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Ferrari 375 Plus sold at Goodwood 2014


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#1 rbm

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Posted 28 June 2014 - 08:29

having read the story attached to the Ferrari 375 plus from Bonhams website:

 

" '0384' languished on a trailer, abandoned outdoors on one of Karl Kleve's woodland properties, just outside Cincinatti. The old car's V12 engine, at least three of the huge drum brakes, and the engine cover, boot lid and doors had been removed, becoming buried for years amongst other detritus in one of his barns. The cockpit area paneling suffered localized burn damage, said to have been caused by a cockpit wiring fire. Meanwhile the denuded chassis and main aluminium body sat outside, in sun, rain and snow...and its rear end, especially, began to corrode...

Around 1970 Karl Kleve sold the original V12 engine to GM engineer Fred Leydorf. The years rolled on, with 'The Fearsome Four-Nine' still languishing on Kleve's woodland lot, a sapling tree first sprouting then maturing through its empty engine bay. 

On or about January 13, 1989,this car was removed unbidden - from Kleve's land. It was taken down into Georgia, whenceit was acquired by a French buyer, one 'Giles Christian' for $50,000. As early as that February the frame and surviving attached body were shipped to Antwerp, Belgium, bound for Michael Kruch's L'Exception Automobile concern. In America Karl Kleve had reported the car stolen, and the Belgian authorities impounded it to investigate. They concluded it had been bought in good faith and that its European title was sound. In February 1990 the car was released and sold the following month"

 

 

what I don't quite understand is how if you buy stolen property even if this in good faith that this is ok? or is this just and expensive Ferrari thing?

 

Richard

 



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#2 ensign14

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Posted 28 June 2014 - 08:50

Under English law, nemo dat quod non habet.  So if you sell stolen property, the buyer does not take title.  On the Continent, if the buyer buys in good faith, he does.  US law follows English law.  So there was no way Kleve could recover the car while it was in Belgium.  At one point Jacques Swaters bought the spare parts Kleve still had, but there was a disagreement over that agreement.  And there's the question of how much of 0384 is authentic anyway.  Ultimately the profit is going to be split between Kleve's and Swaters' heirs, I think.



#3 Doug Nye

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Posted 26 September 2014 - 14:03

And - for balance and to make this quite clear - Bonhams is most rigorously defending the matter.

 

DCN