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Ferrari 250 California record headlines $28.5M Baillon barnfind collection

Barn finds arise from time to time, bearing undiscovered treasures hidden away in some shed for decades before being unearthed and brought to the auction block. But few have ever compared to the Baillon Collection. And now its liquidation is complete, bringing in millions in sales on the back of frenzied bidding. Discovered just months ago, the Baillon Collection comprised some 100 vehicles said to have been rescued from the crusher by one Roger Baillon, a French transport magnate who intended to eventually put the cars on display in a museum. Unfortunately that never came to pass, but when the cars were found in sheds on his estate in rural France, the world took notice. In dire condition and in need of much TLC, 59 of the cars (those worth selling) were consigned to the auctioneers at Artcurial, which just handled their sale during the Retromobile classic car show this weekend in Paris. The highest price was fetched by a rare 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider with the highly desirable covered headlights found in the barn under a pile of old magazines. One of just 37 made, the drop-top Prancing Horse sold to an unnamed international collector for a record $18.5 million – far above initial estimates and, despite its condition, the most ever paid for a 250 GT of any kind. An American collector paid $2.2 million for the 1956 Maserati A6G bodied by Frua, also well above its pre-sale estimate range. A '49 Talbot-Lago T26 bodied by Saoutchik more than doubled even the top of its estimated value at $1.9 million, sold to a European collector. All told, the Baillon Collection brought in a staggering $28.5 million in sales, comprising over half the value of the lots, 89 percent of which Artcurial sold at the Retromobile auction.

Ferrari replacing fuel tanks on limited number of LaFerraris

Ferrari is working to repair an issue with its flagship LaFerrari hypercar, but the automaker claims the problem is not as drastic as some widely-circulated rumors would have you believe. In response to our inquiry into the matter, a Ferrari spokesperson told Autoblog that "no recall has been issued regarding the LaFerrari." Instead, the company tells us that "some clients have been invited to take their cars to an authorized service center to substitute the fuel tank with a new one with new paint." The issue seems to revolve around "a possible incorrect adhesion of a layer of paint on the fuel tank," which could result in a fire. Contrary to rumors that suggested the issue would affect every example of the seven-figure supercar built to date and would take several weeks to repair, we're told that "the time to change the fuel tank is relatively short and the intervention concerns only a limited number of LaFerraris." That "relatively short" time period, we're told, "takes approximately one day," and "all of the cars have already been serviced in the US." As to whether this constitutes a recall or simply a suggested service as Ferrari claims, however, is a matter that's open to interpretation. Related Video:

Why newly independent Ferrari may be forced into fuel-efficient cars

The repercussions from Ferrari's pending transition into an independent automaker won't be understood for some time, but one of the biggest consequences could be that the iconic Italian marque will be forced into building more fuel-efficient vehicles.
As Wired points out, while Ferrari built fewer than 7,000 cars in 2013, its status as a public company could trigger pressure from shareholders to build more six-figure supercars and grand tourers. In turn, doing so could lead the company afoul of US Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, which dictate that any company that sells over 10,000 vehicles needs to maintain a certain fuel economy average across its fleet or risk fines.
With arguably its most popular model, the 458 Italia, hitting just 17 miles per gallon on the highway and its most efficient model, the turbocharged California T, stuck at 18 mpg, Ferrari isn't in a great place to hit the government's mandates (which are somewhat convoluted as Wired explains). The gist of the situation is that Ferrari will either need to continue limiting the number of vehicles it sells each year - a move that's certain to upset shareholders and irk its boss, Sergio Marchionne - or radically improve the fuel economy of its cars at the risk of performance. Rock, meet hard place.