A 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider has seen the top bids in Gooding & Company's Scottsdale auction, which closed on January 17.
 The 250 GT California Spider is a variant of Ferrari's most popular line and was intended for the US market |
The auction came amid a week of sales in Arizona, where some of the world's top collectors gathered to bid on the finest in the car collecting world. The Ferrari made $7.7m, as one of just 50 ever built.
The 250 series is the most celebrated of all lines by Ferrari, with the 250 GT California Spider LWB intended for the North American market.
With coachwork from Scaglietti, it uses the same 237 hp engine as the 250 Tour de France cars, and was later superseded by the SWB (short wheelbase) version in 1960.
As ever, Ferrari dominated the sale, with a 400 Superamerica Series I Coupe Aerodinamico selling at $4m.
Described as the "ultimate coachbuilt Ferrari of the early 1960s" by Gooding and Company, the example at auction boasts a special Coupe Aerodinamico body from PininFarina, and is one of only seven SWBs with covered headlights.
Also highlighting was an important example of the 1966 Porsche 906 Carrera 6, which sold for $1.9m. One of Porsche's most successful racers, the Carrera 6 had a dazzling racing career and paved the way for the iconic 917 programme, which dominated endurance racing for years.
A 1970 Lamborghini Muira P400 S, the world's first mid-engined V12 supercar, came in at $1.1m. It is one of just 140 examples of the Muira S and has undergone a full refurbishment.
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