A Ferrari 412P with the chassis number 0854 will be heading to auction in the middle of the next month, poised to sell for an eye-watering $40 million. The Italian automaker only made two such vehicles, and this one has had an eventful motorsports background followed by a complete restoration.
The 412P was a clients’ modification of the 330 P3 racecar famous for its standoff against the Ford GT40 in the 1966 Le Mans marathon. The company made most examples for private racing teams based on a modified 330 P3 chassis, but this one is exceptional in multiple ways. For one, the 4.0-liter V12 under the hood of this particular car ended up with Weber carburetors instead of Lucas injection. It is unofficially believed that Ferrari wanted to avoid excessive in-house competition from too many similar sports cars, so it threw in a bit of diversity.
Aside from the carburetors, this example was the only one to get a Berlinetta body from Pininfarina, which was replaced with Barchetta bodywork after a serious road accident in 1969. It continued to change owners for years afterwards and taking part in endurance races in Europe, South America and the United States.
The seller has spent nine years getting the unique 412P back into top shape and claims that it is the world’s only surviving example to retain the original chassis, engine and transmission. It comes with all the certificates of authenticity and is being publicly auctioned off for the first time on record.