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Details
PROPERTY FROM THE PATRICK S. RYAN COLLECTION
The ex-Sports Cars Illustrated road test car
1959 FERRARI 250 GT LONG WHEELBASE SPYDER CALIFORNIA
COACHWORK BY SCAGLIETTI
Chassis No. 1203 GT
Engine No. 1203 GT (Type 128D)
Black with tan leather interior
Engine: V12, single overhead camshaft per bank, 2,953cc., 250bhp at 7,000rpm; Gearbox: four-speed manual; Suspension: front, independent with coil springs, rear, semi-elliptic leaf springs; Brakes: four wheel drum. Left hand drive.
Luigi Chinetti, the famous American Ferrari importer and driver, eventually convinced Enzo Ferrari to produce an open version of the highly successful competition 250 Berlinetta. The resultant 'Spyder California' was clearly aimed at the American market, and the first prototype was completed in December of 1957. Its mechanical specification was very similar to the 250GT Tour de France. The incredible Pinin Farina design was built by Scaglietti and provided an elegant two-seater sports car that has to this day lost none of its appeal.
Following the initial series of cars, a revised second series was produced, of which only 27 examples were built, with an engine and chassis that were more akin to the 250 SWB Berlinetta. The second series cars were fitted with the improved Type 128D motor with reinforced connecting rods, an improved crankshaft and twin distributors. At the same time a revised chassis (Type 508D) was also introduced which retained the same 2.60 meter wheelbase. Some minor bodywork changes were evident such as a new profile to the rear wheel arches, and a few cars received the uncovered, open headlight arrangement. Some vehicles were also uprated with competition specification engines and a few rare examples were fully bodied in lightweight aluminum for racing purposes. Success on the racing circuits included 8th overall and first in the GT class at the 12 Hours of Sebring for Ritchie Ginther and Howard Hively in 1959. Perhaps even more impressive than this result the same year was the 5th place finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans by Fernand Tavano and Bob Grossman in the NART entered competition spyder.
Chassis no. 1203 GT was completed at the factory in late January 1959 and was we believe sold new to someone in Rome, Italy who used it with Italian plates 'Roma 678950' that effectively belonged to a Fiat 1100!
After a brief spell in Rome it appears the car was sold to Luigi Chinetti Motors in New York (presumably as a new car) and it was then sold to Dr. Harvey Schur of Scarsdale, New York. Harvey Schur was clearly a tremendous Ferrari enthusiast and since he was too young to road race he used his new California Spyder in drag races! In the September 1959 Special Issue: THE FABULOUS CARS OF ENZO FERRARI of Sports Cars Illustrated, Dr. Schur loaned his car to the magazine for a double road test, the other car being a much raced Tour De France Berlinetta belonging to George Arents. Although almost inconceivable today, part of the road test of the California Spyder was conducted through Manhattan's mid town, mid-day traffic on a 90-plus degree day. Later both cars were driven up to Lime Rock Park where they were thoroughly put through their paces. As expected the writers marveled at the power and beauty of both vehicles: For one thing, the California and the Berlinetta have the most beautiful bodies this side of the Riviera. We don't know how or why, but the Italians seem to have a nearly exclusive distributorship on auto beauty. It is also interesting to note that the California was quicker in the acceleration tests up to 70mph than the TdF and at 100mph it was just 0.3 second behind. In addition it was quicker to the standing quarter mile at 15.5 seconds. It appears that Harvey Schur was highly successful at drag racing his car and when told of the timed runs he commented, he was quite disappointed in the results of our timed runs, pointing out that he has frequently bettered 14.0 seconds in the quarter-mile.
In the early 1960s Schur returned his Ferrari to Chinetti Motors and presumably upgraded to a newer model. In a conversation with Patrick Ryan a few years ago Mr. Schur was amazed to hear of the values currently being attained by Ferraris, especially the competition cars. He recalled that at one stage his family had agreed to purchase a competition Short Wheel Base, but when they discovered the car was disguised as a new road car and indeed had competed in a race such as Le Mans, they sent the car back! In 1965 the California Spyder was sold to Gary Wales of Detroit, Michigan and in May the following year he showed the car at the 2nd Annual Ferrari Club of America meeting in Indianapolis. In 1968 Roger Adkins of Michigan owned the car, keeping it until 1983. The Ferrari is pictured on page 66 of George M. Carrick's book The Spyder California and it was photographed in the April 1972 issue #34 of Prancing Horse Magazine for an article by Warren Fitzgerald.
In 1983 the car passed to noted west coast collector Tom Price who had considerable restoration work carried out in around 1987. The well respected Italian car specialist Nino Epifani undertook the mechanical restoration work. This included removal of the engine and transmission, disassembly and rebuilding where necessary. Other work at this time included stripping, sandblasting and repainting by Lindsay's Auto Body (who also painted the Price GTO some years prior). Ken Nemenick fitted new leather upholstery and a new top was also installed. In 1988 the California changed hands again, this time to Bob Baker of Omaha, Nebraska who a year later sold the car to Patrick Ryan.
In Mr. Ryan's ownership the Ferrari has seen limited use. The car was shown in 1989 at the Ferrari Club of America National Meet in Atlanta, Georgia in June 1989. One item that puzzled the judges was that the car had Cavallino rampante Ferrari badges on both the nose and trunk, but it is unknown how or when these were earned. In all probability this stunning car has probably only traveled around 300 miles in the past 11 eleven years, and as with the other cars in this collection, it has been carefully maintained and exercised when necessary.
The engine is the original, 1203 GT with numero interno 0186 D as confirmed by the factory build sheet, and is to the correct specification type 128D. When delivered new the engine was equipped with high lift camshafts and ran on a compression ratio of 9:1. According to Schur, Luigi Chinetti claimed the car was more powerful than standard and was rated at 260bhp. (Pat Ryan also points out that it has a cold air box for the carburetors). Perhaps noted Ferrari historian Antoine Prunet has best summed up the California Spyder: Its limited production (106 examples) has not stopped the 250 GT Spyder California from being among the most desirable Ferraris ever produced. 1203GT is certainly one of the best long wheelbase examples owing to its overall originality and desirable features such as covered headlights and a well documented history of ownership. It is the ideal entry for many of the great touring events that are currently so popular.
WITHOUT RESERVE
The ex-Sports Cars Illustrated road test car
1959 FERRARI 250 GT LONG WHEELBASE SPYDER CALIFORNIA
COACHWORK BY SCAGLIETTI
Chassis No. 1203 GT
Engine No. 1203 GT (Type 128D)
Black with tan leather interior
Engine: V12, single overhead camshaft per bank, 2,953cc., 250bhp at 7,000rpm; Gearbox: four-speed manual; Suspension: front, independent with coil springs, rear, semi-elliptic leaf springs; Brakes: four wheel drum. Left hand drive.
Luigi Chinetti, the famous American Ferrari importer and driver, eventually convinced Enzo Ferrari to produce an open version of the highly successful competition 250 Berlinetta. The resultant 'Spyder California' was clearly aimed at the American market, and the first prototype was completed in December of 1957. Its mechanical specification was very similar to the 250GT Tour de France. The incredible Pinin Farina design was built by Scaglietti and provided an elegant two-seater sports car that has to this day lost none of its appeal.
Following the initial series of cars, a revised second series was produced, of which only 27 examples were built, with an engine and chassis that were more akin to the 250 SWB Berlinetta. The second series cars were fitted with the improved Type 128D motor with reinforced connecting rods, an improved crankshaft and twin distributors. At the same time a revised chassis (Type 508D) was also introduced which retained the same 2.60 meter wheelbase. Some minor bodywork changes were evident such as a new profile to the rear wheel arches, and a few cars received the uncovered, open headlight arrangement. Some vehicles were also uprated with competition specification engines and a few rare examples were fully bodied in lightweight aluminum for racing purposes. Success on the racing circuits included 8th overall and first in the GT class at the 12 Hours of Sebring for Ritchie Ginther and Howard Hively in 1959. Perhaps even more impressive than this result the same year was the 5th place finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans by Fernand Tavano and Bob Grossman in the NART entered competition spyder.
Chassis no. 1203 GT was completed at the factory in late January 1959 and was we believe sold new to someone in Rome, Italy who used it with Italian plates 'Roma 678950' that effectively belonged to a Fiat 1100!
After a brief spell in Rome it appears the car was sold to Luigi Chinetti Motors in New York (presumably as a new car) and it was then sold to Dr. Harvey Schur of Scarsdale, New York. Harvey Schur was clearly a tremendous Ferrari enthusiast and since he was too young to road race he used his new California Spyder in drag races! In the September 1959 Special Issue: THE FABULOUS CARS OF ENZO FERRARI of Sports Cars Illustrated, Dr. Schur loaned his car to the magazine for a double road test, the other car being a much raced Tour De France Berlinetta belonging to George Arents. Although almost inconceivable today, part of the road test of the California Spyder was conducted through Manhattan's mid town, mid-day traffic on a 90-plus degree day. Later both cars were driven up to Lime Rock Park where they were thoroughly put through their paces. As expected the writers marveled at the power and beauty of both vehicles: For one thing, the California and the Berlinetta have the most beautiful bodies this side of the Riviera. We don't know how or why, but the Italians seem to have a nearly exclusive distributorship on auto beauty. It is also interesting to note that the California was quicker in the acceleration tests up to 70mph than the TdF and at 100mph it was just 0.3 second behind. In addition it was quicker to the standing quarter mile at 15.5 seconds. It appears that Harvey Schur was highly successful at drag racing his car and when told of the timed runs he commented, he was quite disappointed in the results of our timed runs, pointing out that he has frequently bettered 14.0 seconds in the quarter-mile.
In the early 1960s Schur returned his Ferrari to Chinetti Motors and presumably upgraded to a newer model. In a conversation with Patrick Ryan a few years ago Mr. Schur was amazed to hear of the values currently being attained by Ferraris, especially the competition cars. He recalled that at one stage his family had agreed to purchase a competition Short Wheel Base, but when they discovered the car was disguised as a new road car and indeed had competed in a race such as Le Mans, they sent the car back! In 1965 the California Spyder was sold to Gary Wales of Detroit, Michigan and in May the following year he showed the car at the 2nd Annual Ferrari Club of America meeting in Indianapolis. In 1968 Roger Adkins of Michigan owned the car, keeping it until 1983. The Ferrari is pictured on page 66 of George M. Carrick's book The Spyder California and it was photographed in the April 1972 issue #34 of Prancing Horse Magazine for an article by Warren Fitzgerald.
In 1983 the car passed to noted west coast collector Tom Price who had considerable restoration work carried out in around 1987. The well respected Italian car specialist Nino Epifani undertook the mechanical restoration work. This included removal of the engine and transmission, disassembly and rebuilding where necessary. Other work at this time included stripping, sandblasting and repainting by Lindsay's Auto Body (who also painted the Price GTO some years prior). Ken Nemenick fitted new leather upholstery and a new top was also installed. In 1988 the California changed hands again, this time to Bob Baker of Omaha, Nebraska who a year later sold the car to Patrick Ryan.
In Mr. Ryan's ownership the Ferrari has seen limited use. The car was shown in 1989 at the Ferrari Club of America National Meet in Atlanta, Georgia in June 1989. One item that puzzled the judges was that the car had Cavallino rampante Ferrari badges on both the nose and trunk, but it is unknown how or when these were earned. In all probability this stunning car has probably only traveled around 300 miles in the past 11 eleven years, and as with the other cars in this collection, it has been carefully maintained and exercised when necessary.
The engine is the original, 1203 GT with numero interno 0186 D as confirmed by the factory build sheet, and is to the correct specification type 128D. When delivered new the engine was equipped with high lift camshafts and ran on a compression ratio of 9:1. According to Schur, Luigi Chinetti claimed the car was more powerful than standard and was rated at 260bhp. (Pat Ryan also points out that it has a cold air box for the carburetors). Perhaps noted Ferrari historian Antoine Prunet has best summed up the California Spyder: Its limited production (106 examples) has not stopped the 250 GT Spyder California from being among the most desirable Ferraris ever produced. 1203GT is certainly one of the best long wheelbase examples owing to its overall originality and desirable features such as covered headlights and a well documented history of ownership. It is the ideal entry for many of the great touring events that are currently so popular.
WITHOUT RESERVE
Special notice
This lot has no reserve.