The 10 Most Expensive Ferraris Ever Made

When you think about flashy red supercars flying down the road at ridiculous speeds and making your skin crawl with their screaming engines, there’s only one brand that comes to mind. But even Ferrari has had their hits, and their misses. But in an ocean of cars that cost more than your house, what are the most expensive Ferraris ever made?

Well, in this article, I’m going to take you through the 10 most expensive Ferraris ever! And the cars on this list total over $255 million! Let’s go!

#10: Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Speciale ($16,500,000)

So, let’s start this list off with the least expensive car to make the top 10, the Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Speciale. Spoiler alert: it’s still super expensive. It’s number 10 on the list, but if you were thinking it would be cheap, you’d be dead wrong. How much do you think this is? $5 million? $10 million? $15 million? Nope!

The 10th most expensive Ferrari ever sold at Gooding’s Pebble Beach auction in 2015 for a staggering $16.5 million! Just let that sink in. You could buy this very special Ferrari or have just about any mansion in the world.

So, what makes this 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Speciale so special? VIN number 3269 GT was one of the 163 models ever built from 1959 to 1963, and it was one of the most unique, because this version was designed by the iconic Giorgetto Giugiaro, featuring bodywork from coach builder Nuccio Bertone, who liked it so much that he owned it himself.

Instead of classic Ferrari rosso corsa red, this car was spec’d in brilliant blue paintwork, setting it apart from the rest of the Ferrari Famiglia. Compared to the car the 250 GT SWB replaced, the chassis was shrunk 200 millimeters, which led it to become one of the most notable GT racers of its time. Oh, and did I mention the glorious 2.9 liter V-12 pumped out a beautiful exhaust note to the tune of 240 buff Italian horses? Pair that with a manual 4-speed gearbox, and you get one of the coolest ‘Raris on the road.

But, that’s only the 10th most expensive, what about the 9th? Well, that goes to the 250 LM.

#9: Ferrari 250 LM by Scaglietti ($17,600,000)

The 250 LM was by all means a racecar. Built to meet homologation requirements put in place by the FIA in order to compete in the Group 3 GT class, the LM replaced the 250 GTO and became Ferraris flagship racer. But, the FIA refused to homologate the 250 LM because they had built less than the required 100 units. Mama mia! This drove Enzo Ferrari crazier than if he was served a bad bowl of pasta.

Due to this, the 250 LM had to run in the prototype class until it was homologated as a Group 4 Sports Car for the 1966 season, and not the Group 3 GT that Enzo was hoping to tackle. You remember how I said they had to build 100 units? Well, they only ended up building 32 of these 2.3-liter aluminum block V12 monsters with 6 Weber carburetors! And all that Italian technology was good for 320 horsepower!

This car, VIN 6105, was the 23rd example constructed, and it was originally bought by Ronald Fry, who raced this car nearly every weekend. And unlike some of the other 250 LM’s, this one was never wrecked, which was surprising considering how often Fry raced. And since it never met the track wall, it was kept in pristine condition.

Fast forward some years to January 2015 when this car traded hands at $17.6 million in RM Sotheby’s Monterey Auction. But hold on, because this next car was even more expensive. You guessed it, another Ferrari 250, but this time it’s a GT LWB California Spider Competizione.

#8: Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider Competizione ($18,150,000)

This is one special silver ‘Rari, because only 9 LWB California Spiders were made, and even less left the factory with competition features. Out of the 9, all are different both mechanically and aesthetically, but this one was in the last batch of 250 GT LWB California Spiders that came out of the factory. So, not only did it have all the competition features, but also some of the newest technology of the time, even over the other cars in its production run.

This 250 VIN number 1603 GT wasn’t just spec’d with the right options, it also had a 5-year race history in which it snagged a few podiums, making this car probably the most desirable example of these cars. Before its sale at Gooding Pebble Beach in 2016, it was displayed at the 25th Ferrari Club of America annual meeting, where it received a first-in-class award, and it was shown at countless other shows with more awards to its name.

But this car was no show poodle, it was a badass California Spider Competizione! So, how much was it sold for? Well, another one of the nine sold for $17.99 million, but this one smashed that record to smithereens. Proudly wearing the number 17 on its side, VIN 1603 GT went across the auction block with a closing price of $18.15 million!

But prices are just starting to ramp up, and this next Ferrari is the oldest to cross this list. The 1954 Ferrari 375-Plus Spider Competizione is truly a sight to behold.

#7: Ferrari 375-Plus Spider Competizione (€10,753,450)

The 1954 Ferrari 375-Plus Spider Competizione is also a sight you’ll probably only see on video, because they only made 5 of these cars ever. And these cars were built with the intent of winning the 1954 World Sports Car Championship. This record-setting car was the first of 5 completed and only scored one race win at Silverstone with Jose Frolian Gonzalez behind the wheel.

Later, the body was torn off and recreated, but in the sale, the new owner received all the original bodywork, which was still wearing the 1957 Cuban Gran Prix livery. And they also received a period-correct replacement engine. And while not much is known about this car, it did trade hands at Bonhams Goodwood Festival of Speed Auction for about $18.3 million!

So, while this 375-Plus was restored to its former glory, this next car sadly doesn’t have the same story. This Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider has an interesting, if unfortunate, story to tell.

#6: Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider (€16,288,000)

Whether it was the newspapers stacked on top of it, or just the fact that the owner decided to stash it in his barn and let it collect dust, the history of this car is one of the best on the list. French movie stars and film producers owned this car. So, yes, this car did have its time in the limelight, and on the track!

In 1964, the car was shipped over to California and converted to American specification, switching out the French turn signals for American ones. At this point, the car was sold to Paul Bouvot, who ran the style center of Peugot at the time. He sold it later to acquire a different 250.

After a few more owners, VIN 2935 GT was acquired by Jacques Baillon in November 1971 among other nauseatingly expensive cars in his prestigious collection, a collection that had been started in the 1950’s by his father. Unfortunately, Jacques Baillon rarely drove his cars, and so before you knew it, this prestigious 250 was stored in a barn away from bad weather and poor people’s eyes.

For decades, the car sat in a barn while only about 54 other 250 GT SWB California Spiders were roaming around the globe. Not to mention that this particular car was one of the 37 that had covered headlights, a feature that Ferrari-heads went particularly crazy for. And remember how I said that the car got converted to a USA specs? Well, when the car was unearthed, the French-spec turn signals were found in the passenger side footwell. Talk about striking gold!

And, man, did the Ferrari fanboys show up to bid on this car at the Artcurial Retromobile Paris in 2015. The car ended up being sold for a whopping €16,288,000, which is roughly $18.6 million! You want to know what’s crazier? There were also 3 250 GT SWB California Spiders that sold for over $15 million! But this prized barn find was the king of the castle… or king of the barn!

So, we hit the halfway mark. Strap in, because these are the top 5 most expensive Ferraris ever! And we’re really raising the bar. This next one is nearly $10 million more than number 6! Sliding in the number 5 spot is the Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale.

#5: 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti ($26,400,000)

And while it may be number 5 on this list, there were only 4 ever built! Talk about rarity! That makes the 106 McLaren F1‘s look common, so it’s fair to say that these 275 GTB/C Speciales are really rare. Built to succeed the 250 GTO as Ferrari’s GT class entry during the 1965 racing season, the 275 GTB/C was the first racing version of the 275 built, and the 4 cars were produced between 1964 and 1966.

Each car was different due to the hand-built bodywork and the aerodynamic experimentation by the Ferrari engineers, but the one we’re talking about was built in 1964, making it one of the earliest of the 4 cars. It was fitted with an engine with the same specifications as the 250 LM, and it was also designed with a more streamlined shape, similar to the 250 GTO and the 330 LMB.

VIN 06701 is finished in a unique grey with a white stripe livery, which really took purists for a ride and busted their checkbooks wide open. What did they write on the check? How about $26.4 million! But hold the phone, because the Ferrari 275 GTB/4*S N.A.R.T. Spider cost even more!

#4: Ferrari 275 GTB/4*S N.A.R.T. Spider ($27,500,000)

N.A.R.T.? What’s that? Is it an insult that frat boys call each other? Is it a slang word for a naughty part of the human anatomy? No! N.A.R.T. stands for “North American Racing Team”, and the NART Spider was a specially built 275 GTB which was meant to boost sales of the Italian marque that it represented. Ferrari intended to build 25, but only made 10 due to lack of demand.

The record setting car was number 8, bought new for somewhere between $8,000 and $14,500, if you can believe that. And during this time, Steve McQueen’s N.A.R.T. Spider was totalled, and he was looking to buy another one, so he had his eyes on this car. 

But the buyer, Eddie Smith, kept this car even though the distributor of these cars said that Eddie should pass on the car to McQueen. Eddie kept it, and what a smart move that was. Originally, VIN 10709 supported a beautiful blue azzurro metallizzato, but during a full restoration in the 1980’s, the car was repainted in Resale Ronnie’s favorite shade of red lipstick.

This special one-of-10 N.A.R.T. Spider was a one-family car until after Eddie died in 2007, and the car was sold at auction in 2013. When the Spider went for sale in 2013, it was supposedly bought by Lawrence Stroll, a big wig at Tommy Hilfiger, for the cool sum of $27.5 million, with all the proceeds going to charity!

This next car was a purpose-built racecar that shot up in value almost as fast as it blazed down the track! This is the one-of-4 Ferrari 290 MM!

#3: 1956 Ferrari 290 MM by Scaglietti ($28,050,000)

The 290 MM was built and prepped for the 1956 running of the Mille Miglia, hence the name MM. These cars were stripped, lightened, and lightened even more, until it was basically a drivetrain wrapped in aluminum foil.

See, to be competitive in the Mille Miglia, these cars had to be rocketships. The MM’s were powered by a specially designed 60-degree Jano V12 displacing just 3.5-liters, that’s about as much as my 6-cylinder 911! It put out similar horsepower to my 911 50 years earlier, and would keep pushing all the way up to a redline over 7000 RPM and a top speed of 170 miles per hour. Talk about a death trap!

And a pretty expensive death trap too, because in 2015 VIN 0626 sold for a whopping $28.05 million! But there was also another one of the 4, VIN 0628, which sold for a hair over $22 million too! Unfortunately, after Enzo and the boys dropped the 290 MM, Maserati built a car that was threatening to outrun them with a gigantic 4.5-liter engine.

So, what was Ferrari’s response? The 355 Sport Scaglietti.

#2: Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti (€32,100,000)

Ferrari built this car with a bigger 4.1-liter V12 pushing out more than 400 horsepower back in 1957! Let me say that again, 400 horsepower in 1957. Unreal. Just like the 290 MM, the 335 Sport Scaglietti only had 4 units produced. But, unlike the double-M death trap’s 170-mile-per-hour top speed, the 335 cranked it up to 190!

And the one sold at auction had been driven by some of the world’s most renowned drivers, like Mike Hawthorne and Stirling Moss, only adding value to this masterpiece. When it crossed the auction block in 2016, it came with a Picasso price tag too, €32,100,000, or about $36 million!

Now, that’s a lot, but this number one car fetched funny money, enough that it’s out of any trust fund baby’s budget. And, man, is the Ferrari 250 GTO going to blow your mind.

#1: Ferrari 250 GTO ($48,405,000)

That’s right, the most expensive Ferrari of all time is the 250 GTO! The “Gran Turismo Omologato”, or homologated grand tourer, was produced between 1962 and 1964 for homologation in the FIA’s Group 3 Grand Touring Car championship. A total of only 36 cars were produced, 33 cars with Series 1 bodywork, and 3 cars with Series 2 bodywork, which had styling like the 250 LM.

But you, like me, will be surprised to know that the most expensive 250 GTO is number 3 of the 33 Series 1, and not one of the 3 Series 2 cars. However, it was one of 4 cars to be period-upgraded to the Series 2 bodywork.

From the gates in Maranello, GTO’s rolled off of the factory line for $18,500, but if you wanted one of these special rides, you not only had to front the cash, but also have the blessing of lord Ferrari himself. I mean Enzo Ferrari, oh, and Luigi Chinetti too, who was the North American dealer at the time.

The record-breaking car proudly sports the number 23 plastered on the side, and throughout its life, it’s run in quite a few races with many different drivers. VIN 3413 had over 15 class and overall wins during the 1962 to 1965 race seasons. But that wasn’t the end of its racing career! The car was transported all over the world to participate in a bunch of grand events, like RM Sotheby’s Monterey in 2018, where it sold for a staggering $48.405 million! What!

Not only that, but when any other 250 GTO’s go up for sale, they’re sure to climb over $30 million, like VIN 3851GT which fetched $38.115 million in 2014. I guess people just really like these cars. 

I mean, they’re cool, but I’d never blow that much cash on one, not that I’d ever have the opportunity. Oh well.