record price as the most-expensive car ever sold in euro terms.
Million Dollar Cars at Artcurial Paris 2016 Sale
The following cars sold for more than a million dollars at the Artcurial Paris Rétromobile 2016 classic car auction:
| Year | Car | Price ($) | Price (€) |
| 1957 | Ferrari 335 Sport by Scaglietti | 35,711,359 | 32,075,200 |
| 1963 | Aston Martin DB4 Convertible Series V | 1,644,018 | 1,473,200 |
| 1986 | Ferrari Testarossa Spider Valea | 1,350,411 | 1,210,000 |
| 1972 | Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona | 1,064,170 | 953,600 |
| 1995 | Bugatti EB110 SS “Sport Competizione – Le Mans” | 1,050,890 | 941,700 |
| 1995 | Bugatti EB110 Super Sport | 1,037,610 | 929,800 |
Auction held in Euro, prices include premium. Currency conversion €1 = $1.11.
1957 Ferrari 335 Sport by Scaglietti
Artcurial sold the most-expensive car ever in euro terms when it achieved €32,075,200 for a 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport at the Paris Rétromobile 2016 sale. In dollar terms, the price converted to around $35,700,000 making it the second-most expensive car ever sold at public auction. The 1962/63 Ferrari 250 GTO that Bonhams sold for $38 million at the 2014 Quail Lodge sale converted to “only” €28.5 million at the time of sale. It became only the second car ever to have sold for more than $30 million and the sixth to achieve a result in excess of $20 million.
This Ferrari was an official Scuderia Ferrari works team car. It was originally a 315S and raced in this specification at the 1957 Sebring 12 Hours and finished a splendid second in the last Mille Miglia with Wolfgang von Trips at the steering wheel. It was converted to a 335 Sport by Ferrari in preparation for the Le Mans race, where Mike Hawthorn was the first ever to complete a lap at faster than 200 km/h average speed.
The car helped the Ferrari team secure the World Championship in 1957 before being sold to the N.A.R.T. team that raced the 335 Sport in North America for several years. Its best result ever was victory at the 1958 Cuban Grand Prix driven by Stirling Moss and Masten Gregory.
See 1957 Ferrari 315 S / 335 S – The Second Most-Expensive Car Ever for more on this special Ferrari.
1963 Aston Martin DB4 Convertible Series V
Artcurial achieved a strong result of € 1,473,200 ($1,644,0189 for the 1963 Aston Martin DB4 Convertible Series V. Only 70 of the Aston Martin DB4 Series V Convertibles were built with only 19 left-hand drive examples.
1986 Ferrari Testarossa Spider Valeo
A 1986 Ferrari Testarossa Spider Valeo was the first car sold by Artcurial IN 2016 to achieve over a million euro when it sold for €1,210,000 ($1,350,411) – well above the €680,000 to €900,000 pre-auction estimate. This car is a unique one-off with other Testarossas unlikely to reach similar values for some time to come.
This unique 1986 Ferrari Testarossa Spider Valeo was built by Ferrari for Gianni Agnelli to celebrate the anniversary of him taking over FIAT, which owned Ferrari. Although Pininfarina and Richard Straman converted a few cars, Ferrari never offered the Testarossa in a spider version to the public. In 1991, Agnelli sold the car to a friend, whose estate offered the car for sale in Paris.
1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona
Artcurial achieved €953,600 ($1,064,170) for a 1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona at the Paris Rétromobile 2016 sale. This is the second Daytona to have achieved over a million dollar this year but at least eight others have failed to reach a million dollar at auctions in 2016.
1990s Bugattis
Buggatis from the 1990s are scorned by many marque enthusiasts but Artcurial achieved high results for two very special cars from this era. These cars were from the collection of Gildo Pallanca Pastor, a Monaco-based racing driver.
The two 1995 Bugatti EB110 Super Sports achieved near identical results:
- Pastor used a 1995 Bugatti EB110 Super Sport to set a new ice speed record of 296.34 km in 1995 – a record only bettered in 2013.
- The second Bugatti EB110 SS “Sport Competizione – Le Mans” was prepared to race at Le Mans 1996 but crashed during practice and would not be repaired in time to participate in the actual race.
The 1999 Bugatti EB112 Berline failed to sell despite a highest bid of €1.9 million. This car is one of only two ever made and resembles remarkably closely the Porsche Panamera, which appeared more than a decade later. Pastor created the cars from the spares he bought when Bugatti went bankrupt in 1995. The car is fitted with a 6-liter, V12 engine producing 455 BHP to propel the saloon car from 0 – 100 km/h in 4.4 seconds and a top speed of 300 km/h.
Top Cars Not Selling at Artcurial Paris 2016
A few of the top cars that failed to sell at Artcurial’s Rétromobile Paris 2016 include:
- The 1963 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta attracted a highest bid of €7.8 million that should have brought the price close to $10 million. (This Ferrari was later sold in a private deal for €8.1 million / $9.2 million.)
- As at many other recent auctions, Artcurial failed to sell an expensive classic Alfa Romeo. The 1929 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Super Sport attracted a highest bid of €1.26 million.
- A 1988 Porsche 959 failed to sell with a highest bid of €880,000.
- Another notable car that failed to sell was the 1960 Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet Series II. Only around 200 of these cars were built of which four were offered at auction in Scottsdale and Paris in the past two weeks. Three failed to sell with the fourth sold at RM Sotheby’s Scottsdale sale achieving well below expectations.
See also: 2016 Artcurial Paris Auction (Preview) for more on these cars.
