VIN: the Charles Chong Ferrari 512 BB chassis 21625
History of chassis 21625
Chassis 21625 was a 512 BB ordered new by Ferrari and BMW main dealer Cooper on Loughborough Road in Rothley, Leicestershire. One of 101 right-hand drive examples built between 1976 and ‘81, it was configured in Nero with Beige upholstery.
Cooper registered the car TYE 512S on August 1st 1977 following its sale to 24 year old London-domiciled Malaysian, Charles Chong.
Prior to chassis 21625, Chong had owned the ex-Colonel Ronnie Hoare 365 GT4 BB, a brace of 365 GTB/4 Daytonas, two Dinos, a Maserati Ghibli SS Spyder and a Lamborghini Miura SV. In addition, Chong was a big buyer of Mercedes-Benz and at the time owned a spectacular Cobalt Blue Rolls-Royce Camargue which, like the stunning black Ferrari, he used to commute from his Hampstead home to the clubs of central London.
Chong said of his new 512 BB: “It was the epitome of a modern sports car which, although still needing frequent visits to Maranello Concessionaires to remain in tune, was much easier to live with than the older variant”.
In the years that followed, Chong developed an expensive passion for keeping a fleet of the very latest luxury cars from Ferrari, Rolls-Royce and Mercedes-Benz, all of which were bought brand new with most configured to his exacting specification.
Unfortunately, in late September 1977 while being washed on the sloping driveway of his Hampstead home, chassis 21625 (which had not had its handbrake properly applied) rolled backwards and dinged its engine cover. A local paint repair was carried out on the affected area (about the size of a 50 pence piece) but Chong was unhappy in the knowledge his car had been repainted. Within a few days, a black on black replacement Ferrari BB had been ordered from Maranello Concessionaires (chassis 22557) which arrived in February 1978.
As part of the deal, chassis 21625 was sold via Maranello Concessionaires to its next private owner.
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Supercar Nostalgia (Charles Chong)
