2017 | Ferrari California T

Highlights

Just two owners from new and showing fewer than 130 miles on the odometer

One of just five Ferrari 70th Anniversary models in ‘The Ingrid’ specification and the only California T

Directly inspired by the Ferrari 375 MM Coupé Speciale famously owned in the 1950s by the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman

Resplendent in ‘Extra-Range’ Grigio Ingrid over a Vaumol Ochre Connolly leather interior

Specified with a large number of optional extras including the Special Handling Package

Built by Ferrari’s Tailor Made division to commemorate the Prancing Horse’s 70th anniversary in 2017

Accompanied by its original manuals and complete set of special 70th Anniversary accessories including a small-scale model, photographs from the factory production line and the ‘Special Vehicle’ Ferrari binder

Forza Ferrari!

Did you know that only one post-War car has ever won the coveted ‘Best of Show’ award at the Pebble Beach Concorso d’Eleganza? It was the 1954 Ferrari 375 MM Coupé Speciale bought new by the Italian film director Roberto Rossellini for his wife, the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman.

The one-off Pinin Farina Berlinetta is a masterful design, swirling with long arcing lines, voluminous curves and novel features such as rotating headlights, shark-like fins (before the 250 GTO) and flying buttresses. Simply put, it is not hard to see why it won the affection of the notoriously particular Pebble Beach judges.

When Ferrari celebrated its 70th birthday in 2017, its Tailor Made division marked the occasion with 70 bespoke tribute configurations inspired by themes, colours and the most famous road and competition cars from its fabled history. The latter included cars such as the 290 MM Juan Manuel Fangio raced in the 1956 Mille Miglia, Steve McQueen’s 250 GT ‘Lusso’ and Stirling Moss’ Goodwood Tourist Trophy-winning 250 GT ‘SWB’ Competizione. 

Also included was – yes, you guessed it – the ex-Rossellini 375 MM Scaglietti Coupé. Appropriately named ‘The Ingrid’, the specification was allocated to just one of each of Ferrari’s five models. Of those, the California T, chassis number 231161, is the car we’re thrilled to be offering.

The specification of ‘The Ingrid’ California T is nothing short of exhaustive. The Grigio Ingrid paintwork and sumptuous Vaumol Ochre Connolly leather, both direct nods to the Rossellini 375 MM, are only the start. It seems very few boxes on Tailor Made’s optional-extras form were left unticked – no doubt in a bid to justify the heady 375,000-USD retail price.

Allow us to list some of those options which drew our eyes: the Special Handling Package, the full-electric seats, the 20-inch forged-alloy wheels painted satin silver, the Scuderia Ferrari wing shields, the Cavallino Rampante headrest embroidery and the special-coloured stitching. Need we carry on?

A silver dedication plaque twixt the seats and small ‘70’ logos ahead of the rear wheels are visual confirmations of this California T’s uniqueness. As a 70th Anniversary Tailor Made Collection model, a car Ferrari designates as a ‘Special Vehicle’, this California was delivered with a slew of additional accessories.

Chief among these was a commemorative box containing a small-scale model of this car, photographs of the car as it travelled along the Ferrari factory production line, and a Ferrari paperweight. There’s also a special box for the key, which includes a silver sculpture of the California, a lithograph depicting the car, a car cover and a wind deflector. It was also assigned a white ‘Special Vehicle’ Ferrari binder, authenticating its provenance.

Chassis number 231161 was delivered new to the United States of America in 2017 via Ferrari of Central Florida. In the years since, the car has changed hands only once and covered a mere 128 miles. It was subjected to a major service most recently in June of 2023 by the Official Ferrari Dealer Meridien Modena here in the United Kingdom. Needless to say given the mileage, this California T remains in flawless factory-fresh condition.

Just five of ‘The Ingrid’ 70th Anniversary Tailor Made Collection Ferraris were built, standing as a subtly elegant tribute to Roberto Rossellini’s Ferrari 375 MM Coupé – what is, without doubt, one of the most desirable (and valuable) Prancing Horses in existence. That this is the only California T, a model with a freakish level of versatility, should be music to today’s collectors’ ears. One thing is for sure: Ferrari does good birthday presents.

Price: $420,000 (USD)