John Lennon’s first car, 1965 Ferrari 330GT 2+2 Coupe to be auctioned at Goodwood

John Lennon's first carIn February 1965 The Beatles recorded Ticket to Ride, one of their biggest hits and at the same time John Lennon passed his driving test.

Different luxury car dealerships saw an opportunity to grab a high-profile client and soon the road next to his house was filled with Maseratis, Aston Martins and also the iconic Jaguar E-Type. Lennon finally picked a Ferrari 330GT 2+2 Coupe finished in Azzuro blue paint with a blue interior. He paid £6,500 that is little over £110,000 in today’s money.

During its subsequent life, it was resprayed and lost its registration number, but in recent years, it was restored back to original and the original DUL 4C registration was restored by DVLA. And it’s going on sale at the Festival of Speed with an estimate of £180,000-£220,000. It was offered by Bonhams back in 2011 at its Grand Palais sale in Paris (where it was estimated at £140,000), but it failed to sell.

Joining the John Lennon Ferrari at the Bonhams Goodwood Festival of Speed Sale are a number of other important motor cars, including the 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 in which five-times Formula 1 World Champion Juan Manuel Fangio won two grands prix on his way to his second World Drivers’ Championship.

Among other cars on offer are the 1955 Maserati 300S Sports-Racing Spider that finished third in the 1955 Sebring 12-Hours (estimate £3.5 million – £4.5 million); a 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C-2300 ‘Le Mans’ Tourer (estimate £1.4 million – £1.8 million); and an example of the ultimate Ferrari from the 1960s – the 1966 Ferrari 500 Superfast – that is one of only six right-hand drive models made (estimate £800,000 – £1 million).

This is going to be a big sale for Bonhams, and the UK auction industry in general – expect to see records tumble.