The Lepeltier Collection

Michel Lepeltier was a garage and petrol station owner from Geneva who compiled an impressive collection of road going Ferrari GT cars over a period of 25 years. His stable of 14 Ferrari was his only hobby and passion aside from his demanding job, but it also became his cruel fate: On April 16, 1990 two teenagers ambushed Michel Lepeltier at his home, intending to steal his recently acquired Ferrari F40. In a scuffle with the robbers, he was shot dead. While the criminal youngsters were later caught and sentenced for minor offences only due to a lack of proofs and because of their age, the companies of the Lepeltier family soon went bankrupt and Michel’s widow Denise had to hand over her husband’s collection to the bankruptcy court of Geneva. The cars were since rather stuffed away than kept in an underground car park and left to deterioration. Finally the decision was made to sell all cars in the 2003 Bonhams Ferrari auction at the Palace Hotel in Gstaad.

-Andreas Birner