A Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta fetched the highest-ever recorded price at a public auction, selling for $38.1 million.

The 1962 red two-seater was initially expected to go even higher at between $60 million and $75 million in the Bonhams auction in Carmel, California, according to Michigan-based classic car database manager and insurer Hagerty Group LLC.

Bonhams, however, was right on target with its expectation of the 250 GTO to be sold between $30 million and $40 million. 

"The market right now is just so strong," said Ferrari historian and collector adviser Marcel Massini. "And this is one of the big prizes in the entire collecting world." 

The record sale price of the 250 GTO greatly overshadows the vehicle's dark past. Henri Oreiller, a former French Olympic skiing champion, was killed behind the wheel of the car when he was racing with it in 1962.

The car was then rebuilt by the Ferrari factory and made its way into the hands of Fabrizio Violati, an amateur driver from Italy that possessed the vehicle for most of its existence.

Before the auction commenced, Bonhams chairman Robert Brooks said that he has expectations that the selling price of the car will be higher than the previous record for a car that was sold at any auction anywhere in the world.

The previous record price was $29.7 million, which was paid for a 1954 Mercedes Benz W196R Formula 1 racing car that was also sold by Bonhams last year.

The $38.1 million price is made up of the hammer price of $34.65 million, with the buyer's premium subsequently increasing the overall price to the record amount.

While the 250 GTO set the record for the most expensive car sold through an auction, its price is still much lower compared to the October record for a sale of a car through any means. The record is held by a 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO racer that was sold in a private transaction for $52 million.

The sale of the 250 GTO is a part of the six-day event and auctions for collectors of vintage cars that began in Aug. 12 at the Pebble Beach golf course.

The 250 GTO was the very last of Ferrari's front-engine competition coupe cars, as its successors, starting with the 250 LM model in 1965, came with mid-engines.

"The sound that car makes will make your hair stand on edge," said Connecticut vintage car dealer Peter Sweeney in a telephone interview. "It's a shriek. It's unlike any other sound you've ever heard before."