|
Chassis:
Completed in early 1955, chassis 0546LM was originally conceived as a 118 LM. In this guise, it was raced as a works entry at the 1955 Mille Miglia by Paolo Marzotto. Unfortunately, a blown tyre ended the charge early. The car was returned to the factory where it was upgraded to full 121 LM specifications ahead of the entry in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Finished in French racing colours, it was raced by Maurice Trintignant and Harry Schell. Among the fastest cars in the entry, the big six-cylinder engined Ferrari also proved fragile and 0546LM was forced to retire from the race after ten hours with a blown engine.
The car was subsequently sold by the factory to William Doheny, who was the CEO of Superior Oil. He was the backer of talented West Coast racer Ernie McAfee. He raced the car for Doheny with considerable success, until he crashed fatally in the 1956 Pebble Beach Road Races. Doheny nevertheless retained the car and had it restored to its former glory during the next two years. Still in his ownership, Doheny entered the 121 LM in the first Monterey Historic Races for his stepson Chris Cord. It was subsequently sold to Bill Ziering, who would continue to show and race the car for the next two decades.
The most recent custodian acquired the rare six-cylinder racer from Ziering in 1997 and it has only rarely been seen in public since. In 2017, it was sold at the RM Sotheby's Monterey sale. While it spent many years in the colours as raced in North America, it was subsequently restored to its Le Mans livery. In this appropriate guise, it was consigned as one of the headliners to the 2023 RM Sotheby’s Le Mans Centenary Sale.
Chassis details |
Manufactured in |
1955 |
Engine number |
0546LM |
First owner |
Scuderia Ferrari |
Last known location |
American Private Collection |
Appearances |
|
Most recent auction(s) |
|
|
|