CALIFORNIA EVOLUTION

Ferrari achieved incredible heights during the 1950s and 1960s with its 250 GT platform, experiencing remarkable success in sports car competition with models such as the Tour de France, Testa Rossa, and GTO. Alongside these wondrous racing machines, Maranello built a magnificent line of roadgoing 250 GT models that came to define the peak of engineering and style.

Among the competition-oriented GT models, the 250 GT California Spider is particularly celebrated. The initial long-wheelbase version found immediate racing success, taking a class win at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1959 and finishing 5th overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans a few months later. At the 1960 Geneva Salon, Maranello introduced an updated version built on the company’s new 2,400-millimetre short wheelbase, offering improved handling and styling.

The revised California Spider featured a wider track, Koni telescopic shocks, four-wheel disc brakes, and the latest evolution of the “short-block” V-12 engine. Produced in a modest quantity of 56 examples, the SWB California Spider is justifiably regarded as one of the most beautiful and pedigreed Ferraris ever built, combining timeless design with race-winning performance.

DISTINGUISHED GENTLEMAN—CHASSIS NUMBER 2955 GT

Claiming a role as one of Maranello’s special period show cars, and boasting the presence of its matching-numbers components as authenticated by a Ferrari Classiche “Red Book”, not to mention a recent refurbishment by a world-renowned Italian restoration shop, this scintillating short-wheelbase California Spider is an exquisite example.

According to the research of marque expert Marcel Massini, chassis number 2955 GT is the 26th example built. Configured with covered headlamps, orange signal lamps in a low position on the front wings, and no bumper brackets, the Ferrari was finished in Bianco Saratoga paint over an interior of Nero vaumol leather by Connolly. Upon completing assembly in September 1961, the 250 GT was delivered to Auto Becker, the famed German importer based in Düsseldorf. Auto Becker then immediately presented the car on its stand at the 40th Annual IAA Frankfurt Motor Show, where the car established its identity as one of Ferrari’s important period show cars.

A month later the California Spider was sold to its first owner, André Budi-Medawar, a Lebanese enthusiast who kept the car in Rome. Over the next two years the short-wheelbase enjoyed service at the Garage Vincenzo Malagò & Co in Rome, as well as technical inspections at the Ferrari factory.

In 1965 the Ferrari was exported to Luigi Chinetti Motors in the United States, which in turn sold the car to Charles Hamill, Jr of Belleville, Illinois. For one reason or another Mr. Hamill was apparently not persuaded by the Spider’s dynamic character, for he soon returned 2955 GT to Chinetti Motors, and it was subsequently sold to Bernard Stayman of Dayton, Ohio. In May 1966 Mr Stayman presented the California at the FCA National Concours in Indianapolis, Indiana, where it was awarded the prize for Best Convertible.

In 1969, after three years of ownership, Mr. Stayman sold the Spider via a referral from Hollywood Sport Cars to Ken Mars of Granada Hills, California. Mr. Mars was a longtime character actor whose most famous roles came with memorable turns in Peter Bogdonavich’s What’s Up Doc? (opposite Barbara Streisand) and Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein (as the scene-stealing prosthetic-armed gendarme). Mr Mars retained possession of the 250 GT for a remarkable period of over 30 years, during which he repainted the coachwork in Rosso.

After three decades of devoted custody, in January 2000 Mr Mars sold the Ferrari to the brokers Rick Cole and Marty Yacoobian, and they in turn sold the car to auctioneer Craig Jackson. The 250 GT was then purchased from Jackson in March 2000 by a Frankfurt-based collector who is notable for being one of the founders of a world-famous wheel company. After importing the Spider to the UK, the owner commissioned a restoration by some of Italy’s top craftsmen, including the specialists at Carrozzeria Autosport, and the highly regarded Bacchelli & Villa. This work included a cosmetic renewal in blue paint over a tan leather interior.

In 2018, Mr Busch submitted 2955 GT for certification by Ferrari Classiche, and it was later issued a “Red Book” that notes the presence of the matching-numbers engine, gearbox, rear axle, and coachwork. After 19 years of fastidious care by the German owner, the Ferrari was sold in July 2019 to the consigning owner, an international businessman who maintains a strong collection of important motorcars in Europe.

In 2019 the current owner commissioned a second restoration, this time by Dino Cognolato’s highly respected shop in Vigonza, Italy. In addition to a complete mechanical overhaul, the Spider was treated to a refinish in the current elegant color combination of Blu Scuro paint over a rosso leather interior, with the addition of a silver hard top. With the hardtop installed, the Spider flaunts a gorgeous profile, attaining aesthetic perfection from every angle. Following the completion of the restoration in 2022 the Ferrari was exhibited at the 2022 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, a strong endorsement of the car’s overall importance and quality.

Displaying 2,447 post-restoration kilometers at the time of cataloguing, and certified by Ferrari Classiche to be a matching-numbers example, chassis number 2955 GT is primed for additional high-level exhibition at major concours d’elegance and marque events, or it may be enjoyed for its splendid driving qualities, as originally envisioned by John von Neumann. Noteworthy for being a show car at the 1961 Frankfurt Motor Show, this short-wheelbase California Spider would make a crowning addition to even the most accomplished collections.