A CLASSIC Ferrari has sold at auction for an incredible amount of money, despite having sat rotting in a barn for 40 years.
As you can see from these amazing pictures, the old 1962 Ferrari 250 GTE is not in a good way, yet bidders were falling over themselves for a chance to take it home.
In fact, the bidding ended at just shy of £110,000, but there was an important reason for the frenzy.
Auction house Brightwells said: “As one can see, time and poor storage have not been kind to the poor old Ferrari, but aside from the front seats, gearbox/bell housing, heads and carbs, it looks largely complete.
“Even at today’s values (£350k+ for a good one), it is probably beyond economic restoration.
“…but of course the underpinnings and matching engine block makes it the perfect donor for a Lusso or GTO replica which is a different story altogether.
“What you see in the pictures is what you get, a fabulous project which will give the 250 a new lease of life.”
Brightwells is referring to the fact that the chassis and engine underneath this rusty Ferrari are worth a fortune if taken out.
The ‘250’ Ferrari come in many forms, including the 250 GTO which is amongst the most expensive classic cars in the world – some delling for £30million or more.
Of course, building a replica will never mean that status, but a matching 250 engine and chassis is still worth more than a GTE slotted into a replica 250 GTO or 250 Lusso.
Savvy car restoration experts clearly saw the opportunity, as Brightwells originally predicted this lot to go for as little at £40,000.
Given only 36 Ferrari 250 GTOs were ever built, building replicas is fast becoming big business and opportunities like this don’t come along very often.
Some of the finest replica GTOs have even fetched more than £1million.
