“This car is well known to Racecar – we have done conventional media adverts for it when it was dealt with by one of our dealer clients”
COACHWORK BY VIGNALE
CHASSIS NO. 0069S
ENGINE NO. 0069S
HIGHLIGHTS
Ex-Inico Bernabei; Believed to Be the 35th Ferrari Road Car Built
Matching-Numbers Engine and Gearbox Confirmed by Copies of Factory Build Records
Highly Eligible for Major International Events; Best of Show at the 2025 Elegance in Megève
Period Appearance at the 1951 Liège-Sofia-Liège Rally and Five-Time 1000 Miglia Entrant
SPECIFICATIONS
1,995 CC SOHC V-12 Engine
Single Weber 36 DCF Carburetors
130 BHP at 6,500 RPM
5-Speed Manual Gearbox
4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes
Front Independent Suspension with Transverse Leaf Spring and Shock Absorbers
Rear Live Axle with Semi-Elliptical Leaf Springs
In the mid-twentieth century, Carrozzeria Vignale emerged as a powerhouse of speed and style, producing winners both on the racetrack and at leading European concours events. Alfredo Vignale likened himself to an artist working in metal, in an era when coachbuilders relied on skilled craftsmen, panel beaters, and wooden bucks. Vignale approached his craft as if he were a classical sculptor, responding to each commission with a singular vision. Once Michelotti had arrived with a rendering, Vignale’s team went to work translating his drawings into metal. The result was some of the most iconic Ferrari designs of the early 1950s.
The stunning Vignale coupe coachwork fashioned for chassis 0069S is one of just eight examples built on the 166 Inter chassis – Ferrari’s earliest evolution of their road car. Built in extremely limited numbers, with fewer than 40 total examples, the 166 Inter established the blueprint for Ferrari’s GT lineage.
Chassis 0069S was completed by September 15, 1950 and delivered to gentleman racer Inico Bernabei in Rome on January 22, 1951. A true early Ferrari privateer, Bernabei owned and campaigned several 166-series Ferraris in period, including the 166 MM Barchetta (0036M) that finished 2nd Overall at the 1950 Targa Florio, and at least three 166 Inters: this Vignale-bodied Coupe, a Touring-bodied Coupe (0077S), and the Ghia-bodied Coupe (0049S) that Alfredo “Dino” Ferrari supposedly crashed into a factory wall.
Bernabei sold 0069S in 1951 to a French owner, who displayed it at the Cannes Concours d’Elegance and is rumoured to have entered it in the 1951 Liège-Sofia-Liège rally, as stated on the FIVA Identity Card. By 1959, this car had moved to the US, where it remained with playwright Fred Herdeen, until 1975. In 1976, it passed to Alvin Meyer of Modena Sports Cars in New York, who restored the 166 and reportedly entered it in the 1000 Miglia in 1984. Mr. Meyer retained this example until 1991, when it was sold by a bank to Forza Motorsport, which placed it with a New Zealand buyer for $192,500.
Chassis 0069S then embarked upon a worldwide circuit, returning first to the US before attracting caretakers around the globe. It traveled to Zimbabwe in 1995, where it remained for three years before Talacrest shipped it to the UK in 1998. It was sold to Pierangelo Masselli in Italy that same year, and he continued the car’s notable rallying history with entries in the 1000 Miglia in 2002 and 2003. In 2012, it appeared at Ferrari Racing Days and the Hublot Concours d’Elegance at Suzuka in Japan, before returning to the UK in 2013, again through Talacrest. This 166 then passed between a small number of owners before joining the consignor’s collection in May 2022.
The consignor entrusted Ferrari specialists GTO Engineering with maintaining and preparing this 166 throughout his ownership, including his entries in the 1000 Miglia in 2023 and 2024. He finished 220th and 95th respectively in these events, each time with the event’s exceptionally high coefficient of 1.70 – one of the highest available for any 1950s grand tourer. The consignor has also proudly displayed this distinguished 166 at the 2025 Megève concours, where it was received with great admiration and awarded Best of Show.
Today, chassis 0069S retains its all-important matching-numbers tipo 166 Colombo V-12 engine, per copies of factory build records on file. From its Inico Bernabei origins to its period concours and long-distance event history, this 166 represents a highly eligible and particularly compelling example of Ferrari’s first generation of road cars. Surviving early Inters with matching-numbers engines, correct coachwork, and authentic early provenance are increasingly rare. This elegant example is worthy of close consideration.
*Please note that this vehicle is registered as 069S.
