Growing Up, They Wanted to Drive a Ferrari. Now, They’re Wealthy Enough to Buy One
The market for new cars is sputtering. But in the rarefied world of collectible rides, nostalgia is feeding a frenzy.
This 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO sold for $38.5 million at a Mecum auction in Florida on Jan. 17.
Source: David LeeThe tenor of this year’s collectible car auction season was set on Jan. 17, when each of the so-called Ferrari five — a 288 GTO, F40, F50, Enzo and LaFerrari — smashed sales records in the span of two hours at a Mecum auction in Florida.
Exhibit A: At $8.5 million, the sale of the 288 almost doubled the previous $4.4 million record from 2022. To top that off, a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO sold for $38.5 million. The former racer is considered a lifetime achievement attainable for only the most discerning collectors. One of 36 made, and the only white one to leave the factory, this “Bianco Speciale” was nabbed by David Lee, a prominent Ferrari collector and the owner and chief executive officer of Hing Wa Lee Jewelers in Los Angeles. “A GTO was my high school dream car. I didn’t ever think I could actually own one.”