250 GTO 3729 GT Mecum Auction in January, 2026.

Mecum has just announced that 250 GTO 3729GT “Bianco Speciale” will be the headlining car for Kissimmee 2026. Thoughts?

 

I am crying.

 

Great news.

 

Let’s see if it will actually sell….

 

It's been shopped around the planet already for several years, with no takers so far.

Marcel Massini

 

To state the obvious, without the original engine and having a 'classiche' block in its' place, no one seems willing to meet what the seller must think it's worth relative to a matching-numbers car.

 

Add white paint and steering wheel on wrong side.........

Marcel Massini

 

Why not reunite the original engine with the car first.

 

AFAIK it does not survive.

 

Then, the Classiche motor will have to make do, or cease and desist. Or, be realistic in pricing. Simple, no?

 

FIFY.

 

The best time for the seller to be realistic about pricing was when 3729 GT was put on the market and at least 4 other GTOs were available, none of the others missing their original engine.
The second best time for a seller to be realistic would be right now.
Not sure if JS still owns it, or if DM now does, or perhaps someone else.
Regardless, GLWS/we'll know more after Kissimmee.

 

How many 250 GTOs have their born with engines .I would think a classiche block would be second best thing .??

 

Per Mecum “The car was certified authentic by Ferrari in 2008, when it was given its Classiche Red Book. It is currently fitted with a bespoke engine from Ferrari Classiche but will also be supplied with a spare in GTO specification suited for racing.”

It would appear as such that it does have the book and a Classiche engine, unless I am misunderstanding your comment?

 

The original GTO engine has been out of the car since the 1960s and is presumably no longer in existence.

The engine that classiche had built for 3729 GT was made from scratch in the 2000s.
It is a modern replacement and has no relation to the original engine for 3729 GT.

The spare engine might be 'vintage' but if it is, it's likely one of a great many road-based 250 engines that were cannibalized from perfectly good cars in order to provide a 'sacrificial' engine for racing.
Either way, the spare has nothing to do with the original car.

While a number of other GTOs had their engines removed or swapped in period, all of those engines were eventually reunited with their respective cars.
The value of 3729 GT takes a huge hit relative to all the other GTOs because it's the only GTO without its' original engine.

As for the Classiche Red Book (for those who include that in their value calculation), Caveat Emptor.
It received a Red Book in 2008.
Without annual in$pection$, the book ceased being valid in the eyes of Ferrari Classiche.
If the car was 'paid up' until the present, the auction catalog would have noted that.

 

Thanks for the clarification. Did not realize that all of the other GTOs had their original engine. Certainly makes sense that it would take a big hit in value for that. Will be interesting to see if it finds a buyer and at what price.

 

It's my great pleasure to be able to contribute. I sure have learned a lot from others here. I try to return the favor when I feel like I can.
I too am curious to see where the bidding goes.

 

My hot takes are 2

1 - #3729GT is still better than some that either have no significant racing history or were largely destroyed in period, #3851GT or #4091GT springs to mind even though they are numbers matching.

2 - Mecum seem to have made a business out of offering high value cars, 275GTB/4 NART, 275GTB Competizione, ex Seinfeld 917K and so on and I would guess the TV revenue, associated advertising revenue and tens of thousands paying x amount to visit the Kissimee auction is worth $5 - 10, maybe even $20 million per year and that doesn't include the value added proposition to Mecum Inc. IF as some believe all marquee lots on offer are then bought by Dana Mecum, well he might get a $45-50mm GTO for $25-40mm. A good business plan.

 

What bothers me about it is the constant reference of “Maintained, repaired, and refinished, but never Restored.”

That has been said about many others and it just is so misleading. These cars aren’t restored like a typical classic car. The primary goal of the restoration is originality/authenticity. Don’t fix it if it isn’t broken, and don’t “refinish” it if it is original and looks as good as it will get (like the steering wheel they clearly make a point of in photos). It has been repainted, engine rebuilt, likely a chassis/suspension overhaul, the wheels have been replaced, etc. I don’t know what the shame is in claiming it has been restored in its past. If you know anything about the history they fail to mention in the listing, I sure hope it has been restored to some extent. It needed some serious metal refinishing following its accidents in 1963 (front right and rear right) and in 2002 (front left) during the 40th Anniversary meet.

The black paint over the possibly original grey hammer tone interior really bothers me as well. It appears to have a little grey showing on the upper left side of the center portion of the firewall, opposite of the parking brake pull. I am curious if MM can confirm a grey hammer interior, it would be an interesting combo with the white, similar clash to 4153gt being silver with gold hammer.

 

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if I may, what Marcel was pointing out is that the car is right hand drive.
He was making the point that it doesn’t help that for the majority of countries/most potential buyers the car is RHD rather than LHD.
LHD is an easier sell just because most roads are set up for that. When the car already has a big strike against it (engine), RHD is not perceived as a plus in selling the car.

 

Mecum results are not reliable IMO.