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Ferrari 250 TR recreation channels the spirit of Fangio

Peter Giacobbi grew up watching the likes of Juan Manuel Fangio and Phil Hill race cars like the Ferrari 250 TRs when he was a kid. Once he grew up – or at least grew older – he knew he had to have one to call his own. The trouble is that original Testa Rossas sell for tens of millions these days, and as accomplished as he may have been in his life and career, Giacobbi didn't have that kind of money to spend on a car. So he did the next best thing and built one of his own. Fortunately Giacobbi had some experience building exotic sports cars. He formed half of the duo that created the Sinthesis 2000, a one-off concept that he and designer Tom Tjaarda unveiled at the 1970 Turin Motor Show. And that project ended up serving as his interview for the job of chief engineer for DeLorean. So when he set to building his own Testa Rossa, he knew how to go about it. His recreation may not be 100 percent authentic, but then it's not entirely fake, either. The bodywork is genuine, as are many of the parts. The rest he faithfully reproduced or had made specially. The result, as you can see, is quite stunning – especially left bare in its hand-beaten aluminum form. Hear his story, see his project, and listen to that Colombo V12 engine sing in this latest video installment from the cinematographic artisans at Petrolicious.

What's the smarter investment, Ferrari stock or a Ferrari?

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is gearing up to spin Ferrari off into its own company, and float some of its shares on the stock market. But buying and trading in Ferrari stock could face a rather unlikely competitor from within. As Bloomberg points out, the values held by classic Ferraris keeps going up, and by no small margin. Even something as relatively humble as the 80s-era Testarossa, for example, has nearly doubled in value over the past year alone. Meanwhile the value of some models – particularly those built in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s – have skyrocketed nearly seven-fold since 2006. Just look at the 250 GTO, one of the most coveted of classic Ferraris among collectors: not taking inflation into account, they were worth thousands in the late 60s, were already selling for hundreds of thousands in the 1980s, and by now are trading hands – on the rare occasion when they do trade hands – for tens of millions. One sold in 2004 for $10 million, and another in 2013 for over $50 million. Those kinds of increases can make a vintage Ferrari seem like a sound investment. That might make it difficult for Ferrari's stock to compete. The company hopes investors will view it as a luxury goods manufacturer along the likes of Prada, Hermes, or Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, the stocks of which tend to increase in value at a greater rate than those of most automakers. But even the best of those luxury stocks have merely doubled in value since 2006, compared to the aforementioned seven-fold increase enjoyed by some classic Ferraris over the same period. Add to that the prospect of actually getting to enjoy owning a classic Ferrari – albeit at the risk of damaging it and hindering its value – and the idea of investing in Maranello's products instead of its stock can seem like a much more enticing prospect. Related Video:

Why Italians are no longer buying supercars

Italy is the wound that continues to drain blood from the body financial of Italian supercar and sports car makers. The wound was opened by the country's various financial police who decided to get serious about superyacht-owning and supercar-driving tax cheats a few years ago, by noting their registrations and checking their incomes. When it was found that a rather high percentage of exotic toy owners had claimed a rather low annual income - certain business owners were found to be declaring less income than their employees - the owners began dumping their cars and prospective buyers declined to buy.
Car and Driver has a piece on how the initiative is hitting the home market the hardest. Lamborghini sold 1,302 cars worldwide in 2010, 1,602 cars in 2011 and 2,083 cars in 2012 - an excellent surge in just two years. In Italy, however, it's all about the ebb: in 2010, the year that Italian police began scouring harbors, Lamborghini sold 96 cars in Italy, the next year it sold 72, last year it sold just 60. The declines for Maserati and Ferrari are even more pronounced.
Head over to CD for the full story and the numbers. What might be most incredible isn't the cause and effect, but where the blame is being placed. A year ago the chairman of Italy's Federauto accused the government of "terrorizing potential clients," this year Luca di Montezemolo says what's happening has created "a hostile environment for ­luxury goods." Life at the top, it ain't easy.