Crashed and burned Ferrari sells for world record £10m

A 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa has become the most expensive car ever sold in a public auction, commanding a staggering £9.95m at the Pebble Beach Concours in California.

The $16,390,000 overall price ($14.9m plus fees) puts the sale at around £2m more than the previous auction record - also a Testa Rossa, sold in 2009 for £7.9m.

One of 22 Testa Rossas made, the record-breaking price initially seems surprising given the car's battered and bruised existence.

Burned more times than a narcoleptic tanning salon owner, the accident prone Ferrari was badly bent in a crash with a Jag at Le Mans in 1958, bursting into flames.

It was restored and then bought by a crooked American collector, who thought it'd be a good idea to torch it and collect the insurance.

Restored again during the 1970s and '80s, it went on to win a hatful of awards for being so pretty, including taking class honours at the 2006 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

But looking good isn't enough to break records - or so Roy Castle would have us believe.

This Testa Rossa is special because it was actually the first of the 22 ever made - the original Scuderia Ferrari prototype, kicking off the Prancing Horse's famous racing legacy.

And that will ensure its value keeps going up. One day it may even trump the most expensive car ever sold outside of an auction hall - a 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC, which reportedly went for somewhere between £18m and £24m in 2010.