Ferrari-nomics: How a Sports Car Brand Engineers Record-High Prices

On Thursday evening, a very rare 1962 Ferrari is expected to sell for more money than any car has ever fetched at auction. Experts expect the gavel at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance to clack somewhere between $50 million and $75 million (a similar model sold last year for $52 million).

All the zeros aside, snapping up this precious chunk of red metal would be far easier than buying a brand new Ferrari. The drill, for those with the cash to spare, usually goes something like this: you know a guy, get on a list, put down a deposit, buy a used Ferrari (or two), and then wait and wait. It’s exceedingly rare that a dealership will call with any potential new cars — Ferrari produces only about 7,000 per year — before any of that happens. The calls generally go out before the cars are shipped from Italy, so a prospective buyer in most cases agrees to buy the car sight unseen. If you pass up the purchase, good luck ever getting another call from Ferrari.