The court records say "1969 Pininfarina" and a Dino were still in her possession when she died. I quizzed various people while researching the article and only one had a description of the cars being "one really small (i'm guessing the dino") and "one really big one" which I took for a Queen Mother. Sadly no serial numbers in the various printed and court records. T308 Image Unavailable, Please Login
Sandy's maiden name was Hara, not Tara. As for two kids.....if they did exist, I never met or heard of these cousins. Your description of her life was pretty damn accurate. She was one lonely lady. This was where I got my first proof that money does not buy happiness. As for the Ferraris, I admit that I do not know a 330 from a 250 from a Dino. I googled a Daytona Spyder and sure enough, that was the car that Sandy took me around town in. She often mentioned that the Spyder was her absolute favorite so I know that her wishes were not met when she died. Your story seems to validate a lot of what I shared prior. The stamp collection you mentioned? Sandy almost gave me that but decided on the Rolex instead. Wonder what those stamps would be worth today?
My lack of knowledge is bumping up against my memory. I googled pininfarina from the article and that DEFINITELY was not the car Sandy took me in. The Dino was closer but I'll be damned if that was the correct car either. I guess the fact that this was over 30 years ago may have stunted my memory. Anyway, the story remains the same.....Heiress crashes Ferrari and is buried in the wrong car!
SJG, Thanks for posting the anecdotes about your aunt. This story certainly deserved more than "oil heiress buried in car". Do you know how Ike and Sandy met? Do you have any anecdotes from the their earlier days that your mother or aunts might know?
There is no Pinninfarina model Ferrari, the Daytona was designed by Pinninfarina as was many others beginning in the late 60s and they all wear the Pinninfarina badge, the press or whomever had no Ferrari knowledge and assumed the Daytona was a Pinninfarina, there is no "Daytona" badge on the 365GTB/4, easy mistake
A North American Daytona Spyder would be a true convertible, whereas the Dino 206/246 even if a GTS would be a Targa roof type configuration, with the rear portion of the roof fixed, like the Porsche 914. The lift out portion would be a hard steel panel like the modern 328GTS...so not a true convertible, more like a T-Top. (My Pontiac bloodlines showing thru a little there... ) I think the recollection of a 'convertible' would indicate a Daytona, as well. A shame the accident damage was not repaired, I don't follow THAT logic when you are stirring a pot of money that large.....they should have let Junior's House of Color get that right. *saying brief prayer, rest her soul* Certainly the rare stamp collection probably outweighed the cash value of the watch, but at the end of the day at least you know what time it is. The part mentioning the children must be incorrect, as they would have been listed as the most direct heirs..........
365GTB/4 Spyder is still a pretty rare car, is there a registry that would reflect ownership history?
Funny about the concrete cap, to insure against grave robbing........ALL of Texas is now a 'high crime' area!!! LOL!
I'll bet at the time she thought the watch was a greater gift since it had belonged to her husband. I looked through the Texas Monthly archives to see if there was ever a story written about this and didn't find anything. This has the making of an in depth cover story. Think about it, old Texas family, cattle and oil fortune, fast lifestyle, early death of heir and then heiress, and then the legal battles over multiple wills. I'm sure the West's would hate it, but SJG's family might like the opportunity to set the record straight.
sjg, Just to clarify, Pininfarina is an Italian autobody design and manufacturing firm. They designed and built the body of the 330 America that your aunt was buried in (by the way, there were only 50 Americas ever made, making it the rarest of the three Ferraris she owned). The Daytona body was designed by Pininfarina but built by Scaglietti (I believe 121 were made). The 365 GT 2+2 was designed and built by Pininfarina (800 made). The Dino was designed by Pininfarina but I don't remember if it was built by them or Scaglietti. Can someone post a set of pictures of a Daytona spyder; a 330 America or series 3 250GTE; a 365 2+2; and a '74 Dino GTS so that maybe sjg's memory will be jogged. Regards, Art S.
Here are some nice pictures from the models mentioned above (not my pictures) 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spyder: http://www.fantasyjunction.com/archive.php?id=b2d8af9f70001ed21531fdb4d35bb1c2 330 America: http://www.ferraris-online.com/pages/carintro.php?reqcardir=FE-330GT-4975 365 GT 2+2: http://www.fantasyjunction.com/archive.php?id=8666382c8e0cba1ebd2b90f92df66d72 Dino 246 GTS: http://www.ferraris-online.com/pages/carintro.php?reqcardir=FE-246GTS-08498
A Daytona wouldn't have been built as a spyder in 1969 unless it was built as a coupe and later cut. Given the timing of the story, I'd say that seems unlikely. Here is a picture of a 365 2+2: Image Unavailable, Please Login
Could also be a 365 GTS or a 365 California (though I doubt the latter as there were only 14, they were earlier and I think their histories are pretty well accounted for). Regards, Art S.
Somebody most likely saw the pininfarina badge on the side of the car and took it for the model...that's what it would be on a US car.
If only I had a Time Machine......for a quick visit back to ~2003(??) "The 4th of only fifty 330 Americas built.........Just finished a very thorough mechanical overhaul and update including rebuild all shocks, rebuilt front suspension, rebuilt differential and new driveshaft coupling. Cooling system and water pump redone. Very nicely detailed to concours standards. All the correct decals, tar top battery, fuel hoses, Nice enough to show at this years Ferrari Club of America National meet in Los Angeles. Priced well below the cost of restoration at $74,500." I'll just jump in and offer $10K over the ask right now. . . . . .any takers?
It pains me to tell you this, but the "Sandra Ilene West collection" was the finest early German / Bavarian collection ever to come to market. HR Harmer sold it for £995,000. I'm certain in todays world it would fetch much more. Somewhere I have a copy of the Harmer's brochure. Many of the items in the collection were the only known examples of the type. T308
Sorry, typo, I must have been watching Gone with the Wind when I typed that up! I had Hara as her maiden name from the Clark County Marriage records and her SSN. The one thing I couldn't quite figure out was if Ike Jr. bought the America new. They married in 1965 (though apparently were together at least two years earlier) in Vegas and were already established in California by then. The America's listed as going thru Chinetti. Maybe Marcel can shead some light? T308
Yikes! I've got a 1968 Rolex that I can not keep running and missed out on the stamps worth over $2 million. The pics supplied by 250 GTO confirms that Sandy's true chariot of choice was a Daytona Spyder. Unless my memory is completely off kilter, that was the car that turned so many heads on Sunset Blvd.
The Daytona Spyder was indeed a head turner (esp. with HER at the wheel! ) and real ones are pretty rare and desirable even today. Many coupes have been chopped up to replicate them but are not nearly as valuable as real ones... However, they are a handfull to drive at slower speeds with steering that has been called "trucklike" at parking lot speeds. In my mind that would explain why in later years or if not feeling well she would have been using the older V12 for errands, when damaged...they drove lighter with more finesse. The small Dino246 has become very coveted over the years and now commands $80K to $190K or so.....it was not as popular when introduced and eventually badges were changed from "Dino" to "Ferrari" to get them off the showroom floor! One of my 308GTBs sat three years when new, 'cuz it is light blue! Explains why so many have the misfortune to be resprayed red..... The VIN number trackers will eventually figure out which Daytona is your Aunt's, if it survives today, which it most likely does.......
Market value of a real Daytona Spyder is what, gang.....about $500K to $750K right now? Again, I want to thank you for joining us.......
I went to the west coast once.........Mario's place in Sonoma.....I'll delete after you see it.....this thread is about your Aunt. Image Unavailable, Please Login
