Jerry Seinfeld Sues Car Dealer Over That ‘Fake’ 1958 Porsche 356 Speedster

The lawsuit says European Collectibles has a history of pawning off phony classic cars as the real deal.

byChris Tsui|
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Earlier this month, Jerry Seinfeld found himself the target of a lawsuit that alleges a 1958 Porsche 356 A 1500 GS/GT Carrera Speedster that he sold at auction for $1.5 million to be a fake. Now, the comedian is launching a suit of his own against the car dealer that sold him the Speedster in the first place, European Collectibles. 

According to USA Today, Seinfeld—or more likely, his legal team—filed the lawsuit in Manhattan federal court on Monday and is seeking unspecified damages from the Costa Mesa, California car dealer. "Mr. Seinfeld, who is a very successful comedian, does not need to supplement his income by building and selling counterfeit sports cars," read the lawsuit.

The '90s sitcom star apparently bought the car from European Collectibles in February 2013 for $1.2 million, allegedly on the back of the dealership's own certificate of authenticity. In March 2016, the classic Porsche was sold for $1.5 million to a company called Fica Frio at Gooding & Co.'s Amelia Island auction. Fica Frio sued the famous P-car collector for their money back a couple of weeks ago after a "Porsche expert" allegedly identified the car as "inauthentic" as part of a pre-resale inspection, citing the vehicle history file's lack of restoration-documenting photographs.

Gooding & Company

Seinfeld left Fica Frio an apologetic voicemail, assured that things would be made right and promptly went after European Collectibles, demanding the dealership resolve the issue with Fica Frio directly. "Jerry has no liability in this matter," said Seinfeld lawyer Orin Snyder. "But he wants to do the right thing, and is therefore bringing this action to hold European Collectibles accountable for its own certification of authenticity, and to allow the court to determine the just outcome."

Seinfeld's lawsuit goes on to accuse European Collectibles of selling questionably authentic vehicles in the past. Specifically, it seeks to "reveal the extent to which European Collectibles deploys fraudulent practices in connection with its restoration and sale of classic cars."

If the Porsche at the center of this ordeal is proven to be fake, the ramifications for the collector car market could be massive. The authenticity of every car alleged to be real by European Collectibles, Seinfeld, or Gooding & Company auction house would potentially come into question. 

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