Those off white (light beige) plastic seat covers had a wonderful 'leather smell' to them long after they were removed from the seats!
54809. The Classiche Certification red book says delivered March 1985 to S.A.V.A.F - Meyrin, Switzerland, Rosso Corsa Fer 300/6, Pelle Nera 8500 - Banda Interno Sedili Stoffa Rossa (seat bands in red fabric). Inspected in the company of a red 599 GTO last week.
This car I inspected in 2009 it had a different interior then and very different mileage http://www.legendsautomotive.co.uk/showroom/carNew/1985Ferrari288GTO
Hi Joe, no I have not had a chance yet. John was out of the country when I phoned last week. With regard to 54809 what mileage are they claiming the car has done now , as I still have all the old records and emails when the car was subject to a financial settlement back in 2010 due to the mileage not being correct .
Tell me what you think of 52737 when you see it, I think it represents a GT that can be enjoyed. 54089 is currently showing 4,089 kilometers on an original 288 GTO 320 kph Veglia Borletti speedometer. Per Marcel's report and the car's records, DK Engineering recorded the car as having almost 6,900 kilometers before it went to Japan where it lost @ 3,000 kilometers and returned to the UK with just 2,900 kilometers. Sadly it's not at all uncommon for Supercars to lose mileage in Japan and this simply has to be fully disclosed, so it's travelled at least 7,000 kilometers IMO.
3.75 million GBP for a 17k mile GTO seems about right , and you can actually drive it .. which makes a change .. In 2009 the car showed 7 plus miles .. so it’s a guess what it is now .. Mark Shannon was party to the deal so maybe he could shed some Light on this .. it’s hard one to sell, when no one can verify what the miles are and why it was clocked .. it’s a shame really because when I inspected the car it was great.. just the history spoiled the car.. 2700 miles to say. 7000 might have been a few hundred thousand pounds difference then .. but know it’s a lot of money and trying to justify why a car was clocked is even harder
Agreed on 52737. Why was 54809 apparently clocked? I think for the same reason any Ferrari is clocked, potential increase in value. Unlike for example the super-low miles 288 GTO you were considering in the Middle East with an obviously replaced 328 speedometer, this one still has the original 288 GTO Veglia Borletti unit in place, so perhaps someone went to work with a power drill during it's tenure in Japan. Unfortunately, it isn't uncommon for GTOs and F40s from the Land of the Rising Sun to have this occur pre-sale, and also, there are still many more GTOs and F40s that simply had the odometers disconnected for years, all of these cars are in essence TMU (True Mileage Unknown), that said they can still stand on their own merit based on overall condition, matching numbers, maintenance records, history, Classiche Certification etc. I checked my notes on 58409 and there's a bit more missing than I originally thought, the highest recorded mileage I see on record is 7,240 kilometers, and lowest recorded mileage is 2,816 kilometers, so there's at least 4,424 kilometers to account for, add that to the currently showing 4,089 and you get at least 8,513 kilometers or 5,289 miles. If the actual usage in Japan was nominal as is often the case there, the latter figures could be close to reality. I wouldn't say the history spoils the car, it's just not for a GTO for an investor looking for a low-mileage market hedge, but with all the aforementioned proviso fully disclosed, it's an example that can be used and enjoyed. Mileage is very important as we've discussed before, but it's not absolutely everything. I've been retained to inspect the car and go through it's history, I inspected it briefly the other day but I'll take a closer look again soon and when I complete that project I'll share my thoughts.
The mileage recorded in Japan is not the only inconsistent or questionable entry in the mileage log. Lots of claims, lots of theories, but in the end, very little evidence.
Marcel's latest full report and the car's files are at my disposal to examine, I'll check them out, if you're referring to anything outside that scope, please feel free to share.
Joe, 27/03/1987 it was reported as 2,973km with Loris Kessel June 1987 it was reported with 4,500km advertised by Ron Spangler. January 1993 in Japan with "approximately" 7,500km. May 2007 seen in UK at Bob Houghton Ltd for service showing 2,898km August 2008 for sale with Legends Racing in UK, approx 2,900km....now with a/c and power windows, apparently not as per original delivery? October 2011 Now with 3,100 km in service at Bob Houghton. For sale £600,000 with Hairpin Motor Co. June 2013, for sale with Talacrest, 3,446km, sold by Macari who estimated 10,000kms based on probable speedo change. Oct 2016, in California showing 3,691km. I think these observations tend to confirm what you suggest, true mileage might be 8,500-10,000km. Still incredibly low for a car now 38 years old. At worst 250km per annum. 3 years ago $2.65m might have bought it......more fools the experts who said too expensive!
Come on, Joe, I know it's late/or early. You really, really really mean 54809. See also post #14714. Marcel Massini
I was speaking to the current owner a couple of years ago about his cars through a mutual friend, and he was aware of the mileage issues with the car. I personally feel it does spoil the car as it rules out a huge amount of buyers. 54809 was a great example. but when I viewed her with Bob Houghton in 2009/2010 it showed that what you see if not always what you get... The interior was as new.. but we now know that it had been replaced... and mileage must have been going through multiple time zones.. I'm sure that someone will buy her as there is a large pool of buyers but the price will reflect all the misgivings... Only last week I was chatting to a grade A dealer in the US, the buyers over the last year and waiting list buyers for GTO's are wanting more.. lower miles, total provenance and no question cars... they are getting harder to find..
GTO Chronicles - this week we've been doing a deep dive into the life & times of GTO 54809, from day one to the present day, fascinating stuff. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
