This car, Lot 160, sold for $2,225,000, including buyer’s premium, at RM Sotheby’s Phoenix, AZ, sale, on January 26, 2023.
The Americas, Superamericas, and by extension, the Superfasts, were a series of small-production, ultra-high-performance Ferrari road cars. They were produced for Ferrari’s best customers, featuring the marque’s most powerful production engines of the time and bespoke coachbuilt bodies. They were luxuriously appointed and represented the finest grand-touring cars money could buy.
The series is made up of the 340 America, 342 America, 340 MM, 375 America, 410 Superamerica, 400 Superamerica and 500 Superfast. Ferrari also produced 330 Americas, 575 Superamericas and 812 Superfasts. While they carry the names of the original Americas, these latter models should be considered tributes rather than a continuation of the earlier series.
The largest production of the earlier series was 36 examples of the 500 Superfast. Other model in the series had production runs as small as just a couple of cars. The newer “Americas” are full-scale production cars with production numbers that can reach into the hundreds or thousands of examples.
Super exclusive
Entrants in the Ferrari-only Cavallino Classic concours in Palm Beach line up on the driveway to The Breakers resort early on show morning, waiting to get on the field. Walking along the bumper-to-bumper line of Ferraris is the best opportunity on the planet to get a close look at important Ferraris. This year there was one Ferrari that stood out over all the others. There was no doubt the white coupe was a high-profile former show car.
The car was indeed a show car: the 1956 Paris Auto Show 410 Superfast I. The Pinin Farina-designed Superfast I featured covered headlights and American-style tail fins. There was no mistaking the car for any other Ferrari and no chance that it was a standard production Ferrari. The first of the Superfast series, 410 Superfast I carried the chassis number 0483SA (SA for Superamerica). Later Superfasts would carry a corresponding SF suffix.
There would be two more Superfast show cars before Ferrari introduced the 500 Superfast in 1964. It used a modified 330 2+2 chassis wearing a unique Pininfarina body. Power would come from a 5.0-liter Ferrari Tipo 208 V12 engine. The engine was a blend of Lampredi-type physical size and Colombo-type improved serviceability. The engine would be rated at 400 horsepower with a front-end-lifting 350 lb-ft of torque.
The 500 Superfast’s power dwarfed the competition. Lamborghini’s flagship 350GT featured a mere 280 hp. Maserati came closer with the 450 S race motor in its ultra-exclusive 5000 GT, but at 340 hp, it still fell significantly short of oomph. The Superfast’s price also dwarfed the competition. You could buy a new Rolls-Royce and a 275 GTB for the price of a new 500 Superfast.
Super history
As expected of a significant Ferrari, chassis number 8565SF has led a storied life. It was originally delivered to California foreign-car importer and race driver John von Neumann. Subsequently, it passed through legendary race driver and Ferrari dealer Charlie Hayes. Hayes drove for important race teams such as NART, Carroll Shelby and Scuderia Bear. He was often found intimidating competition in a Ferrari 250 GTO, a Ferrari prototype racer or a Shelby Cobra. Sometime during these early years, exotic-car repair guru Claudio Zampolli swapped 8565SF’s engine with one from 8083SF.
In the mid-’70s, 8565SF passed through another legendary character in Ferrari history, Sal diNatale. His S&A Italia Sports Car Specialists in Van Nuys, CA, was the go-to destination of many early exotic-car enthusiasts. In 1992, 8565SF made its way to Fort Lauderdale, FL, where it found a home at Ed Waterman’s Motor Car Gallery. Waterman is particularly fond of 500 Superfasts, having owned at least four of the 36 built and still retaining one in his collection. While with Waterman, the car was reunited with its original engine.
In 2004 the Superfast made another historic stop, this time in the New Hampshire collection of the late Dr. Bud Lyon. Lyon was a noted engineer, car dealer and prolific enthusiast, having owned over 100 collector cars. Lyon commissioned Paul Russell and Company to freshen the car, then sent it to the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, where it won the Amelia Award. The last known owner of 8565SF was Brendan Gallagher, a well-known California-based Ferrari collector.
Super well sold
RM Sotheby’s pre-sale estimate for this Superfast was $2.2m–$2.8m. The hammer struck at a no-sale high bid of $2 million, with the car selling post-auction at $2,225,000. RM Sotheby’s noted that at the time of this auction there were some issues with the paint. However, painting the car will certainly lead to other expensive adventures, adding to the new owner’s cost.
In 2016, a 500 Superfast sold for $2.7m, and then in 2017, one sold for $2.9m. In 2020, the market settled with two no-sales in the $2m range. RM had previously sold this car in 2010 for $1,127,500. This $2.2m sale is nearly double that amount, indicating a significant increase in value. Despite the 2016 and 2017 sales being much higher, modern supercars have now seized Ferrari collectors’ attention. This car featured all the Series II updates but needed refreshing. It was well sold, with the seller getting all the money and the buyer getting a great car to add to their collection. ♦
(Introductory description courtesy of RM Sotheby’s.)
