Legacy Metrics

1958 Ferrari 250 GT California Spider LWB

1055 GTroadItaly
Engine
2.95L V12 overhead-camshaft (Colombo), triple Weber carburetors, ~222.5 bhp
Colour
Dark blue with lighter blue leather interior

Chassis 1055 GT is the eleventh long-wheelbase Ferrari 250 GT California Spider built, completed in November 1958 and delivered new through Luigi Chinetti Motors to a Texas attorney. One of only fifty LWB examples produced, it has a documented single competition appearance and a traceable ownership history spanning Texas, Georgia, the American Northeast, Germany, and California. The car underwent a comprehensive concours-level restoration in the early 1990s and has been shown at Pebble Beach, the Cavallino Classic, and the Concorso Italiano.

Ownership

  1. Auction sale
    Estimate US$12,000,000 – US$14,000,000

    RM Sotheby's catalogue lot →

  2. 1959 → 1959Factory delivery
    Luigi Chinetti Motors
    full documentation

    Vehicle arrived in New York after sea transport from Italy and was received by the US distributor before being forwarded to a Texas dealer.

  3. 1959 → 1959Private sale
    Fawcett Motors
    partial documentation

    Lubbock, Texas dealership that served as the retail conduit before the car reached its first private buyer.

  4. 1959 → 1961Private sale
    M. Steven Deck
    full documentation

    Lubbock attorney who registered the vehicle under his produce company name; retained the car for roughly two years before selling to another Texas resident.

  5. 1961 → 1972Private sale
    Texan owner
    partial documentation

    Identity not specified; car remained in the southern United States during this period.

  6. 1972 → 1974Private sale
    Robert McKee and Gerald L. Roush
    partial documentation

    Roush was the founder and publisher of the Ferrari Market Letter; car continued to be based in the southern US during their ownership.

  7. 1974 → 1983Private sale
    Ewing Hunter
    partial documentation

    Atlanta-based co-owner of FAF Motorcars, the authorised Ferrari retailer in Tucker, Georgia; had the car repainted red with black leather trim during this period.

  8. 1983 → 1985Private sale
    Stan Nowak
    partial documentation

    Ferrari historian and author of a dedicated monograph on the California Spider; his time with this car is cited as a likely influence on that publication.

  9. 1985 → 1992Private sale
    Anthony Wang
    partial documentation

    Described as a prominent Ferrari collector; car moved north during or after his ownership.

  10. 1992 → 1995Private sale
    James George
    full documentation

    Mount Clemens, Michigan owner who commissioned a full concours-level restoration completed in early 1994 at a cost of approximately $150,000; subsequently exhibited the car at multiple prestigious concours events in 1994.

  11. 1995 → 1998Private sale
    East Coast Ferrari collector
    partial documentation

    Identity not disclosed; described as a notable collector based on the US East Coast.

  12. 1998 → 2011Private sale
    Jorn-Holger Richter
    partial documentation

    Resident of Gstadt, Germany; had the original engine fully overhauled in the Netherlands by marque specialist Piet Roelofs shortly after acquisition; kept the car for thirteen years.

  13. 2011 → 2014Private sale
    Northeast US Ferrari collector
    partial documentation

    Described as one of the leading Ferrari collectors in the northeastern United States; arranged a fresh service at Ferrari of Newport Beach.

  14. 2014 →Private sale
    Current owner
    partial documentation

    Had the car refinished in period-correct dark blue with matching blue leather and grey carpet; commissioned a full engine rebuild by Patrick Ottis and additional brake and suspension work.

Competition

  1. 1959
    1959 12 Hours of Sebring
    Driver: Richie Ginther1st in GT class, 9th overall

    Ginther co-drove with Howard Hively in a long-wheelbase California Spider; result cited as an example of the model's competition capability, not specific to chassis 1055 GT.

  2. 1959
    1959 24 Hours of Le Mans
    Driver: Bob Grossman5th overall

    NART-entered California Spider co-driven by Fernand Tavano; finished behind two Aston Martin sports racers and two Ferrari competition coupes, covering nearly 3,965 km at an average above 165 km/h. Cited as a model-level achievement, not specific to chassis 1055 GT.

  3. 1962-01-07SCCA regional
    1962 Osceola Grand Prix
    Driver: Ross Durant1st in class, 2nd overall

    Chassis 1055 GT ran as number 19; finished second overall behind a Lister Corvette. Documented in Prancing Horse magazine issue 168.

  4. 1994
    1994 Cavallino Classic
    1st in class

    First showing after the concours restoration completed in January 1994; class win affirmed the quality and correctness of the restoration work.

  5. 1994
    30th Annual Ferrari Club of America International Concours

    Held in California; one of several concours appearances by chassis 1055 GT in the months following its restoration.

  6. 1994
    1994 Concorso Italiano

    Held at The Quail Lodge in California; part of the same late-1994 California concours tour by the car.

  7. 1994
    44th Annual Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance

    Presented by owner James George as part of a series of California concours appearances following the completion of the restoration.

  8. 2014Ferrari Club of America
    2014 FCA National Meet
    Luigi Chinetti Memorial Award

    First concours outing after the car was refinished in dark blue; held in Leesburg, Virginia.

Maintenance & restoration

  1. 1974Restoration
    FAF Motorcars

    Full repaint in red with black leather interior retrim carried out by FAF Motorcars, the Ferrari dealer in Tucker, Georgia.

    Work performed during Ewing Hunter's ownership.

  2. 1994Restoration
    Sheehan's European Auto Restoration

    Comprehensive concours-level rebuild documented with hundreds of detail photographs; no rust or accident damage was found. Work concluded in January 1994 at a reported cost of approximately $150,000.

    Commissioned by James George; the photographic record forms part of the car's accompanying documentation.

  3. 1998Engine rebuild
    Piet Roelofs

    The original engine was completely overhauled by a Dutch Ferrari specialist shortly after the car arrived in Germany under new ownership.

    Carried out in the Netherlands.

  4. 2014Bodywork
    Perfect Reflections

    Car refinished in period-appropriate dark blue; interior retrimmed in a lighter blue leather with grey carpeting.

    Work by Brian Hoyt in Hayward, California, commissioned by the current owner.

  5. 2014
    Engine rebuild

    Complete engine overhaul to achieve exemplary running condition; brakes and shock absorbers were also attended to as part of the same programme.

    Carried out by Ferrari mechanic Patrick Ottis following the car's appearance at the 2014 FCA National Meet.

  6. 2014
    Mechanical

    Brake and shock absorber work performed in conjunction with the engine rebuild to prepare the car fully for road use.

    Part of the same programme overseen by Patrick Ottis.

  7. Service
    Ferrari of Newport Beach

    General recommissioning service performed at a California Ferrari dealership following acquisition by a prominent northeastern US collector.

    Carried out between approximately 2011 and 2014.

Are you the owner of this car?

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Each chassis record is compiled from public auction archives and links to its source material. Ownership, competition and maintenance entries are extracted from those catalogue listings by an LLM, which can make mistakes — please contact us with any corrections. The summary is Legacy Metrics’ own writing; we do not reproduce catalogue text.

“Full” and “partial” documentation labels indicate how well each entry is corroborated in the underlying sources, not an audit of the car’s physical paperwork. Names of recent or living owners are withheld for privacy.