2020 Ferrari 488 Pista Certified Cpo on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Michigan man gets jail time for Ferrari engine sale

Tax evasion is not something to mess about with. Ask Al Capone. For most of us that sell stuff, though, it's not something we really think about. Are you honestly going to pay taxes on that old iPhone 5 you sold? The couch with the questionable stain? No, because paying tax on something you sold for a relative pittance is just a pain in the butt. If you sell one of Aurelio Lampredi's Ferrari engines – used in a range of vintage racers, including the 750 Monza shown above – for over $600,000, you might want to make a point of paying the taxes on your profits. A Michigan man found that out the hard way, Reuters reports, after selling the Lampredi engine in 2009. 71-year-old Terry Myr of Smiths Creek, MI, was convicted in April of tax evasion and four counts of failing to file a tax return and was sentenced to two years in prison and two years of supervised release on Thursday. He was also ordered to pay $738,904 in back taxes, interest, and penalties – he already owed $195,000 in back taxes before his conviction – by a US District Court judge, Reuters reports. Now, this wasn't a simple case of Myr forgetting to set some money aside from the sale. The buyer wire-transferred the $610,000 into a corporate account he made the week prior. Then, Myr promptly withdrew $360,000, which he used to buy silver and gold coins, while the remainder was transferred to other accounts – be they personal or corporate – or simply used for checks to cash. Hence the tax evasion charge. According to Reuters, no explanation was given as to how Uncle Sam uncovered the engine sale in the first place. Related Video:

Xcar goes analog with the Ferrari F40

We will forever be in love with the Ferrari F40. From its blunt-force appearance to its 2.9-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine living and breathing perilously close to the driver's head, the F40, the last model designed and built with input from Enzo Ferrari himself, has been and likely always will be the Ferrari of Ferraris for automotive enthusiasts who grew up in the 1980s.
All of this raises an interesting question: is the Ferrari F40 the best supercar of all time? A case can certainly be made, and after watching - and, just as importantly, listening to - all 17 minutes of blood-red Italian glory from Xcar, you're going to have to try long and hard to convince us that anything could be sweeter than this particular Prancing Horse.
Watch the video above, aptly titled Analogue Animal. You owe it to yourself. So go ahead, sit back, turn up your speakers and click play.

$1.3B worth of classic cars were auctioned in 2014

The collector auto market in the US just continues to expand with the values of vehicles seemingly only growing in the past years, especially if they have a prancing horse on the hood. This year was no different. According to data compiled by classic car insurance agency Hagerty, there were about $1.3 billion worth of vintage rides auctioned in North America in 2014, up just slightly from $1.2 billion crossing the block in 2013. If you want an idea of just how big a role the Monterey Car Week plays in the North American collector hobby, Hagerty's stats illustrate it perfectly. The company recorded $430 million in auction sales during the week – about a third of the entire market for the year. The event also hosted the biggest seller of 2014 when the hammer fell on a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO (pictured above) for $38.115 million at Bonhams. In fact, vintage Ferraris in general were among the top buys in the classic auto world in 2014. Eight of the ten most expensive vehicles sold at auction were Prancing Horses (the other two were Ford GT40s). Also, the insurance company's price index for these Italian stallions showed a 43-percent gain in value for the year. The market for another Italian supercar is exploding, as well. The Lamborghini Countach showed a staggering 175-percent growth in auction value in 2014. According to Hagerty, the average price when they crossed the block was $736,599. Judging by Hagerty's numbers, there were still some places to look for those hoping to spend a bit less money. The Aston Martin Lagonda showed a strong gain in value with a 32-percent increase in auction price, but they still averaged $47,078. In addition, the company's index for '50s American cars showed only one-percent growth for these classics. These huge leaps in collector car value might be winding down, according to Hagerty. It predicts growth in the market to slow to an estimated five percent gain in 2015. Maybe a few of these classics might actually become a bit more affordable to fans without such deep pockets sometime in the future. Featured Gallery Bonhams Maranello Rosso Collection: Monterey 2014 View 21 Photos News Source: HagertyImage Credit: Copyright 2014 Drew Phillips / AOL Aston Martin Ferrari Lamborghini Auctions Car Buying Performance Classics aston martin lagonda ferrari 250 gto Lamborghini Countach collector cars 1962 ferrari 250 gto auto auction