Ferrari 250 GT cabriolet
French title Engine n° 3499GT - in totally exceptional original condition - two owners from new only - iconic model with original hard-top - second-hand since 1971 - all its life spent in Marseille The 250 engine paved the way for a large family of cars that helped Ferrari expand their limited output to make series-produced sports cars. The new range was based on the 3-litre V12 engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo: powerful, smooth and adaptable to both touring and racing. The first, sporty 250 was unveiled in 1952, shortly followed by the 250 Ellena and 250 GT Europa. These comfortable models were well-equipped for travel and appealed to a wider clientele. The trend continued with the arrival of the Cabriolet 250 GT PF in 1957 - the last two letters standing for Pinin Farina (then still written as two words), who oversaw the design and the manufacture of the coachwork. Pinin Farina was also responsible for the Coupé 250 GT PF presented in 1958, which saw Ferrari pass once and for all from the status of artisan to that of a car manufacturer producing (limited) series. At the 1959 Paris Motor Show, Ferrari presented the Cabriolet 250 GT Series II in what would prove its definitive form. The appeal of its sophisticated mechanics was complemented by the relaxed pleasure of driving with the hood down. This cabriolet was one of the most 'glamorous' models of the 1960s - if not in the history of car-making. The Pininfarina archives reveal that the Cabriolet 250 GT with chassis n° 3575GT was finished on 20 June 1962, and originally intended for a Monsieur Paulet, via Franco-Britannic Automobiles. It had been ordered in light grey (ref. 18933M) with a Connolly beige leather interior (ref. 846). Yet this was not the car delivered to M. Paulet! On 12 June 1962 a cabriolet with chassis n° 3499GT, and exactly the same finish as the one ordered by Mr Paulet, was delivered to Ferrari by Pininfarina - and this is the one the factory decided to send to Franco-Britannic Automobiles. The car arrived in Paris at the end of June and was registered on 10 July 1962 with number-plate 2985 BW 13, in the name of 'R. Paulet et Cie, Société Méridionale d'Industrie' of Avenue de la Boudinière, Marseille. During the nine years that he owned the car, Mr Paulet drove it so sparingly that, when it was sold on 25 January 1971 to its second, current owner, it had just 7,000km on the clock! It's quite a tale! The current owner, then aged about thirty, used to take his Alfa Romeo 1750 Coupé Bertone - which he had bought new - for servicing at Garage André, next door to his own transport firm. Mr Paulet used to bring his Ferrari to the same garage and it was here that the two men met - with the younger man promptly falling in love with the Pininfarina cabriolet! Mr Paulet, who was getting on, was so impressed by his passion for the car that he promised him first refusal if he ever decided to sell. When the phone eventually rang, five years later, it was… Madame Paulet calling to fulfil her late husband's wishes, offering for sale the famous Ferrari. Our enthusiast had no hesitation in selling his Alfa Romeo and, with the proceeds, plus another 500,000 French Francs, secured the Ferrari we are offering today. The owner tells several funny stories about the car. He remembers taking it out of the garage one day, and breaking the handle on the driver's door. He knew his cars - and had a hunch that the handle resembled that of the Renault Floride. So he went to an ironmonger's, bought a Floride handle, compared it to the one on the passenger side, found it identical in every way, and fitted it - wrily observing that Maranello also bought parts from French constructors! To this day, the key to this door is a Renault Floride key! He also informs us that the car has never received a drop of rain, as it has been preciously kept in the same garage since 1971! The car today is in an unheard-of original state: everything - down to the screws - is in virtually original condition, and has certainly never been dismantled. The owner guarantees that the Ferrari's mileage is indeed as shown on the clock… 15,000 km; it had done 7,000 km when he bought it from Madame Paulet, and he has only driven it very occasionally. The car is in a quite exceptional original state: equipped with its very rare hard-top, its Organizzazione di Vendita booklet, its warranty and even its original parking disc in an original Ferrari leather wallet. The windscreen has its 1980s road-tax vignettes, and the car comes with stereo cassettes by Cerrone, Georges Brassens and Sexy Show with Veronica: moving echoes of the days when this Ferrari gleamed on the streets of Marseille, the city it has never left. In its original grey livery, still with its original number-plates, its leather patinated by time, without a blemish, it resembles a Sleeping Beauty that has just awoken from a lengthy slumber - to head straight into our dreams. To have survived for nearly 50 years in this condition is almost miraculous. This cabriolet must be one of the most authentic and original currently known: a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that no connoisseur can afford to miss!
French title Engine n° 3499GT - in totally exceptional original condition - two owners from new only - iconic model with original hard-top - second-hand since 1971 - all its life spent in Marseille The 250 engine paved the way for a large family of cars that helped Ferrari expand their limited output to make series-produced sports cars. The new range was based on the 3-litre V12 engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo: powerful, smooth and adaptable to both touring and racing. The first, sporty 250 was unveiled in 1952, shortly followed by the 250 Ellena and 250 GT Europa. These comfortable models were well-equipped for travel and appealed to a wider clientele. The trend continued with the arrival of the Cabriolet 250 GT PF in 1957 - the last two letters standing for Pinin Farina (then still written as two words), who oversaw the design and the manufacture of the coachwork. Pinin Farina was also responsible for the Coupé 250 GT PF presented in 1958, which saw Ferrari pass once and for all from the status of artisan to that of a car manufacturer producing (limited) series. At the 1959 Paris Motor Show, Ferrari presented the Cabriolet 250 GT Series II in what would prove its definitive form. The appeal of its sophisticated mechanics was complemented by the relaxed pleasure of driving with the hood down. This cabriolet was one of the most 'glamorous' models of the 1960s - if not in the history of car-making. The Pininfarina archives reveal that the Cabriolet 250 GT with chassis n° 3575GT was finished on 20 June 1962, and originally intended for a Monsieur Paulet, via Franco-Britannic Automobiles. It had been ordered in light grey (ref. 18933M) with a Connolly beige leather interior (ref. 846). Yet this was not the car delivered to M. Paulet! On 12 June 1962 a cabriolet with chassis n° 3499GT, and exactly the same finish as the one ordered by Mr Paulet, was delivered to Ferrari by Pininfarina - and this is the one the factory decided to send to Franco-Britannic Automobiles. The car arrived in Paris at the end of June and was registered on 10 July 1962 with number-plate 2985 BW 13, in the name of 'R. Paulet et Cie, Société Méridionale d'Industrie' of Avenue de la Boudinière, Marseille. During the nine years that he owned the car, Mr Paulet drove it so sparingly that, when it was sold on 25 January 1971 to its second, current owner, it had just 7,000km on the clock! It's quite a tale! The current owner, then aged about thirty, used to take his Alfa Romeo 1750 Coupé Bertone - which he had bought new - for servicing at Garage André, next door to his own transport firm. Mr Paulet used to bring his Ferrari to the same garage and it was here that the two men met - with the younger man promptly falling in love with the Pininfarina cabriolet! Mr Paulet, who was getting on, was so impressed by his passion for the car that he promised him first refusal if he ever decided to sell. When the phone eventually rang, five years later, it was… Madame Paulet calling to fulfil her late husband's wishes, offering for sale the famous Ferrari. Our enthusiast had no hesitation in selling his Alfa Romeo and, with the proceeds, plus another 500,000 French Francs, secured the Ferrari we are offering today. The owner tells several funny stories about the car. He remembers taking it out of the garage one day, and breaking the handle on the driver's door. He knew his cars - and had a hunch that the handle resembled that of the Renault Floride. So he went to an ironmonger's, bought a Floride handle, compared it to the one on the passenger side, found it identical in every way, and fitted it - wrily observing that Maranello also bought parts from French constructors! To this day, the key to this door is a Renault Floride key! He also informs us that the car has never received a drop of rain, as it has been preciously kept in the same garage since 1971! The car today is in an unheard-of original state: everything - down to the screws - is in virtually original condition, and has certainly never been dismantled. The owner guarantees that the Ferrari's mileage is indeed as shown on the clock… 15,000 km; it had done 7,000 km when he bought it from Madame Paulet, and he has only driven it very occasionally. The car is in a quite exceptional original state: equipped with its very rare hard-top, its Organizzazione di Vendita booklet, its warranty and even its original parking disc in an original Ferrari leather wallet. The windscreen has its 1980s road-tax vignettes, and the car comes with stereo cassettes by Cerrone, Georges Brassens and Sexy Show with Veronica: moving echoes of the days when this Ferrari gleamed on the streets of Marseille, the city it has never left. In its original grey livery, still with its original number-plates, its leather patinated by time, without a blemish, it resembles a Sleeping Beauty that has just awoken from a lengthy slumber - to head straight into our dreams. To have survived for nearly 50 years in this condition is almost miraculous. This cabriolet must be one of the most authentic and original currently known: a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that no connoisseur can afford to miss!