December 2022 - auction highlights
4 January, 2023
Bonhams closed its classic car auction year with a successful sale in London that yielded £6.5 million, with 77% of the lots finding new homes. The pre-sale star, a matching-numbers 1969 Lamborghini Miura S in need of restoration, didn’t disappoint on the day, beating its £800,000 – 1,000,000 estimate at £1,067,800. It was a clean sweep for Lamborghinis, with a 1981 Countach LP400 S taking £460,000 (estimate £280,000 – 340,000), and a 2001 Diablo VT 6.0 SE in Gulf States-spec with 50,000km fetching £276,000 (estimate £120,000 – 180,000).
It was a similar story with the three single-owner left-hand drive Mercedes on offer; a 100-km 2009 SLR McLaren 722 S Roadster selling for £687,000 (estimate £400,000 – 600,000), a 180-km-2013 G 63 AMG 6x6 making £631,000 (estimate £300,000 – 500,000), and a 2007 SLR McLaren 722 Edition with 250km going for £575,000 (estimate £350,000 – 550,000).
[ Bonhams’ Bond Street Sale – auction results here ]
RM Sotheby’s set a new world auction record for a Ferrari F50 when it sold a two-owner example with only 625 miles for $5,395,000 (estimate $5,500,000 – 6,500,000) at its Miami sale in December, helping them post a $40.26 million total and an impressive 98% sell-through rate. Hypercars and supercars dominated the night’s results, notably RM’s 2,188-mile 2019 Bugatti Chiron Sport changing hands at a mid-estimate $3,305,000 and an 825bhp 1988 Porsche 959 SC Reimagined by Canepa at $2,920,000 (estimate $3,000,000 – 3,500,000).
Cars from the Youngtimer Collection continued to generate strong interest, none more so than a 1987 Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC 6.0 AMG 'Wide-Body' with 24,014km that smashed its $225,000 – 275,000 guide, bringing $720,000 – another record. Highlights also included a US-market 1995 Porsche 928 GTS with 14,300 miles at $263,200 (estimate $175,000 – 200,000), and a rare 1982 Mercedes-Benz 500 SL 5.0 AMG, believed to be one of just eight examples with a 5-speed manual gearbox built for the North American market, which drew $291,000 (estimate $150,000 – 200,000).
[ RM Sotheby’s Miami Sale – auction results here ]
Classic car auction results and prices for: Lamborghini | Mercedes-Benz | Ferrari | Bugatti | Porsche
From leading auction houses: Bonhams | RM Sotheby’s
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