1962 Ferrari 250 GTO sells for world record $35 million [Video]

In the world of collectible cars, Ferrari has been in the news more than once in the past few months. And now a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO has sold for a world record $35 million. The car was originally made for racing legend Stirling Moss, but he never raced the car due to a career-ending crash at the Goodwood circuit in Sussex on April 23, 1962, just before he could take the wheel of his new Ferrari. The car was painted in the distinctive pale-green livery of Moss’s UDT- Laystall race team.

The famous green car was one of 39 GTOs that were produced from 1962 to 1964. According to Bloomberg, two specialist traders confirmed the sale of the car that was listed in May’s high-end sales at anamera.com, a website for classic car dealers. They also report that the car was sold by Eric Heerema, a Dutch-born businessman who lives in England. The buyer is American classic car collector Craig McCaw.

The Ferrari 250 GTO is the most collectable

The 250 GTO has been the most valuable of all Ferrari’s and has been rising in value steadily over the last three decades. The 250 GTO is touted as the Ferrari that most embodies the salient traits of the marque and the most collectable of all Ferrari’s. Motor Trend placed the 250 GTO first on a list of the “Greatest Ferraris of all time” in 2010. Before this latest transaction, the previous record was held by another 1962 Ferrari GTO which sold for $28.7 million in the U.K. in 2008.

In January, a 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO numbered 5095 was sold by the U.K.-based businessman Jon Hunt, former chief executive of the Foxtons real-estate group, for about $32 million, dealers with knowledge of the matter said.

Ferrari’s continue to bring record prices

According to anamera.com, Ferrari’s are hot among collectors and there have been a number of big-ticket Ferrari sales in just the last two months. The Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa in which the U.S. driver Phil Hill won the 1958 Le Mans 24-Hour race was sold by French collector Pierre Bardinon for about $25 million. “I’ve heard of eight Ferraris selling for a total of $135 million during the last eight weeks,” John Collins of the U.K., Ascot-based dealership Talacrest Limited said in an interview with Bloomberg.

Collins has been directly involved in five of the high-dollar Ferrari transactions recently and says, “It’s difficult to find cars at the moment. The Arabs have started buying because of Formula One and the Chinese have now entered the market.” Dealers have verified another Ferrari 250 GTO that was purchased by U.K. television and radio host Chris Evans for about $18 million in 2010, has been sold recently for a million-dollar price “in the high 20s.”

According to data compiled by the London- based Historic Automobile Group International (HAGI), prices for classic Ferraris increased 4.82 percent in the first quarter of 2012. As established collectors and wealthy individuals seek to diversify their investments, we’ll see how long this latest Ferrari 250 GTO record $35 million sale will stand.

Watch a short clip of the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO below.