The California is kind of the unwanted stepchild in the current Ferrari lineup. It's not as fast as the 458 and isn't as good at transporting four people as the FF. But in 20 years, it will be one of the most sought after Ferraris from this generation.
And that's because of the gearbox.
In 2012, Ferrari offered the California with a manual gearbox as an option. It was the only car in the Ferrari lineup to have one. So you'd imagine that purists would jump at the chance to have a fast Ferrari with a manual tranny. Well, you'd be wrong.
Ferrari built two Californias with a manual. One more than one. Less than three. Two.
Strictly speaking, that makes a California with a manual gearbox the least desirable of all the cars that Ferrari has in its lineup. In fact, for 2013, the manual gearbox is once again gone from the California.
Approximately nobody really cares. But in 20 or 30 years, the two cars that were built could be amongst the most valuable Ferraris you can buy. And that's because they'll be two of the rarest ever.
If you ever watch Barrett Jackson or really any other car auction, you see a common theme: The cars that sell for the most money always have some obscure options that about four other cars had.
Well, Ferrari has inadvertently built a modern day version of a Plymouth Barracuda that was the only one with a three speed automatic AND air conditioning. The two manual Californias could be worth a pretty penny.
Here's my guess: at Barrett Jackson 2040, one of these will sell for more than a million dollars. Just you wait and see.
Photo Credit: Ed Callow via flickr