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If you want to invest in cars, buy a Ferrari. In the ranking of the ten most expensive cars sold at auction, this brand is represented seven times. But the first place does not belong to her. The word “auction” is important. A number of cars changed hands through direct sales at even higher prices, which often did not even reach the public.
1956 Ferrari 290 MM Scaglietti
1956 Ferrari 290 MM Scaglietti, $22,005,000 – 502 million crowns. In tenth position is a car designed for the Mille Miglia race in 1956. In 2018, it was sold by RM Sotheby’s auction house at the Petersen Automotive Museum for $22,005,000. With a Scaglietti body and a 3.4-liter four-cylinder engine with a capacity of 280 horsepower, it made its debut in the most beautiful race in the world, the Mille Miglia. He was raced by Peter Collins, Juan Manuel Fangio, Phil Hill, Wolfgang von Trips and Stirling Moss, on three different continents.
1956 Aston Martin DBR1
1956 Aston Martin DBR1, $22,555,000 – 514.5 million crowns. In 2017, this car set a new auction record for British-made cars. Until then, it was held by the DB4/GT Zagato, which sold for $14.3 million in 2015. The DBR1 model, produced between 1956 and 1958, was produced in only five examples.
It was one of the most powerful and fastest cars of its time and won nine of the 18 races it entered, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 1000km Nürburgring.
1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale Scaglietti
1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale Scaglietti, $26,400,000 – 602 million crowns. The 1964 Scaglietti-bodied car was sold at RM Auctions in Monterey, California in 2014 for $26.4 million. The car is the successor to the GTO model produced in the mid-1960s, from which it inherited the front end with the characteristic air intakes.
The car was hand-built from late 1964 to early 1965, had independent rear suspension and was produced in only three pieces. However, only one of the cars received racing homologation, which finished third overall in the 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB:4/S NART Spider
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB:4/S NART Spider, $27,500,000 – 627 million crowns. Auction record holder in 2013. RM Auctions in Pebble Beach sold it for $27,500,000. Specifically, it was one of ten examples, numbered 10709. Original owner Eddie Smith bought it new in 1968 in North Carolina and jealously guarded it until the moment of sale.
1956 Ferrari 290 MM
1956 Ferrari 290 MM, $28,050,000 – 640 million crowns. Made in just 10 examples, this gem was the vehicle with which Enzo Ferrari regained the Formula 1 world title that had been stolen from him by Mercedes the previous year in 1955. The designation MM stands for Mille Miglia.
1954 Mercedes Benz W196R
1954 Mercedes Benz W196R, $31,600,000 – 721 million crowns. During the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed, Bonhams auctioned this 1954 Mercedes-Benz W 196 R Grand Prix for $31.6 million. This original sports car was the only one of its kind in private ownership.
Of the 14 examples produced, only 10 have survived. Six are part of the Mercedes-Benz Classic collection and three are in museums in Indianapolis, Vienna and Turin. The tenth is this car with chassis number 006/54, with which Juan Manuel Fangio triumphed in the German-Swiss Grand Prix in 1954.
1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti
1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti, $35,730,510 – 815.6 million crowns. In 2016, the Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti became one of the most expensive cars in the world when Artcurial Retromobile auctioned it for $35,730,510.
This example was launched in 1957 and was ridden by legendary drivers such as Stirling Moss, Wolfgang von Tapis and Maurice Trintignant. The car, with chassis number 0674, comes from the collection of Pierre Bardinon, one of the greatest Ferrari collectors who died in 2012.
1962 Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta
1962 Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta, $38,115,000 – 87 million crowns. The Ferrari 250 GTO from the Maranello Rosso collection – one of the most important private Ferrari collections – has been put up for auction at the museum of the same name in San Marino.
It belonged to Fabrizio Violati, a mineral water tycoon who died in 2010. He bought the car in 1965 for 2.5 million lire. In the summer of 2014, the car was sold at Bonhams auction house for $38,115,000.
1962 Ferrari 250 GTO
1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, $48,405,000 – 1.1 billion crowns. After 20 years of “parking” in the private collection of Ferrari enthusiast and driver Gregory Whitten, this model changed hands. The car, chassis number 3413 GT, was sold at auction on August 25, 2018 for over $48 million. The model, which made a significant mark in the history of motorsport, was produced in only 36 examples.
The price of over $48 million is the auction record for a GTO. InIt was based on another highly successful W 196 R Grand Prix car, which won two world championships in the hands of Juan Manuel Fangio. The in-line eight-cylinder engine was enlarged from 2.5 to 3.0 liters, so the car reached a speed of 290 km/h and became one of the fastest homologated road racing cars not only of its time.
Proceeds from the auction were used to establish the Mercedes-Benz Global Fund, which will provide scholarships and funding for research in the field of ecology and decarbonization. absolute numbers, it is surpassed by the Ferrari 250 GTO with the number 4153 GT from 1963, which was purchased directly from the original owner in 2019 by the American businessman David McNail for $70 million.
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe: $143,000,000 – 3.3 billion crowns. The absolute record holder is this rare Mercedes, which was auctioned for an incredible amount of 135 million euros at the auction held by RM Sotheby’s at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart. The fact that the Uhlenhaut-Coupe was created in only two examples gives it its price.
It was based on another highly successful W 196 R Grand Prix car, which won two world championships in the hands of Juan Manuel Fangio. The in-line eight-cylinder engine was enlarged from 2.5 to 3.0 liters, so the car reached a speed of 290 km/h and became one of the fastest homologated road racing cars not only of its time. Proceeds from the auction were used to establish the Mercedes-Benz Global Fund, which will provide scholarships and funding for research in the field of ecology and decarbonization.
Credit: RM Sotheby’s, RM Auctions | All the information & photo credit goes to respective authorities. DM for removal please.
Related: The Top 17 Most Expensive Vintage Cars Sold at Auction
