The ‘secret’ Ferrari 166 MM Barchetta that broke its cover for Revival

Model number 24 of only 25 built, Agnelli’s 1950 Ferrari 166 MM Barchetta shimmered in the sunlight at the 2022 Revival with a unique blue green two-tone finish. Specifically commissioned by ‘Gianna’, it calls to mind the streamlined appearance of a Mediterranean mackerel.

A nautical comparison, but bear with me, because Barchetta actually means ‘little boat’. The name is derived from its inwardly curving and revolutionary bodywork resembling that of a hull. A keen yachtsman himself, it’s a design detail Agnelli would have surely appreciated.

“Blue and green should never be seen, except on this,” quipped owner Clive Beecham, as he joined me in admiring the car’s side profile. “I think the two-tone colour is one of the standout features.

“Agnelli ordered it in secret after seeing it launched in Turin in October 1948,” the cloak and dagger nature of the purchase necessary due to Agnelli being heir apparent to Vittorio Valleta, the then-custodian of Fiat.

Valleta caught wind of his apprentice wanting to own a car from Fiat’s upstart Italian competitor, a Ferrari still in its infancy, and this disregard for authority and act of young rebellion opens a window into Agnelli’s famously vibrant spirit, long after his death. Yet despite this, he wasn’t a completely carefree Ferrari owner in the face of such deliberate insubordination.

“Agnelli was never photographed with the car,” Beecham explained – a remarkable fact considering he was the superstar playboy of the era, not to mention totally unimaginable when compared to today’s all-seeing world of camera-phones.

“He was worried about Valletta. The Agnelli family had the power to make sure no photographs were taken. I bet the previous owners five quid when I purchased this ten years ago, that I would find a photograph. I never have.”

It’s a charming anecdote that adds to the almost mythical provenance of the achingly pretty car with its unique teardrop rear lights. Yet another easily-missed example of Agnelli’s exquisite taste for the beautiful and the refined.

Powered by a 2-litre V12 overhead cam engine, with 166cc in each cylinder, the 166 MM Barchetta was hailed as 'the most advanced non-supercharged sports car in the world'. Two outstanding in-period racing seasons, including successive victories in the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio, with Luigi Chinetti driving the works 166 MM to Ferrari's first victory at Le Mans in 1949, saw the prancing horse cemented as a sports racing world-beater. 

Agnelli was sold. Hook, line and sinker. “Of all the cars that I've driven, I cannot forget my first Ferrari,” Agnelli once said, a stamp of approval that Beecham is openly proud to share. 

Despite such a love affair, Agnelli sold the car in 1952 to a Viscount Gery d’Hendecourt, who recruited Olivier Gendebien, the future four-time Ferrari Le Mans Winner, to unlock the car’s full potential. It was a successful partnership, with Gendebien claiming victory in his first race behind the wheel at Spa in 1953. 

Years of livery changes followed, from light blue, to red and even gold with a black stripe, as it remained in Belgium as a race car under the ownership of Jacques Swaters, of Ecurie Francorchamps fame. 

“Swaters owned it for 46 years. It took him over 20 years to restore it to its original Agnelli colours. I tried to buy it from him on several occasions, but understandably, he wanted to keep hold of it. But he told his daughter that when he was gone, she was to sell it to me.”

Having owned the car since 2012, Beecham had a boyish enthusiasm for his pride and joy. And unlike Agnelli, is keen to openly share it with as much of the world as possible. At the 2022 Revival, he drove the car as part of the weekend’s Ferrari 75^th Anniversary parade, and has exhibited it at the New York Museum of Modern Art and the Berlin National Gallery. 

“I’ve driven it twice in the Mille Miglia, also, so I do like to drive it. It's a very visceral experience. Your head is above the windscreen. You feel absolutely everything. The noise from the V12 is unbelievable. It's not something that's spent 2,000 hours in a sound studio and been digitised to sound good. It’s just naturally phenomenal.”

Up close, the car boasts an exquisite patina, with a subtle splattering of pot marks and dings that nod to a life well-lived. Much like its glamorous and enigmatic first owner, whose association with the car makes it truly priceless.  

“I won't say this is my favourite car. But I suppose it would be the last one to sell. You drive it for pleasure. It has to be a beautiful day like today. And what would you rather be driving, when the sun shines, than a Ferrari 166 MM Barchetta?”

The answer, of course, is absolutely nothing. 

Photography by Dominic James