1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider
Sheltering in a garage, conserved in good condition, two specialists discovered a Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider, with covered headlights, beneath piles of newspapers. It had been bought new by the actor Gérard Blain, then sold to fellow actor Alain Delon, who was photographed several times at the wheel of this machine, including in 1964 with Jane Fonda during the filming of ‘Les Félins’ and on the Côte d’Azur with Shirley MacLaine.
This Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider is one of 37 examples. The Pininfarina-designed cabriolet was unknown to marque historians until now! It is bound to attract the attention of collectors of important historic Ferrari.
The California Spider emerged with supercar performance and became highly desirable due to its limited availability. Each car was special too, and some examples came with competition-spec engines or the very rare factory hard top.
Inside, each Spider car had a no-frills interior and a small heater was the only luxury. Behind the seats, a fabric top was installed which was tidy, and well-proportioned when upright, but was made with no inner liner.
As this car has been in the elements for decades, it will require a full restoration which will probably cost upwards of a million dollars or more. The restoration cost is nothing to the purchase price which I think will be well over $11,000,000. Yes, over eleven million dollars for a car that needs everything!
