The Ferrari 500 Mondial was inspired by a design created by Dino Ferrari to freshen up the look of the old 166. The first three of the 500 Mondials were built by Scaglietti, a young coachbuilder from Modena. Later, Pinin Farina made 15 of these, although a Ferrari historian, Marcel Massini, notes that 16 were made. Either way, one of the Pinin Farina-built models has come up for sale on Bring-a-Trailer and it has already received a bid of $1 million!

What Makes This 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Pinin Farina Spider Special?

Before we get to the car, let’s talk about the name. Some of you might be wondering why have I spelled it ‘Pinin Farina’ when it’s actually 'Pininfarina'. Well, it’s not a typo. The official name change was made in 1961. As Pininfarina’s site states: The business also took to the name change and 'Pinin Farina' officially became 'Pininfarina'. So, the models and designs before 1961 are referred to as Pinin Farinas, as is with this 1954 Ferrari Mondial Spider.

Coming back to the topic at hand, this Mondial has a rich racing history, but we won’t delve too deep into that. You can read that on Bring-a-Trailer’s posting. Long story short, the car was re-bodied using fiberglass in 1959, five years after its inception It moved many hands in Sweden before it crossed the pond in 1975 when it was purchased by a New Yorker, who also used it at various racing events. The car was again reproduced in Pinin Farina style, although this time a riveted aluminum body was fitted by Carrozzeri Bachelli and Villa in Modena, Italy. In 1997, the Washington state collector purchased it and refurbished it two years later.

The Pinin Farina bodies were riveted to a framework either with open- or closed headlights. There were many other variations between the examples, so no two cars were the same. As stated earlier, this example was redesigned by Carrozzeri Bachelli and Villa in the open headlight design.

It is finished in a red exterior shade with period-correct livery. There is a matching aluminum Tonneau cover, and a low full-width windshield. Apart from this, the beauty also boasts a vented removable hood with leather straps and rotating clasps, fog lamps, headlight covers, and a Monza-style fuel filler.

The car rides on Borrani wire wheels painted in silver. They are shod in 6.00L-16 Dunlop Racing tires. An extra set of matching wheels and three additional wheels with stamped date codes from the 1950s are also included in the sale, according to the seller. The braking duties are taken over by hydraulically actuated aluminum drums on all four corners.

On the inside, the car comes with aluminum seat shells upholstered in blue cloth. The car is as basic as it is getting in here, with the frame rails and aluminum floor panel very much visible. There’s also a factory magnesium shift knob on the gated shifter with a flip-up reverse lockout lever. It features Roman numeral gear designations.

The car also comes with a three-spoke riveted split wood steering wheel. Behind it is a black wrinkle-finish panel that houses five gauges for the tachometer, fuel level, coolant temperature, oil level, and oil pressure. It also comes with a Hobbs meter in the footwell that currently reads 161 hours of operating time.

The Mondial came with a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine from the factory that put out 168 horses and had a top speed of 147 mph. It comes with gear-driven dual overhead camshafts, dry-sump lubrication, twin Weber 58 DCOA3 carburetors, twin-plug ignition, a vertically mounted dynamo, a high-torque starter, and a four-into-one exhaust setup.

Final Thoughts

With four more days to go, the car could attract higher bids. The seller noted that this 500 Mondial is offered on dealer consignment with an owner’s manual, a Marcel Massini report, factory build sheet copies, service records, and a clean California title.

If you were to bid for it, would you buy it for a million dollars? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.