Chassis #001 VIN ZFFZR52A410123075 — one of only 448 built worldwide — changes hands after its Monterey Car Week debut
HILTON, NY, UNITED STATES, September 4, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Engels Gualdani, the Hilton-based classic car specialist known to collectors as “Mr. Muscle Car” and principal of Great Lakes Classic Cars, helped facilitate the private sale of chassis #001 of the Ferrari 550 Barchetta Pininfarina — the very first production example the factory ever assigned to the public marketplace. The transaction closed quietly in the weeks following the car’s high-profile appearance during Monterey Car Week, placing the historic roadster into an undisclosed private collection.
The Historic Opener
Of the 448 examples of the 550 Barchetta Pininfarina built to mark Pininfarina’s 70th anniversary, chassis #001 (VIN ZFFZR52A410123075) holds a singular distinction: it is the definitive first production chassis Ferrari ever released for public sale. Because that status is fixed and non-repeatable, Gualdani notes, the car’s value transcends the usual metrics of mileage, color, or options that govern the rest of the model line.
The car presents in Ferrari’s standard Rosso Corsa over a Nero leather racing bucket-seat interior, showing a preserved 6,050 miles from new. “A car like this doesn’t come up for negotiation very often, because there is only one of it,” Gualdani said. “Chassis #001 isn’t just an early example — it’s the specific car the factory designated as the first one the public could buy. Handling a private sale at that level is about protecting the paper trail as much as the car itself: verifying the history, confirming the numbers match, and making sure both sides understand exactly what’s changing hands.”
A Record-Setting Sibling, for Reference
The strength of the private sale is underscored by the public market’s own benchmark for the model, set one day earlier at The Quail. Chassis #024 (VIN ZFFZR52A310123696) crossed the block at Broad Arrow Auctions’ Quail Auction on August 14, 2026. The numbers-matching car sold for a final hammer price of $1,627,500, far surpassing its $1.1–$1.4 million presale estimate.
Shared Engineering Behind Both Cars
Both roadsters share the platform that marked Ferrari’s return to a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive flagship grand tourer: a 5.5-liter, naturally aspirated Tipo F133 65° V12 producing 479 horsepower, paired with a 6-speed gated manual transmission — among the last of Ferrari’s analog manual gearboxes before the shift to paddle-actuated F1 transmissions. Each car’s windshield frame was cut down 100mm for true roadster proportions, and each carries a minimal emergency fabric top rated only for low-speed use up to 70 mph.
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