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$11.55 million 1964 Ferrari 250 LM highlights RM Auctions' first night in Monterey

Some of the biggest auto auctions of the year are held during the weekend of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Millionaires gather in hopes of outbidding their contemporaries for incredibly rare cars. As Bonhams' record sale on Thursday of a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO for $38 million showed, these days the world's most expensive vehicles are found at auctions, often with a prancing horse on the nose.
RM Auctions' Friday sale reinforced this even more when a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM topped the evening by bringing in $11.55 million, after the 10 percent commission. It wasn't the only million-dollar vehicle of the event, though. A 1965 Ford GT40 Roadster Prototype garnered $6.93 million, and a 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 brought $1.705 million. Even a classic 1948 Tucker 48 had a final price of $1.57 million.
Surprisingly, some rather new cars actually brought in quite big money, too. A 2013 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Vitesse Le Ciel Californien sold for $2.42 million, and a 2006 Ford GT with just 13 miles sold for $407,000.

A Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 retrospective, by Gear Patrol

When we think of desirable Ferraris from the 1970s, the choices are somewhat thin. Obviously, there was the 365 GTB/4, better known as the legendary Daytona, but that was initially a product of the 1960s. Really, aside from the arrival of the stylish 308, the 1970s weren't a strong decade for Ferrari.
As Ferrari the brand grows, though, even some of its less-desirable cars are becoming popular among enthusiasts. Considering that, we should begin hearing more mid-70s Ferrari love, such as that being espoused by Anthony Rimicci, for his Dino 308 GT4.
As the first mass-produced, mid-engined V8 Ferrari, the Dino-badged 308 GT4 can best be thought of as the earliest ancestor to the 458 Italia (other mid-engined Ferraris, like the 250LM and 288 GTO are more akin to the Enzo and LaFerrari). It was also the final car in the Dino line, while many of the vehicles were rebadged as Ferraris, following lackluster sales.

Kimi out, Bottas in at Ferrari?

Things have not gone well for Scuderia Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen since he returned to the team in 2014. After a pair of strong seasons for Lotus that saw him finish third and fifth, the Finn ended last season in 12th, 106 points behind his teammate, Spaniard Fernando Alonso. His 2015 fortunes have improved – he currently sits in fourth, only a spot behind teammate Sebastian Vettel – but he's been remarkably inconsistent, struggling with the SF15-T, a car that was specifically designed to work with his driving style. He only has a single podium this season, was forced to retire in Australia after a bad pitstop, and he crashed out of the most recent round in Austria. Clearly, Kimi should just stay away from races starting in "Austr." That advice may have come too late, though, as rumors are bubbling up that Ferrari may be swapping its Finns, dropping Raikkonen for his young countryman, Valtteri Bottas. Fox News, citing a report from Germany's Bild, claims Ferrari has made an offer to Bottas' current team, Williams, to secure his services. It doesn't sound like the British team will give him up all that easily, though. According to Fox, Williams enjoys a contractual "option" on the 25-year-old Finn's contract for next season, and that Ferrari would need to buy that contract out to steal him away. Bild claims the Italians have offered $4.4 million, but Williams' second-in-command, Claire Williams, wants nearly four times that. Ferrari has, rejected that figure, allegedly and unsurprisingly. Should the two sides come to a compromise, German and Sahara Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg seems to be the popular choice to take the open Williams seat, Fox is reporting. It's unclear where Raikkonen would end up next. And with that, we consider the 2015 Formula 1 silly season officially open.