The ARNO XI, a Ferrari 4.5 liter V12-powered hydroplane, is set to go under an auctioneer’s hammer in Monaco this May. The boat was the brainchild of Achille Castoldi and was constructed in 1953 with help from Ferrari and its GP drivers of the era, Alberto Ascari and Luigi Villoresi.
The engine powering the ARNO XI is the same as had been fitted to the Type 375 Grand Prix car, which powered Ferrari to its first ever GP victory at Silverstone in 1951 with José Froilán González behind the wheel. This design was tweaked, however, when fitted to the ARNO XI — twin superchargers were added endowing the ARNO XI with around 502hp at 6,000rpm.
Castoldi’s aim was to build a boat that would set a world record. He achieved his dream on October 15th 1953 when the ARNO XI achieved 150.19 mph on Lake Iseo in northern Italy, establishing a world speed record for an 800kg boat. Amazingly, the record still stands today and now this piece of boating history, after having only three owners since new, is up for auction. It is expected to fetch between $1.3 and $1.8 million at RM Auctions May 11-12 Monaco event.
‘It’s an exceptional piece of history, made even more famous by the countless models one sees of it in important collectors’ libraries and is likely to appeal to serious car collectors as much as it will to traditional boat collectors, said RM Auction’s Peter Wallman. ‘It has that alluring mix of ’50s Ferrari grand prix car with the sheer beauty and simplicity of the hydroplanes of the period. We are honored to have been entrusted with its sale, he added.
