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1962 Ferrari 250 GTO hits record $38 million sale at Bonhams' Monterey auction

This weekend's Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegrance brings together some of the rarest and most expensive automobiles in the world onto a tiny peninsula in California jutting out into the Pacific Ocean. But this year, there has been one vehicle on everyone's lips - a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO. Bonhams put up this incredibly rare Prancing Horse at no reserve for its auction at the Quail Lodge, meaning it could have sold for just a dollar. It didn't though, this ex-Jo Schlesser owned Ferrari sold for a staggering $38.115 million. That makes it the most expensive car ever sold at auction, beating out Bonhams' sale of a Mercedes W196R last year for $29.65 million.
Ferrari only built 39 of these racers, and they have been million-dollar cars for years. One reportedly sold privately for $52 million last year, and one built for Stirling Moss went for $35 million privately in 2012.
While the spectacle of seeing a 250 GTO drive across the auction block with no reserve and then set a record price was certainly amazing, it wasn't the only rare Ferrari up for sale during the evening. Bonhams also handpicked some of the most collectible Ferraris in the world and brought them to the stage. The ten cars included a 1962 250 GT Short-Wheelbase Speciale Aerodinamica that went for $6.875 million, a 1953 250 Mille Miglia Berlinetta driven to racing victory by Phil Hill for $7.26 million and even a 1978 312 T3 Formula One car for $2.31 million. All told, the group of them sold for $65.945 million.

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix: The circle is complete, and what a circle it's been [spoilers]

The track between the lakes, the Circuit d'Interlagos in Sao Paulo, Brazil, yet again served up a fitting finale to the Formula One season. There were all kinds of ways for the two Driver's Championship contenders - Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull and Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari - to win and lose during the 71 laps of the Brazilian Grand Prix, and that was before the rain, before the yellow flags and safety car periods, and before the accidents.
The World Championship lead swapped hands at least three times during the race. By the end of Lap One, in fact, it was a fair question if either driver would have hands, or a car, steady enough to hold it...

Sergio Marchionne confirms Ferrari LaFerrari Spider

Sergio Marchionne has been the CEO of Ferrari for about five minutes, and there's already big product news coming from Maranello. The LaFerrari hypercar will be sold as a convertible (or Spider, if you prefer). Marchionne confirmed the Spider during an interview with Automobile Magazine, which looks like it happened before today's CEO announcement. After being asked about the so-called LaFerrarina – which Automobile calls "a less extreme version of LaFerrari" – Marchionne said "the only future product connected to LaFerrari is the Spider," which was "no secret since potential customers have already been approached." While the company is hard at work on the LaFerrari Spider, Marchionne was less forthcoming on the long-rumored, V6-powered Dino. "Where should that Dino be positioned? How much should it cost? How would it relate to the next 488? What is the right balance between too many and not enough units?" Marchionne peppered. "We haven't found answers to these questions yet." Marchionne didn't go as far as saying when Ferrari would sell the LaFerrari Spider, but if the company is already reaching out to its exclusive clientele, a debut can't be far off. Perhaps 2017? That year is, after all, the 70th anniversary of the first Ferrari-badged car, 1947's 125 S. Related Video: