Maranello, 29 May

When a car is special, its value grows over time. It’s an unwritten rule born out by the facts, which from time to time is confirmed at auctions for these four wheeled jewels. A few days ago, a new record was set for an object going under the hammer, when a 1953 Ferrari 340/375 MM was sold at Villa d’Este for just under the ten million Euro mark, a figure never seen before here in Italy, not even for a work of art.
Behind these sorts of figures lies a mix of passion for fabulous cars and a nose for a profitable investment. It’s not by chance that the percentage increase in value of a classic car over the past decade has recently been estimated at around 400%. That figure is far higher than the value of an apartment in the most exclusive area of Hong Kong, which has gone up by 220%.
It’s also not by chance that the car that broke the records at Villa d’Este was built in Maranello. Ferraris always lead the way in prices at auctions all over the world, as did the 250 Testa Rossa sold at Pebble Beach two years ago for 16.9 million dollars, while a sister car reached over 12 million. To understand how quickly a Ferrari can appreciate, one only has to think back to 2003 when a long wheelbase 250 GT Berlinetta was sold for just over a million dollars – 1,195,691 to be precise. Then in 2012, another example of this same model went for 6,710,000 Dollars, an increase of over 400%.
HAGI (Historic Automobile Group International,) an association of eminent experts in this field, has even created a series of financial indices to evaluate movement in the classic car market, one of which is dedicated exclusively to the cars from Maranello. Investment or passion, owning a Ferrari is something special.