Tony’s Take: Here’s a perfect example of a Ferrari that isn’t as good as another Ferrari (the F40) that brings in bigger bucks because of its rarity. By design. Realizing they could charge more for less, Enzo’s mob built just 349 F50’s (vs. 1,331 F40’s). The F50 became an icon, leaving the vastly superior F40 in its shade.
O.K. sure, the F50 holsters an 4.7 liter engine derived from the 3.5 liter V12 powering the 1990 Ferrari 641 Formula One car. And yes the F50 is pure drama (if that’s the right word) in terms of performance and style. But check out Jeremy Clarkson’s take:
Mr. Clarkson’s excerpt fails to mention that Ferrari’s “bag of bolts” is stupid fast. The 512 hp 120-banger rockets the lightweight supercar from zero to sixty in a reported 3.8 seconds. She’ll hit 202 mph in the right (i.e. insane) hands. All assuming the driver’s chiropractor’s on speed dial.
No matter. At this level, cars are only driven for “exercise miles” and “occasional enjoyment.” Broad Arrow claims this 625-mile Ferrari F50 is “probably the best-condition example of Maranello’s important 50th anniversary model that one might ever encounter.” (I really must get out of the house more.)
I talk a lot about color – for good reason. No matter what the car, a vehicle in a rare but cool color is worth more money than than a car in a too-common or objectionable color.
Broad Arrow’s Classiche Red Book Ferrari F50 is Ferrari red. How great is that? Not as great as it could be. Here’s how Ferrari painted its F50’s.
- Rosso Corsa (Red): 302
- Giallo Modena (Yellow): 31
- Rosso Barchetta (Dark red): 8
- Argento Nurburgring (Silver): 4
- Nero Daytona (Black): 4
Imagine what a low-mileage Silver or Black F50 would bring. Anyway, is there such a thing as a bad Picasso? I imagine there is. But that won’t stop it from selling for millions. Same here.
Could F50 number eight be the first $6m+ F50? Broad Arrow reckons this fully-documented, how-low-can-you-go mileage F50 could hammer for as much as $6.5m. Let’s do the math.
F50 – Last Three Sales
| Auction House | Date | Miles | Price |
| Gooding & Co | 8/19/22 | 6,193 mi | $4,625,000 |
| Bring A Trailer | 8/19/22 | 31,000 km | $3,305,000 |
| Broad Arrow | 8/18/22 | 4,896 mi · | $5,175,000 |
F50 – High, Low, Average
| Highest Sale | Lowest Sale | Average |
| $5,175,000 8/18/22 4,896 mi | $1,155,000 1/18/2018 60k miles | $3.4m |
The 4800-mile F50 sold for $5.17m. For a sub-1k mile car, I add 10 to 20 percent onto the last highest sale. That would value the Broad Arrow bomber at $5.7m to $6.2m – a new record.
The only question: given inflation and economic uncertainty, are one-percenters still hot-to-trot at this level? China’s super-rich are taking it on the chin, but sales of ultra-luxury goods remain rock solid (e.g., Ferrari’s sold out).
So while the bubble at the bottom end of the collector car biz is about to go POP, there’s definitely a market for this car at that price. Downside: the F40 is a far better investment, unless you’re buying bragging rights.
| Make | Ferrari |
| Model | F50 |
| Year | 1995 |
| Total Produced | 349 |
| Number of Owners | 2 |
| Mileage | 625 mi |
| Condition | ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ |
| Price When New | $475k Inflation Calculator |
| Highest Previous Price | $5.2m (8/18/22) |
| Auction House | Broad Arrow |
| Auction Date | 10/12/22 |
| My Prediction | $5.7m to $6.2m |
| Hammered At |
I hesitate to comment because I am not now, and due to some unfortunate number choices last Monday night likely never will be one of your customers so reading this is a waste of your time, but… here I go anyway. About 20 years ago I saw one of these in the metal (carbon?) at a dealership and was thoroughly charmed. At the time, IIRC it was derided as the ugly stepsister of the world beating F40. I don’t remember what the ask was but I know it wasn’t a penny over a mil, I think less than half that. Do you have any interest in examining what is driving the explosion in prices or is that not done here?