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" Peeking through the grime-covered windows of a moldy old barn whose doors have been closed for more than\u00A030 years, you can just make out the silhouette of what you&amp;#039;re pretty sure is a legendary automobile languishing under a decaying cloth tarp. As you roll back the canvas,\u00A0decades of dust rise into the air, filtering the sunlight streaming into the structure. Then, suddenly,\u00A0there it is: that\u00A0yellow badge with a\u00A0prancing black stallion. You can barely contain your excitement. The moment is too amazing to be real.\u00A0 You&amp;#039;ve just uncovered a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO! Realizing you&amp;#039;ve discovered\u00A0one\u00A0of the most expensive cars in history, you&amp;#039;re thrilled. After all, A GTO\u00A0sold for more than $38 million\u00A0just three years ago. You can hear your pulse pounding in your ears. It&amp;#039;s the barn find of a lifetime. Or is it?  &amp;quot;We often joke there must be over 100 250 GTOs out there now,&amp;quot; says Gigi Barp, head of the Ferrari Classiche\u00A0department at the company&amp;#039;s factory in Maranello. Established specifically to provide restoration services, maintenance, and certificates of authenticity to owners of vintage Ferraris, Ferrari Classiche is the ultimate authority when it comes to questions of authenticity regarding Enzo Ferrari&amp;#039;s mechanical progeny. So, why is Barp&amp;#039;s joke funny? Well, Ferrari only made 39 250 GTOs between 1962 and 1964, which means all those other cars are fakes. Or, said more politely, replicas. (The only\u00A0difference between the two being the\u00A0builder&amp;#039;s motives.)\u00A0 &amp;quot;The late 1980s saw a boom in the construction of very accurate replicas of the most important Ferraris,&amp;quot; Barp says. &amp;quot;In the case of the 250 GTO, these were often created using comparatively less valuable models like the 250 GT 2+2 as their basis.&amp;quot;\u00A0  This can make it extremely difficult to distinguish between the genuine article and a faithful reproduction. With $30-million cars out there trading hands, Ferrari had to do something to ensure vintage buyers were getting what they were paying for. So for anyone who owns an\u00A0old Ferrari or is\u00A0considering buying one and wants to know more about its history, the move is to have the guys at Ferrari Classiche check it out. They can tell you what&amp;#039;s what, all the way down to its cotter pins. \u00A0&amp;quot;I first became aware of Ferrari Classiche about seven or eight years ago,&amp;quot; says Tom Peck, an avid Ferrari collector.\u00A0&amp;quot;I was given a tour while visiting Maranello and was amazed by the sheer depth of the information at their disposal. They have everything\u2014including tool roll configurations, build sheets, test data, and coachbuilder specifics\u2014for seemingly every car they&amp;#039;ve ever built.&amp;quot;\u00A0  &amp;quot;Our historical archives are incredibly complete&amp;quot; Barp says. &amp;quot;We store over 220,000 original designs going back to 1945. We have all the build sheets and commercial documents of every car we&amp;#039;ve ever made, as well as vital documentation of all of the modifications made to our racing cars in every series and championship.&amp;quot; A few years after his\u00A0visit to Maranello, Peck got the opportunity to acquire the 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Spider PF driven in competition by Richie Ginther and Phil Hill. Unfortunately though, the original engine had gone missing. Remembering what he&amp;#039;d seen at Ferrari Classiche, Peck sent the car in for authentication and restoration. As part of the process, Ferrari Classiche built a new period-correct engine for the car from scratch. Peck&amp;#039;s Mondial went on to win Best in Class\u00A0at the\u00A02015\u00A0Pebble Beach Concours d&amp;#039;Elegance.  Any model built more than\u00A020 years ago, or any limited series special, regardless of when it was built, is eligible for the authentication process. Pricing for the service\u00A0varies depending upon the age and complexity of the model. More recent production cars start at $2500 and can\u00A0range\u00A0up to approximately $16,700\u00A0depending upon the nature of the testing required.\u00A0 &amp;quot;Most of the time, certification can be done at our dealer facilities,&amp;quot; Barp says. &amp;quot;But if there are major concerns, or it&amp;#039;s a particularly important car requiring additional technical or metallurgy testing, we inspect it here at the factory. If this is the case, the owner also pays for shipping.&amp;quot; Once a car is determined to be correct, a committee headed by Piero Ferrari issues an official certificate of authenticity. The owner is then provided with full documentation of the certification process, as well as the certificate. To say this enhances the value of a car is an extreme understatement.\u00A0  &amp;quot;There was a need for a uniform standard of measurement,\u00A0and Ferrari Classiche provides that,&amp;quot; says Ian Kelleher, managing director of RM Sotheby&amp;#039;s in Culver City, California. &amp;quot;As an auction company, we want our clients to know what they&amp;#039;re buying, and we want that history to be correct.&amp;quot;\u00A0 Surprisingly, Classiche is something of a groundbreaking development in the car world. Before Ferrari established the department back in 2004, no other manufacturer had taken control of its brand&amp;#039;s heritage in this manner. With that said, Kelleher is very careful to differentiate between replicas and counterfeits.\u00A0 &amp;quot;No one in the auction world has an issue with replicas\u2014as long as they are presented as such,&amp;quot; he says. &amp;quot;For me, the difference between a replica and a counterfeit is intent. The majority of the replicas out there were not built with the intention of deceiving the buyer. It was more about allowing someone the opportunity to enjoy something they might not be able to otherwise. Counterfeiting, on the other hand, is done with criminal intent.&amp;quot; \u00A0  In other words, who in their right mind would go joyriding in a $30-million GTO? But, if you can get a replica, with the same bodywork, the same engine, the same transmission, the same brakes, the same suspension system, the same everything\u2014except the pedigree\u2014you have a car you can drive and enjoy. &amp;quot;The only time a problem arises is when people try to pass replicas off as originals,&amp;quot; Barp says. &amp;quot;If we become aware of a complete fake, we inform our legal department, which then takes the necessary action.&amp;quot; To date, Ferrari Classiche has issued over 5000 certificates of authenticity worldwide, of which approximately 35 percent were for cars in North America. As to how many replicas are running around out there, it&amp;#039;s anybody&amp;#039;s guess.\u00A0 Barp couldn&amp;#039;t say with certainty,\u00A0and auction houses don&amp;#039;t really consider them an issue\u00A0unless somebody tries to pass one off as the genuine article.\u00A0 So, if you ever do find yourself lucky enough to be peeking through that barn window, before you get too excited, do yourself a favor: Get it checked.\u00A0 "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/news/a29456/ferrari-classiche-authentication-process/>