2010 Ferrari California

Supplied new by Graypaul on 27.5.10, this vibrant Rosso red Ferrari California moved to Monaco a couple of years later, where it must have felt as if it had found its spiritual home.

If there was ever a car that was designed and built for posing, cruising and promenading along the Côte d'Azur, it’s this one.

It sunned itself on the French Riviera, no doubt enjoying a sporting flutter at the Casino de Monte-Carlo or driving into the hills for a bottle of lunch at La Colombe d’Or, until 2015, when it returned to the UK.

The vendor has owned the car since 2024, since when he has kept it in dry, dehumidified storage.

It’s seen very little use between 2022 and now, which goes a long way to explaining why it required some £2,260 of expenditure at marque specialist Emblem to get it ship-shape and ready to successfully sit its MoT exam on 24th June 2026.

We have driven the car and, while it is perfectly competent and starts, goes and stops with all the élan and panache you would want from a pedigree prancing horse, it does sound and feel a trifle sub-optimal - and is an engine warning light on show - so that needs to be investigated and sorted.

The bodywork is really very straight and true on this car and we failed to find any dinks, dents, ripples or other aberrations of note anywhere.

The shut-lines and panel gaps are crisp and consistent, too, and the 20” black alloy wheels (which were refurbished in February 2021), seem to have done a good job of avoiding kerbs or other obstacles, with the exception of the n/s/r item, which has some scuffs to the rim and a couple of chunks of rubber bitten out of the sidewall of the tyre.

Those chunks of missing rubber are the cause of the car’s sole advisory notification on its current MoT certificate.

All four wheels are shod in matching Pirelli P-Zero rubber; 245/35 at the front, 285/30 at the rear. 

The roof goes up and down in a mesmerizingly balletic display of choreographed engineering, seamlessly summoning and re-ordering various parts of itself from the boot and who-knows elsewhere. 

It’s fascinating to behold and rarely ceases to bring a smile to the mind.

In general, the car is exhibiting a number and distribution of scratches, scuffs and paint chips that are pretty much commensurate with its age and low mileage.

The Rosso paintwork has a glossy, lustrous finish and is pretty decent throughout.

Minor exceptions to that rule include: some stone chips and light scuffs to the front bumper; a little surface damage to the front grille near the badge; some chips to both wing mirror housings; a little nascent blistering on the driver’s door handle; a few scratches on the o/s/r wing near the door; a chip atop the n/s/r wing; and some chips adjacent to the rear number plate.

We also noticed a few stone chips on the windscreen. 

From what we can see, the badging, lights, lenses, and other exterior fixtures and fittings are all in very good condition.

The first thing that grabs your attention when you set eyes upon the interior are the very striking black and red Daytona-style seats.

Aside from a short rip high up on the outer shoulder of the passenger seat and a little light creasing to the outer bolsters on the driver’s seat, the seats are giving few clues even to the car’s low mileage, let alone its age.

There are clues to be found elsewhere, however.

There are some scratches to the carbon-fibre door handle on the passenger door card, some paint missing on the speaker grille just ahead of it, and plenty more scratches on the carbon fibre section atop the transmission tunnel just below the centre console.

There are also plenty of scuffs and small marks to the leather on and around the dashboard, particularly adjacent to the Pioneer head unit (installed in Jan 2020) on the centre console. 

The leather atop the instrument binnacle is starting to warp slightly and there are some air bubbles under the trim on the offside ‘A’ pillar.

There are a few scuffs and scratches to the leather trim on the luggage area behind the seats.

The headlining looks a little tired.

The carpets are all pretty decent, but the mats seem to have gone AWOL.

The boot is in very good order. 

As previously stated, there are some warning lights in evidence on the dashboard and we believe that the parking sensors are not behaving as they should. 

As far as we’re aware, all other dials, knobs, switches, levers and instruments are fully functional and do what they’re supposed to do without hesitation, deviation or repetition.

Some, but not all, buttons have developed ‘Sticky Button Syndrome’, an affliction that affected a whole generation of cars from Maranello and Modena.

The stickiness in evidence here is towards the more acceptable end of the spectrum.

We’ve been in some Maseratis and Ferraris where we’ve had to ask colleagues to prise our glued hands away from the centre console.

Remedies aplenty are advertised, promoted and available on the InterWeb.

The engine bay is clean and tidy, with everything in its right and proper place. There are no obvious leaks, and all pipes, cables and hoses appear to be present and correct. 

The red crackle paint atop the engine has fractured and flaked away in places, but we’re sure it could be reapplied if so desired. 

The undersides of the car are largely hidden from view by various protective trays and cowls, but what we can see looks, sound, solid and possessed of plenty of structural integrity. 

Absolutely nothing we’ve seen has prompted us to frown, tut or otherwise question the car’s honesty or character. 

UPDATE ON THE ENGINE WARNING LIGHT: Upon start-up the dash states three messages: Manettino failure / Engine control system failure / AVH system failure. THE MARKET does not have a Ferrari diagnostics computer however, our basic unit states the following: Fuel Delivery Error / Fuel Pressure Regulator Too High Bank 1 / Brake Switch Invalid Signal / Intake Timing Variator: Max Out Of Range. Bidders are welcome to come and inspect the car, connect their own diagnostic if they wish.

The car comes with a service book containing the following stamps.

• Graypaul Nottingham – 2,147 miles – 29.6.11
• Monaco Motors – 3,392 miles – 2.3.12
• Monaco Motors – 7,271 miles – 14.4.13
• Monaco Motors – 12,266 miles – 6.7.14
• Maranello Egham – 17,883 miles – 10.11.15
• Graypaul Nottingham – 19,220 miles – 7.7.16

There are plenty of invoices, bills and receipts attesting to work carried out in the intervening years, with most of the routine servicing and repair work done by marque specialists Emblem of Poole and JMH Automotive.

The most recent bills, from Emblem, include the supply and fitting of two new rear hub ball joints, clearing engine ECU errors, and repairing the horn, 

Supplied with full sets of keys, it comes with a V5C, an HPI report and an MoT certificate that’s valid until 23rd June 2027. 

These are very capable, impressive machines and they were - and are - worthy of their elevated ranking in the pantheon of Ferrari’s front-engined halo cars.

This low mileage example seems to us to be no more than just a few small steps away from regaining its former mechanical and aesthetic glory.

We’re confident to offer this fine car for auction with an estimate of £25,000 - £30,000.

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at THE MARKET HQ in South Oxfordshire. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays (apart from Bank Holidays) between 10am - 12pm or 2pm - 4pm. To make a booking, please use the ‘Enquire About This Vehicle’ button on the listing. Feel free to ask any questions, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.