The history of this spyder begins with Ferrari factory construction in 1963. Having left the factory as a 1963 250 GTE finished in silver with black interior, the car continued through the early years with an otherwise unremarkable history but for one rather unusually spectacular intersection with one of the most important competition Ferraris, a 250 GT SWB. In 1967, 250 GT SWB (#2735 – driven by Rob Walker and Sterling Moss) needed an engine. Engine #3635, a robust series II big valve head variant, was installed in the SWB which continued to power the car for nearly three decades. In 1994, SWB #2735 was restored and the original engine reunited with the car. Concurrent with the SWB restoration, engine #3635, having been removed from the SWB, was installed in chassis #4487 (this subject car) at the same time it was designed, re-engineered , and recreated into a California Spyder. Construction of this spyder was commissioned by the current owner in 1995 and completed in 1996 under the capable hands of master metal craftsman Mark Gerisch, The Academy for the Art of Metal Shaping, Inc. Prior to his work with the Academy, Gerisch was the shop foreman for Wayne Orby’s Motion Products eventually become the “go-to” fabricator for the best Ferrari recreations money could buy particularly as he was exceptionally skilled at building his cars with important refined ergonomics while retaining the correct proportions and design parameters for his cars. As part of his prolific career building one-off cars for Jay Leno, Bruce McCaw, ZZ Top, and others including SEMA show cars, Gerisch now shares his passion for fabrication teaching the next generation the art of metal shaping.
Documented with date imprinted photos of this car while under construction (1995), the main upper substructure was mated to a set of lower tubular frame rails strengthened with cross-sectional supports and secondary floor structure. Having access to some of the best Ferraris in the world, Gerisch was fortunate to have an original Cal Spyder in his shop that was used to gain exact measurements for constructing this car. The original body was carefully measured, and the newly formed body fabricated over a wooden hammer buck and contoured to match closely to the original spyder design. Handwritten documentation from 1995 include payments totaling over $250,000 with the final payment for construction recorded in December 1995. After completion, the commissioning and current owner, a resident of Northern California, continued ownership spanning 30 years. During his 30 years of ownership, this spyder was regularly serviced by Ferrari specialist Patrick Ottis. Service records with Ottis total an additional $120k, all of which are copiously documented from the first Ottis invoice on September 12, 1997, with 5,573 kms to the most recent service invoice dated October 10, 2024, with 47,264 kms. Having traveled nearly 25,000 miles while under current ownership this Ferrari has always been stored indoors, annually serviced including fluid changes and mechanical improvements, and regularly detailed. In 2024 a compression tested was performed with consistent results, 2 new Bosch ignition coils were installed, tachometer and speedometer cables cleaned and serviced, new cam cover gasket installed, new oil seal ring, new pinion seal, timing adjusted, carburetors synchronized, differential and gear oil changed, u-joint lubricated, and an oil and filter change performed. In 2022 four new Pirelli Cinturato 185 VR15 tires were mounted and balanced.
