To Be OFFERED AT AUCTIONEstimate:
$1,200,000 - $1,400,000
- Offered from the collection of Raymond Boniface
- Acquired by Dr. Boniface in 1974
- Originally finished in the very rare combination of Avorio over
Rosso leather
- Numbers-matching drivetrain, including engine, gearbox, and
differential
- Well-documented exhibition history between 1968 and 2017
- Documented history by marque historian Marcel Massini
- Highly original example provided with mechanical service in
2017
The Ferrari 250 GT/L berlinetta, known simply as the "Lusso," is
without a doubt one of the most successful and visually arresting
grand touring cars ever built. The apogee of the 250 GT platform's
mechanical development, the model further benefits from a sporting
exterior that is among the most acclaimed designs of all time.
Introduced at the 1962 Paris Salon as a replacement for the 250 GT
coupe, the Lusso (Italian for luxury) also featured an all-new
interior arrangement highlighted by a revised dash panel and
leather upholstery throughout the cabin.
Mechanically, the Lusso's Tipo 168 U engine was the ultimate
3-liter development of the long-running short-block Colombo V-12,
incorporating the outside-plug ignition and single-cylinder porting
that had proven so successful in the 250 Testa Rossa and California
spider racing variants. This fantastic base was further bolstered
by chassis improvement that included four-wheel disc brakes, a
suspension with Koni shock absorbers at each corner, and a rear
Watts linkage that had been perfected on the legendary 250 GTO.
Scaglietti's realization of Pininfarina's design proved to be one
of the coachbuilder's most beautiful creations yet, with classic
early cues like the egg-crate grille and delicately curved fenders
giving way to long, flowing proportions, ample glass all around the
luxuriously trimmed cabin, and a fastback profile punctuated by a
Kamm tail. Originally owned by jet-set luminaries and celebrities
such as Steve McQueen, the Lusso was built in a modest quantity of
just 350 examples over roughly two years of production. As
essentially the final and most developed evolution of the revered
250 GT lineage, the GT/L has since become one of Maranello's most
collectable production models.
Chassis 5379, offered here, was the 235th Lusso produced, and the
only example ever provided in this Avorio over Rosso color
combination. Completed on 22 February 1964, it was delivered new to
the Greenwich, Connecticut dealership of noted Ferrari
proselytizer, Le Mans legend, and privateer racing personality
Luigi Chinetti. At the time, Chinetti was still the sole
US-distributor for the Italian marque; passionate, enthusiastic
Ferrari ownership in America remained a relatively small, chummy
club.
By 1968 chassis 5379 had been acquired by Carl Johnson of Homewood,
Illinois. A well-regarded custodian, collector, and treasurer of
the Ferrari Club of America since its earliest days, Johnson
exhibited the car at every available opportunity during his four
years of ownership, with several Ferrari anthologies, newsletters,
and contemporaneous sources documenting chassis 5379's condition.
At some point in the summer of 1972, Johnson sold the car to Dr.
Walter Bayard-a North Carolina ophthalmologist and, evidently, a
more private caretaker. Bayard and the car are documented as having
been present at the May 1974 FCA National Meet in Stone Mountain,
Georgia, reportedly the only evidence of Dr. Bayard having
exhibited the car during his short stewardship. Within months,
chassis 5379 was acquired by the late Dr. Raymond Boniface, of
Poland, Ohio, from whose collection it is now currently
offered.
Dr. Boniface was an exceptional collector of all beautiful Italian
machines, though his most notable arena of curatorial expertise was
clearly that of V-12 Ferraris. His passion for Italian automobiles
was born of his time spent in the country during World War II.
Honorably discharged from Army service in 1946, his time stateside
proved brief; Boniface returned to his ancestral homeland in 1948
to enter medical school at the University of Bologna.
The university proved a convenient location from which to explore
the finest facilities of Italian automotive brilliance; Maranello
(Ferrari) and Modena (Maserati) were both just 30 miles away, while
Milan (Alfa Romeo) proved a leisurely 150 mile drive north, and
Turin (Fiat/Lancia) a 210 mile drive west-all convenient distances
in contrast to the expansive frame of reference for American
drivers. By the time the newly christened Dottore returned home to
Ohio and set up shop, he was already planning his first new
acquisition: a 1955 Alfa Romeo Giulietta spider. Though countless
Italian cars passed through Dr. Boniface's finely curated
collection over some 65 years, very few have been so thoughtfully
preserved as his 1964 Lusso.
Upon acquiring 5379 in the summer of 1974, Dr. Boniface promptly
returned the Ferrari to a regular exhibition schedule, and the car
was a regular guest at many FCA and concours events over the next
30 years. In 1988, a full repaint and cosmetic restoration was
executed by Joe Piscazzi's American Auto Body of Akron, Ohio.
Eleven years later, it was documented as the feature car in issue
number 133 of the FCA's Prancing Horse magazine. While the car was
repainted years ago it still presents nicely today, especially with
its beautiful accenting brightwork. It retains a fender-mounted
mirror and rides on a set of period-correct 15 � 6.5-inch Borrani
wire wheels are presently shod in bespoke Pirelli P5 Cinturato
tires. The front grille's FCA badging and rear mounted "prancing
horse" have both been present on this chassis since the late
sixties, as evidenced by accompanying provenance.
The interior of 5379 is quite likely the most well-patinated,
highly original condition ever presented on a Lusso of such
pedigree. Nearly every conceivable leather, wood, rubber, and
chrome surface is displayed with a charming degree of patina and
age-related wear. The original Rosso Connelly leather still retains
a deep, beautiful luster despite many decades of motoring. Large,
age-related splits in the upper dashboard appear at near-identical
locations in each of the central gauge housings-another key
indicator which substantiates claims that 5379 has been preserved
to an extremely high degree. According to testimony from the
Boniface heirs, the only known non-original interior components
currently present are a pair of bespoke, cut-to-sample replacement
floormats executed and installed by Jeff Kilmer, head upholsterer
of the General Motors Design Center's Trim Shop. Kilmer was careful
to excise the original, factory heel pads and insert them into the
replacements.
Spurred by a 2017 clutch failure, Dr. Boniface's family finally
elected to complete a mechanical servicing of the car, with his
well-informed sons politely referring to the process as "deferred
maintenance." A volume of accompanying invoices from Fowler
Automotive of Glenshaw, Pennsylvania detail over $30,000 of work
completed to rebuild, overhaul, tune, and replace a significant
number of components. The cooling, fuel, exhaust, ignition,
electrical, and brake systems were each respectively repaired
during this process. Additional mechanical work on the
transmission, rear axle, engine, and rear Koni shocks was
commissioned and completed after further consultation.
Shortly thereafter, 5379 was exhibited at the 2017 Concours of
America in St. Johns, Michigan, where it claimed Best in Class.
Having been driven just 46,770 miles at the time of cataloging,
this highly original...for more information please contact the
seller.
