Shaughnessy, Picking the "cherries" in the midwest...

Tom Shaughnessy's barn find, in the Tribune, just in case you didn't see it, here's a clip and the link. Better yet, find a hard copy of Sunday's transportation section, it's a good write-up.

$3 million promise
Collector defies the odds to pick up a rare Ferrari 340 America--1 of 475 only built--for a cool $26,000

By Paul Duchene
Special to the Tribune
Published August 13, 2006

In what could be the greatest barn find, California collector Tom Shaughnessy has bought a 1952 Ferrari 340 America Spider chassis in a Frankfort garage sale for $26,912--less than 1 percent of the car's estimated restored value.

He and seller Mike Sanfilippo are delighted with the discovery that it's a significant racecar lost for 43 years. Both plan to be on hand when the restored car is presented to the world--the target is the Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance in three years.

"It cost me $200 15 years ago," says Sanfilippo, a retired drag racer. "I almost cut up the chassis to make a hot wheels dragster out of the body. Good thing that goofy project never happened."

Shaughnessy's buy is even more remarkable considering the sale was wide-open on eBay. Thousands of collectors had the same opportunity--though the frame has been obscured by Devin fiberglass body for 46 years.

"Lots of guys were going to come and see it, but only one did," says Sanfilippo, who dismantled the car for a thorough series of photographs and answered numerous e-mail queries from the U.S. and Europe.

Hilary Rabb, an expert on early Ferraris, examined the car closely once Shaughnessy bought it and the two made a surprising discovery. The chassis revealed the No. 0202 A. Because it is an even-number chassis, this is a factory competition car, one of 475 made between 1948 and 1974, almost all of which are accounted for. (In case you want to check your own barn, the numbers range from 0002-0896 and 1002-1050).

The $26,000-plus Shaughnessy paid when the auction closed June 20, not counting the $20,000 he gave his tipster, is about 1 percent of the car's restored value, estimates Swiss Ferrari expert Marcel Massini. The chassis is one of 25, 340 Americas built. Nine were bodied by Touring, 11 by Vignale (this is one) and five by Ghia. Sister cars are 0196 A and 0204 A, which should assist in accurate reconstruction. Both sister cars have undergone there own rehabs with one now in England and the other in New York.

A full restoration of 0202 A is planned in cooperation with the Ferrari factory in Maranello, Italy, though Shaughnessy hopes the carmaker will join in on the work.

Massini has tracked the history of 0202 A, and it's a good read.

The car raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1952 with famed French racers Maurice Trintignant and Louis Rosier, but did not finish. The factory then lent it to Piero Scotti, who ran several significant races and won three hillclimbs with it. Other racers borrowed it from Ferrari until U.S. importer Luigi Chinetti bought it in 1953 and sold it to Ernie McAfee in Los Angeles. He owned it until 1958, then sold 0202 A to Paul Owens in Houston, who installed a Chevrolet V-8. McAfee and Owens are well known racers and collectors.

The worst was to come. After a crash in which the passenger was killed, a Devin fiberglass body replaced the original aluminum body was fitted and the resulting combination advertised in Sports Car magazine for $4,250. (Devin was a private manufacturer who made fiberglass bodies to fit a number of chassis for about 10 years in the 1950s and early 60s.) 0202 A's next stop was Utah in 1963, it later made its way back to the Chicago area, with Sanfilippo picking it up in 1990 or so.

"I heard about it, and the guy wanted $200. His kid had abandoned it in his garage, and he wanted his garage back. I took my trailer and picked it up. I bought it for the cool body," he recalls. His only clue as the what lay underneath was a Ferrari badge on it.

Of course Shaughnessy's purchase price is just a down payment on what it will cost to restore 0202 A. The front part of the chassis is intact, though the front spring is missing. The center section and rear have been modified with the rear leaf-spring mounts cut off. But the brakes are complete, and the axles and wheels are correct.

Shaughnessy reckons a neophyte who dropped off the chassis at a professional restoration shop could end up writing a check for seven figures--still acceptable, with Massini estimating the completed car's value at $2.8 million. Shaughnessy a capable restorer will still spend $500,000 to $600,000.

"A 340 motor will cost $200,000, transmission $25,000, differential $20,000, chassis preparation and repair $100,000 and a new body about $200,000," he says.

And here's where Shaughnessy has the edge. "I already have a running engine, rear end, transmission, pedal box, radiator and oil cooler."

He even thinks he knows where the original V-12 engine is and hopes he might be able to persuade the owner to trade for his motor, which is close to the same number.

"I'm pleased as punch," he says. "There are four pages [on the discovery] on Ferrari chat online, and that enthusiasm is part of car culture. I'll just have to put a sticker on the back: `I bought it on eBay.'"

For his part, Sanfilippo is happy.

"Tom was concerned about my response, but I'm good with this. I told him I don't have the knowledge, the resources or the contacts to restore the car properly. I'm totally excited it went to the right person."

Sanfilippo also has a word for people offering him condolences about not making more money from the sale.

"This car's been missing for 43 years, and it's back. Let's just be happy about that." Not to mention his already hefty return on that $200 investment. - - -

Ferrari 340 America

Engine: 4.1-liter, 220-h.p. V-12

Transmission: 5-speed manual

Wheelbase: 96.8 inches

Track (front/rear): 51.12/50 mm

Dry weight: 1,980 pounds

Top speed: 148 m.p.h.

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Copyright © 2006, Chicago Tribune

http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/automotive/chi-0608130044aug13,1,4077074.story

 

Hi Walter,
I am given the impression, that Sir Tom, is not even considering flipping it. He says, "It's a keeper."

Bill

 

Hi Jack,
Most of the time, the first question I ask myself, when I see an ebay item that looks like too good of a deal, is is this person real? It is a shame, that ebay doesn't put as much energy into verifying sellers, as it does verifying buyers.

A Devin body by itself, doesn't usually generate that high of bidding, so there must have been a few people out there that were thinking something, other than what was discussed in the ad, about the chassis. Tom recognized that the chassis was an early '50s Ferrari and decided to pursue it. He gambled and it payed off, this time.

Bill