[the art of automotive] TIMELESS DESIGN & ELEGANCE

250 GTO - Gran turismo Omologato, produced by Ferrari from 1962 to 1964,
Only 36 example in the world.  

© instagram @jhgomezphoto

Exhibited at the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao on the occasion of the exhibition MOTION. Autos, Art, Architecture by Norman Foster's.

The story of the 250 GTO begins with "I want to win," a short but definitely comprehensive phrase uttered by Enzo Ferrari, the founder. Engineers and designers had it well in mind when in 1960 'the Drake' asked them to make a competition car that could beat the Jaguar E-Type in the 1962 Mondiale Marche.

And so it was as Giotto Bizzarrini, chief engineer, realized in a short time and on the chassis of a Ferrari 250 GT short wheelbase a small, light and extremely fast car: the 250 GTO-Gran Turismo Omologata-was being born, the most precious and refined car of all time. It was nicknamed "the Monster," a name that came from the car's excellent performance and probably also from the sound of the 3-liter 12-cylinder engine screaming from the exhausts; the full name, however, came from the 250 cubic centimeters of each of the twelve cylinders, GT for Gran Turismo and O for Omologata.

By August 1961 the car's first prototype was ready to be tested on the Monza track by Belgian driver Willy Mairesse. The results came quickly: "Never until today has a gran turismo been seen ahead of the single-seaters," Enzo Ferrari said with satisfaction.

Winner of first place in the Gran Turismo class 23 times in two years, the Ferrari 250 GTO is considered by many to be the best Ferrari of all time in terms of performance, dynamics, and that timeless elegance given by the total absence of edges. And that is why it has become the car with the highest selling price in the world.

Coveted by all the richest collectors in the world, the 250 GTO has not always been worth six figures. While in 1962 a new example cost about $3,500 dollars, in the late 1970s when Nick Mason of Pink Floyd decides to buy it, the price was four times its value. Even so, 12 years later, Ralph Lauren will buy his example for about 650 thousand dollars, 3 years before the millionaire price that will make it go through several auctions and sellers with values between $7 and $35 million in 2012. However, the latest craziest will be given by the American multimillionaire David MacNeil-CEO di WeatherTech- with $70 million in 2018 with the model with chassis number 4153, which participated in the 1963 24 Hours of Le Mans by finishing second in class and fourth overall, and which won the Tour de France automobile race the following year. 

© instagram @jhgomezphoto

'The more time passes, the more we witness the demise of internal combustion engine cars,' says Ken Gross, automotive historian and longtime judge of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

Each piece of the car brings together everything that Ferrari meant at the time, and helped define what Ferrari still is today: Unique and inimitable, like a work of art. We have no doubt that these models, considered works of 20th century industrial art, will be even more valuable when they disappear.

   
© instagram @jhgomezphoto