Ferrari 250 GTO sets new world record with £32 million sale

The Ferrari 250 GTO was already the most expensive car in the world ever sold: now, it has cemented its position as reports emerge of an example selling for a staggering £32 million ($50.3m).

That’s an increase of almost 50% on the selling price of the former record-setting 250 GTO, an example built for Sir Stirling Moss and sold in 2012.

The latest deal is a private transaction and both the identity of the new owner and the location of the car are being kept secret. A London dealer is said to have been involved in the transaction, reports Bloomberg, but it’s not known where the car now resides.

It is reported that a Spanish car collector was the vendor of the Ferrari. A 1963 model, the race-prepared 250 GTO carried the chassis number 5111 and has been a regular on the classic Ferrari circuit for many years now.

It actually won the Tour de France for cars back in 1963 and has also taken part in the Le Mans Classic.

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What is the Ferrari 250 GTO?

The Ferrari 250 GTO was a ‘homologation’ special, built to go motor racing. The ‘O’ in ‘GTO’ stands for Omologato – so, Grand Touring Homologated.

It was based on the Ferrari 250 GT SWB, and used a 3.0-litre V12 engine from the 250 Testa Rossa; the ‘250’ in its name denotes the capacity in cc of each cylinder. Amusingly, the five-speed gearbox was designed by Porsche and this was the first Ferrari to use an exposed metal gearshift gate (something Ferrari sadly no longer offers).

The GTO is considered the top car to own. It’s like the Mona Lisa

It originally cost $18,500 – today, that’s the equivalent of £85,000 ($135k)! But it was a very basic car, and standard models didn’t even have a speedometer. A racing special in every sense. Just 39 were made.

Famous owners include the Pink Floyd drummer (and Guild of Motoring Writers' president) Nick Mason, the former racer Jack Sears, the designer Ralph Lauren and JCB chief Anthony Bamford – he is the only person in the world to own two.

The radio presenter and reknowned petrolhead Chris Evans is not a 250 GTO owner these days: he reportedly sold his car for £18 million ($28m) a few years ago.

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Why is the Ferrari 250 GTO the world’s most expensive car?

The Ferrari 250 GTO was one of the first cars in the world to become ‘collectable’, largely because of its rarity and its provenance. Values started to rise in the late 1970s and have not stopped since.

Values topped the $1 million mark in 1986 and the sale of a 250 GTO in 1989 for $14.6 million is considered to mark the peak of the 1980s classic car boom before the ensuing massive crash happened.

The California-based classic car dealer Don Williams told Bloomberg: "today, the GTO is considered the top car to own. It’s like the Mona Lisa. It has a mystique."

"It’s a cult car," added the London-based Ferrari dealer Joe Macari. "If you’re a billionaire, you feel you have to have one."

By Richard Aucock, contributor, MSN Cars