$2000 ‘piece of junk’ tipped to sell for $10 million

A forgotten ‘piece of junk’ Ferrari bought for a little over $2000 could return record profits for its owner.

American sailor Robert Phillips was only 24 years old when he spotted a crumpled race car in a California warehouse in 1960.

The retired Admiral spoke with Jay Leno on the TV host’s program, Jay Leno's Garage, telling Leno he took a significant risk on a broken Ferrari.

“I went to the bank and took out a loan for two thirds of my year’s salary. I paid $2225,” Phillips said.

“My folks said ‘you’ve taken leave of your senses’.”

Restoring the Ferrari 500 Mondial Series II in his own time, Phillips went on to race the car in the US. On retiring from the Navy, he found the car has a glamorous history of competition in Europe and South America, taking a class victory as a factory-entered Ferrari in the 1955 Grand Prix of Venezuela.

Set to go to auction with Gooding & Company at Pebble Beach in late August, experts estimate the car will sell for $US5.5m-$US7.5million - up to $10.4 million Australian dollars.

That could represent a return on his original investment of more than 300,000 per cent.

But Phillips says he never intended to profit from his Ferrari.

“I didn’t buy it as an investment or for the money of it. I bought it because I wanted to race something faster than my MGA,” he said.

“I have done more than I ever dreamed possible. 

“It is time for someone else to come along and have their time with the car, to take care of it and to drive it.”

More information: Gooding & Company