Ferrari
November 24th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
Ferrari is mourning the death of Sergio Scaglietti, the designer who joined forces with Enzo Ferrari to produce some of the most legendary and sought-after sort after Ferraris in the company’s history.
“Today is a sad day for Ferrari,” said Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo. “We lost a friend, a travel companion, a man who had his name forever connected to the Prancing Horse. Sergio Scaglietti leaves behind the legacy of an artist who with his talent created some of the most beautiful cars of our history. Those who had the luck to know him like I did will also remember him as a straightforward and honest man completely dedicated to his work. We will miss him.”
Sergio Scaglietti, the legendary Ferrari coachbuilder, created some of the most famous Ferrari, such as the Ferrari California, the 250 Testa Rossa, the 250 GTO and the 750 Monza. Sergio Scaglietti was a real and natural talent who, as he liked to say, made cars with his hands and with his eyes.
Although the son of a carpenter, Sergio Scaglietti became known as the ‘maestro of aluminium’, such was his skill in designing and shaping metal into classic Ferraris.
His relationship with Enzo Ferrari started when the then young mechanic was asked repair a mud flap on one of Ferrari’s cars and in 1951 he opened his own business, Carrozzeria Scaglietti, at the tender age of 17. Shunning paper and pencils, Scaglietti produced cars from within his head and through his unique skill with a hammer and aluminium. The link continues today with all Ferrari production cars made in aluminium at Carrozzeria Scaglietti, which is now part of the Ferrari company.
Carrozzeria Scaglietti has been an integral part of Ferrari much of its history and to underline his unique relationship with the Modena coachbuilder, Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo dedicated the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti to him.
November 14th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
The police over in Columbia face certain challenges other law enforcement organisations don’t have to deal with. Recently, they were given a unique problem, they had seized a stunning low-mileage Ferrari 348 from a local drug lord and were trying to sell it, but no one was buying. The mint 1991 Ferrari model had only clocked around 1,900 kilometers and had been valued at US$250,000 by Colombian authorities.
With prospective buyers too fearful to purchase the Ferrari the police turned the classic model into a patrol car painted in the Colombian national police’s green and white colors. One it was correctly attired the cops took it on a tour of the country before placing it in a police museum.
The classic sports car was seized back in 2007 from Hernando Gomez Bustamante, also known as “Rasguno” or “Scratchy”, who is currently serving time in prison in the States for drug trafficking, money laundering and various other bad guy crimes.
For the first few years after its seizure, the Ferrari was in the possession of Colombia’s National Drug Office, or DNE, which was supposed to take care of captured assets from the illegal narcotics trade. But the government decided to shut down the division in September because just too many drug assets were mysteriously disappearing.
Now Columbian police are looking for creative ways to treat the seized assets and this Ferrari is certainly evidence.
September 26th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
A brief video has been released online that gives an insight into the origins of the famed prancing horse on the Ferrari badge.
It turns out that the idea for the horse logo was inspired by a WWI Italian fighter pilot by the name of Francesco Baracca. It was Baracca who first used a prancing horse badge on the fuselage of his biplane during the Great War.
Apparently, Enzo Ferrari only spoke of the badge’s origins once and that’s how the story became known. To find out more click on the video clip below. Read the rest of this entry »
September 14th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
The striking machine you see above is the latest project from coach-builder Gullwing America named the Ferrari F-340 Competizione. The model is based on the ultra rare 1952 Ferrari 340 Mexico Berlineta of which only 3 
original examples were ever built.
That orginal 1952 models were built for competition in the Carrera Panamericana race in Mexico and now the sports car will be recreated using modern techniques. Proprietor, Arturo Alonso, from the Texas-based Gullwing America will be overseeing the complex operation. The replica is top-shelf from the start and will be based on a Ferrari 456 platform. The donor vehicle will then be re-bodied in an aluminum shell hand-made by Australian Mark Nungent. New additions will include a diffuser, rear spoiler, side vents and front splitters. Read the rest of this entry »
August 24th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
The price of vintage Ferraris has increased strongly in the last few years with some models shifting from being very expensive to absolutely ridiculous. Last weekend it all went a step further with a 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa setting a new record for the most expensive car ever sold publicly.
The price for this piece of Ferrari history was $14.9 million US dollars which it fetched during a Gooding auction at last weekend’s Pebble Beach sale. Once Gooding’s ten percent selling fee is added the total cost was an amazing $16.39 million USD.
What’s so great about this Ferrari? It was the first of the Testa Rossa model, it also has racing history once being a Scuderia Ferrari team car that competed at Le Mans. It has extra appeal to American buyers because it’s been comprehensively restored and outfitted in 1958 Le Mans NART (North American Racing Team) livery. Read the rest of this entry »
August 19th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
Over in the States it’s Monterey Car Week, a huge event for classic car enthusiasts and one that draws out some of the finest classic metal in the world.
The event has also become famous for its auctions and this year there are five auctions to take place with hundreds of classics going under the hammer. Auction houses Bonhams, Gooding & Company, Mecum, RM and Russo and Steele have all been consigning cars for the past several months and will lure in the thousands of automotive enthusiasts that gather in the Monterey peninsula every August.
It can be hard for us Kiwis to understand the scale of these auctions but to help collector car insurance company Hagerty has compiled the estimated net worth of every car being offered up in Monterey this week. The total is an incredible $230 million US dollars. That’s a lot of action and some very pricey cars. Read the rest of this entry »
July 28th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
There are few possessions more extravagant than a Ferrari sports car, but a 24-karat gold sculpture of a Ferrari would definitely be one. The striking sculpture pictured above depicts the iconic Ferrari 250 GTO and was created by Swiss artist Dante Rubli.
The unveiling of this work of car-art will take place next month at the 2011 Concours d’Elegance in Pebble Beach, California, U.S.A.
The sculpture will provide the centre piece for a special display of 20 rare Ferrari 250 GTO cars which the Concours has assembled from all over the world. The 250 GTO is one of the artists favourite cars and he built it in tribute to the men who built the original car.
This work is the third piece in Dante’s Iconic Sports Car series. The other models include a 24-karat Aston Martin DB5 and Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing. Read the rest of this entry »
July 19th, 2011 by NZ Classic Car
Ferrari won big earlier this month at the Silverstone GP. Team driver Fernando Alonso took Ferrari’s first F1 win for the season and also managed it on a historically significant occasion.
Alonso took the checkered flag for the Scuderia exactly sixty years after José Floilán González scored the team’s first ever victory at the same grand prix in 1951. That famous race was held on the same second weekend in July as this year’s race.
In an act of confident forward planning or just good luck, the very same car in which Gonzále took victory sixty years ago was at the race track. Alonso was given the historic race car and took it on a couple of hot laps, and even got it sideways coming out of a few corners.
This near-priceless 1951 Ferrari 375 today belongs to F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone, who brought it along to the circuit for an historic demonstration and entrusted it into the skilled hands of Fernando Alonso. Read the rest of this entry »
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