Photo: Bryn Lennon / Getty Images
The German automotive brand Mercedez-Benz has broken a world record by selling the most expensive car in the world for $142 millions of dollars in a secret auction, held in Germany, on May 5.
Un Mercedes-Benz 250 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé silver, from 1955, grabbed the spotlight by auctioning for that amount and surpassed by far the previous record of $48.4 million dollars that was paid for a Ferrari 250 GTO of 1962 at an auction held by RM Sotheby’s, at 2018.
Through a statement, the president of Mercedes-Benz Ola Källenius said: “We wanted, with a single act, to demonstrate the power of the Mercedes brand”.
At the auction it was said there were about a dozen bidders from various parts of the world. Multiple Swiss-Italian, English and American collectors had bid on the car. Källenius avoided saying the name of the winner.
“That car is worth the 100% of those sold, and some people would say even that number is low. Nobody thought Mercedes would sell it”, said Stephen Serio, automotive broker.
The value of the auctioned car is clear from its rarity and its importance in the history of the brand. It comes from the Silver Arrow cars, which were dominant in auto racing in the 1930 and It has a front engine inspired by the Formula One Mercedes-Benz W196 of eight cylinders, handled by Juan Manuel Fangio in the championships of 1954 and 1955.
A total of nine cars were manufactured 300 SLRs made, of which two were “Unlenhaut Coupé” SLR prototypes, named after the boss from the Mercedes Rudolf Uhlenhaut test department. He was driving one as a company car and the other was hidden in the company vault.
Karl Ludgivsen, who is the author of Mercedes- Benz Grand Prix W196 says that the reason for a high price on this vehicle “would be because they just never sell”.
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