To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION at RM Sothebys' The Petersen Automotive
Museum Auction event, 8 December 2018.
Estimate:
$550,000 - $700,000
- The original model that birthed the Lamborghini legend; one of
only 120
- An exceptionally well-preserved and largely original
example
- Fewer than 37,300 original miles
- Featured in a Gucci commercial, directed by and starring James
Franco
Please note that this lot is titled as a 1966.
Enzo Ferrari unwittingly helped Ferruccio Lamborghini with his
quest to make a sports car better than Ferrari. There had been a
defection (known as the palace revolt) among the top ranks of
Ferrari's employees in 1961, and some first-rate designers were now
working freelance. Lamborghini assembled a veritable dream team,
which included designers Giotto Bizzarrini and Gian Paolo Dallara,
development driver Bob Wallace, the racing shop of Neri & Bonanci
in Modena, and Franco Scaglione, who created the renowned Alfa
Romeo Bertone BAT cars. Between them, they developed the
Lamborghini 350 GTV concept, which was the sensation of the Geneva
Auto Show in May 1963.
Lamborghini was convinced that the 350 GTV was too radical to be a
usable road car, and he directed Wallace and Dallara to modify the
design. The engine was detuned, the dry-sump setup was replaced
with a wet sump, and the side-draft carburetors were fitted for a
lower hood line. Compression was reduced from 11:1 to 9.4:1, and
less radical cams were fitted. The result delivered 270 hp through
a five-speed ZF gearbox, and it featured independent suspension and
four-wheel power disc brakes to accomplish suitable high-speed
cruising. Touring of Milan built the bodies with their signature
Superleggera construction method.
When the production 350 GT debuted at the Geneva Auto Show in March
1964, it was to great acclaim and the first example was delivered
to its buyer on 31 July. In all, only 143 examples (including 23
interim cars) were built before the body was revised by Touring
into the 400 GT 2+2, in 1966.
This 350 GT is an unrestored example in exceptionally
well-preserved condition, with fewer than 60,000 km (37,300 miles)
from new. The original cognac leather interior remains in
remarkable condition and has an attractive light patina consistent
with its careful use and low mileage. Importantly, this 350 GT is
noted to retain its original engine. It was refinished some two
decades ago, but the surface of the black paint was recently
lightly wet sanded and professionally detailed, bringing out its
deep shine.
In 2014, the current owner supplied the car to James Franco for a
Gucci commercial, shot at the famed Chateau Marmont in Hollywood.
In the commercial, which he directed and starred in, Franco is seen
at the wheel of the 350 GT, heading down Mulholland Drive with a
stunning model at his side. The car is in exemplary running and
driving condition, having been scrupulously serviced by the
renowned Franco's European Sports Cars (unrelated to James Franco),
known for maintaining the Lamborghinis of such noted connoisseurs
as Jay Leno and for their decades of experience with these
cars.
Although never restored, this 350 GT has always been well
maintained and carefully used, making it one of the most attractive
preserved examples remaining today.To view this car and others
currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at
rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/ca18.
