LOS ANGELES (AFP) - A Ferrari once owned and raced by "King of Cool" Steve McQueen has sold at auction in California for just over 2.3 million dollars, auction house Christie's said Friday.

The 1963 Ferrari 250 GT/L Berlinetta Lusso went for far more than its estimate of between 800,000 to 1.2 million dollars at the Christie's International Motor Cars auction in Monterey, California on Thursday.

The auction house's head of US car sales, Christopher Sanger, described the car as one of the most important celebrity-owned vehicles ever to come to auction, and said the 800-strong crowd cheered when it came on the block.

"The much-anticipated sale of Steve McQueen's 1963 Ferrari Lusso exceeded our highest expectations, confirming the continuing allure of one of the most important pop icons of our time," he said in a statement.

Sanger said the chestnut brown metallic Ferrari had been used regularly by iconic actor and noted car enthusiast McQueen in daily life.

"This was his personal run around -- not a film one-off extra -- but a car used for the grocery run, as well as trips to the racetrack."

McQueen, the star of classic films such as "The Great Escape," "Papillon" and "Bullitt" built a large collection of cars as his wealth and fame grew.

The Berlinetta Lusso was the first Ferrari to be parked in his garage, Christie's said. Only 350 of the cars were ever made, and McQueen's car is widely considered the best example, it added.

McQueen, who died in 1980 aged 50, traded the car in 1973 before it ended up in the hands of a restorer.