If you were to rely solely on the word of auction house RM Sotheby’s, the 1967 Ferrari 330 GTC Zagato selling at their biannual Villa Erba sale on May 25th would be a no-brainer buy.
It’s “stunning.” It’s “a bit more special than most.” And it “would surely be welcomed at the world’s most exclusive concours events, as it has been in the past.” Oh, and it’s the only one ever made.
The story of that exclusivity is indeed a bit more special (i.e., doesn’t involve some über-rich oil magnate throwing money at Ferrari). According to the listing, in 1972, the Massachusetts owner of a 1967 330 GTC “incurred minor damage to the front of the car” (Silodrome interprets it as a “fender bender,” but that’s not confirmed). Instead of using Pops-A-Dent and calling it a day, the car was shipped back to Italy where it got an entirely new body courtesy of legendary coachbuilder Zagato.
Et voilà: A one-off Ferrari-Zagato is born. And now it’s for sale.
But you — an intelligent, cunning, cool-headed dealmaker — aren’t about to take RM Sotheby’s word for it. While there is no estimated sale price listed, this is a rare, expensive car and you need to do your homework before you bid.
The first couple Google results don’t show much, but then the sh*t starts flying. There it is in “The 10 Ugliest Ferraris of All Time” on Edmunds. And on a nine Ferraris “we’d never set foot in” list on, uh, HotCars.com. The insults get weaker from there with pieces like “Beauties and the Beasts.” You get it.
For context, here’s a 1967 Ferrari 330 GTC (that is, this Ferrari pre-Zagato transformation). The body on that car was actually designed by the similarly esteemed Italian coachbuilders at Pininfarina. The most obvious difference is that the original looks like the ‘50s or ‘60s, and the Zagato makeover is 100% undiluted ‘70s nonsense.
That said, we adhere to the Wonkanian perspective that a little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men, and thus we wholeheartedly endorse anyone bidding on this anomaly. This is a Ferrari for a Shia LaBeouf-type, someone completely unconcerned with the goings on of less interesting drivers. If other people think it’s ugly, that’s on them.
Check out the rest of the photos and history here and register to bid here.
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