Current History on Nembo 3771 GT

I know all about the older history of Tom Meade (CA), Bill Dixon (WA), Eddie Weschler (WI), the Chevy car dealer from Oconomowoc, WI and Fred Jaeger (WI). I worked on the car on and off during my 20+ years of helping Mr Jaeger with his various auto projects. Most of the work was to help keep the car intact as it was starting to show its age. Occasionally, I would tackle something larger, as re-painting the gas tank and cleaning the fuel filter housing and some of the frame...all of which had started to get some slight surface rust, at the time.

Glad the car was restored, by Symbolic. It was most worthy of it, naturally. I remember always looking forward to doing a little something on the car when I came to help him on Sundays with his small collection of cars. Time went on and I got busier in my growing aviation business and had charter flights on weekends, so I could no longer help with the cars. I was informed that he had sold a few of his cars, including 3771 GT, as he had no one to help him keep them up after I left.

I hope he did well on the sale of 3771 GT, as there was always speculation of what she was worth or the 'mystery cam' in the engine from a Comp SWB and other various stories over the years. He did like to keep it out of the Ferrari public eye for the 20+ years I was associated with him. Strongly encouraged not to mention the car to anyone, he preferred to keep it under wraps. Nurturing his own 'barn find' is what I preferred to call it.

Looking back now, I was truly privileged to be associated with Mr. Jaeger and this car and was most fortunate enough to see all of the early drawings, photos and documentation he had accumulated with the car. Such a priceless history, worthy of a museum. I hope it remained with the car as vehicles such as these are only entrusted to us, along with fine vintage yachts, to ensure their history for the next generation of ownership.

Kindly inform me whatever happened to the car after Symbolic restored it and if it is available for any viewing, either public or private, as I would again feel honored to renew an acquaintance with a car I always admired. I am able to travel anywhere in the world, due to the nature of my aviation business.

 

Ah so you sqre the mysterious mechanic of Mister Jaeger!

I did the two part article on the Nembos for the FML 10 years ago and met him at Road America summer 97, a very nice man, spoke to him on the phone several times later. He sold the car to Mike Sheehan who showed up at his house at 6AM!

Sheehan offered it to a US Billionaire GTO owner who lived in London at the time, showed me the file but opted to buy a Nart spyder instead.

Sheehan then sold it to Symbolic who after restoring it put it in the Christies 1999 auction where it was sold to a Yahoo executive, living in northern California. As far as I know he still has it but not sure.

In February of 1999 it came to Cavallino, it was with Fuzzy Spernak a dealer from Pennsylvania for some reason and I drove it briefly. It will always in my humble view be inferior to the star among the Nembos: the first spyder, #1777GT. On 3771 which is a less attractive shorter wheel base they tilted the whole windshield up for more headroom and it just looks awkward.

How is Mister Jaeger? Please give him my regards,

Best regards,

Marc Sonnery

 

A couple more tidbits I do remember...maybe you already know this...

Eddie Weschler had the car painted in 1968 Cadillac San Mateo Red, for some reason

I believe the Chevy dealer in Oconomowoc, WI was Vilter Chevrolet...

Eddie Weschler took some of his Ferraris there to get worked on back then...

Seems his cars frequently were hard to start and keep running...

I know this to be the case on 3771 GT and the 330 LMB he got from Joe (Marchetti)...

Front raked windscreen on 3771 GT was from 250LM...

Fred had a spare sitting in the corner of the garage under the Modine heater...

I wrapped it in foam padding and a thick old blanket..


I too, admired Nembo 1777 and had a 250 GT PF coupe many years ago (s/n- 1659)

I even contacted Mark Gerisch from Gennadi Designs in Two Rivers, WI to see what it would take to rebody it in a tasteful Nembo style for a poor Ferrari owner. Of course, it cost way too much, even back then...but kept the 250 GT intact and sold it where it ended up out here, in CA.

 

Yes met Eddie Weschsler taht weekend at Elkhart too: now there is someone who could tell many tales. I was told he did not like to talk, spoke briefly with him and did not find him all that reticent. he had MANY interesting early Ferraris....

Rode wit Gerisch in a BBLM that weekend too...one of my best ever, can't wait to go back.

 

Here are a few more of 3771, which I hope you will find of interest.
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Does anyone know where this Nembo is?
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There is a wonderful story by Bill Dixon in one of the very first
Prancing Horse magazines about how he got the car from the
shipping dock.

Lowell Brown

 

Gtreat to see that thanks Ed!

The Bizza Nembo....no idea where that might be, Bizzarrini might know.

Yes It was a big event in Will Dixon's life getting that car made but he did not keep it very long, I wonder why.

 

I seem to recall an aerospace melt-down in Seattle.

 

#01777 is beautiful. Awesome curves for a spyder
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I recall seeing similar materials that Fred retrieved from his archives in the mid to late seventies...

I was fascinated then...as I am now...at the workmanship and sheer crafted beauty of such a car

At least I can print these to retain for my own reference...

Thanks again...
Dave

Any anecdotes, tales, stories...whether true or embellished...would be much appreciated.

 

Lear, somewhere I've posted other pix of 3771 when it was still in Italy, one with it's organizer Tom Meade. Maybe someone will remember where?

 

It was in the more old photos thread...some moons ago, perhaps in March...

 

I catched the photos... Good idea, no?
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That is a lovely car but I cannot say that the prune like color would be my first choice!

Tom W

 

I believe that the Nembo in question is the one pictured here. I photographed it at the Candy Store a few years ago. And yes, I understand that it does belong to a Yahoo founder. It is a great looking car. It is now more of a maroon/dark red color than prune colored...
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Well both spyders look much better in a dark red shade as the photos of 3771 demonstrate, it is sad that 1777 was painted basic red in recent years, though they did good work on it that was needed.

I asked RM for the owners contact info in order to photograph it with a specific person back in March and was told it was about to leave to south Africa! A bit sad as I was hoping to see it at Cavallino next year but perhaps in future...

 

I forget what Lancia they were from...Fred told me once...

Great pics that Mr Niles posted and GIOTTO found in the thread archives...!!!

Again...thanks so much for all the wonderful photos and information...!!!

Nice to come back and see all this wonderful info...out test flying jets for last 2 weeks...

Hard for me to ever envision the car in any color other than 1968 San Mateo Red...the Ed & Fred ara...so to speak...

Never saw any color pics of early history, until now...

Looks like Mr Meade had provisions fitted for mounting the plexi front light covers in one of the pics, I noticed...

Much better car with covered headlights...keep the body lines smooth...

3771 sure looks stubby compared to 1777 which looks so long and sleek...

Thanks...
Dave Korn

 

Will Dixon Contracted the Nembo Bizzarrini? Can you expand on this?

 

I do like this color much better than the earlier one, such as the accuracy of the rendition by the computer may be.

This color is rich looking, the other one was ok but not on a car like this (fine for a prune though).

 

Lancia Flavia tail lights...

 

No, no, sorry to have confused you when discussing Dixon I was referring about 3771, NOT the BIZZA Nembo about which I would love to find out more!

Best regards,

Marc

 

I am confused about its history and if anybody followed this car's history, I have a couple of questions. It seems that a lot of Ferrari speciales only received new bodywork because of a crash and it's just as easy to build a new body of a new shape than to try to repair the old one.
So my question is, when the car was sold in 1962 to E. Melozzi, and later in 1966
rebuilt as Nembo Spyder was that because it had been hit or just because someone wanted a new body?

In that first version I guess it had 3 large vertical hot air exhause vents on front fender with Hardtop as pictured in Prancing Horse #102 p.17

Now the listing of owners on that website with SN says "66 - not in need to be rebodied, body by Drogo and mechanical work by Neri & Bonaccini as a Tom Meade Special , So was this a second rebody? Still using much of the first rebody or is their description misleading?

finally, as pertaining to its climb in value to its present million dollar plus status, I'd love to hear any prices the car was advertised for from any of these owners:

66 - William Dixon, Seattle, WA, USA PH30
68/aug - completed by Neri & Bonaccini, I
71 - Ed Weschler, Nashotah, WI, USA
74 - Tom Vilter, Oconomowoc, WI, USA
77 - Fred K. Jaeger, Racine, WI, USA

 

Hi Wally,

For the answers you are seeking see my comprehensive two part article on the Nembos, genuine and replicas, in Ferrari Market Letter April 25 ad May 9, 1998.

Best regards,

Marc

 

I know history would be lost if the body was taken off but since a short wheelbase berlinetta is worth maybe $2 million, some future owner of this car might reconsider it, and I haven't kept up with rebidding prices. Wasn't that 250GT series II burned to the frame rebodied by using some modern cad cam method of measuring an identical car and then the new panels could be made some modern way, or is that just as expensive as hiring an old panel beater with hammer and tree stump? Also I guess it matters greatly if the rebody was being done on a swb that came with an alloy body or steel body. Anyhow I think it's a moot point because I think at some concours soon there will be a homage to Tom Meade and then anything he did will be worth more, though I am still dubious about some car he did on a Detomaso chassis and some other one done a Cooper chassis, those border on Kalifornia Kustoms...