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MONTEREY, California (27 August 2018) \u2013 <\/b>RM Sotheby\u2019s celebrated an historic weekend in Monterey (24-25 August) with a new record for the most valuable car ever sold at auction, selling a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO <\/b>for $48,405,000. The 250 GTO championed RM Sotheby\u2019s most historic Monterey offering to date, which resulted in an overall total of $157,931,940 \u2013 one of the company\u2019s all-time top performances, the highest grossing auction of Monterey Car Week, and a near 19 percent increase over 2017 results at the same venue.<\/p>\n
RM Sotheby\u2019s Monterey auction drew considerable international interest in the months leading up to the event, welcoming bidders from 37 countries and seeing 83 percent of all cars offered find new homes. The collector car world flocked to Monterey to witness the momentous lineup in person, with more than 90 percent of bidders present at the preview and in the packed room, despite remote bidding options.<\/p>\n
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The thrilling two-day sale was led by the remarkable 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO<\/b>, chassis no. 3413 GT, long considered to be the \u2018holy grail\u2019 of the collector car world and offered from two decades in the collection of noted businessman, Ferrari enthusiast, and vintage racing driver Dr. Gregory Whitten, which sold for $48,405,000, becoming the most valuable car ever sold at auction. This exceeds the previous record by more than $10 million. There were cheers and applause when five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell stepped out of the car after driving it across the auction block in front of an overflowing salesroom, followed by gasps as auctioneer Maarten ten Holder opened the bidding at the unprecedented level of $35 million. Three collectors bidding via telephone competed for the car, sometimes moving in million-dollar increments before it sold for a final $48,405,000 after nearly ten minutes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe appearance of any one of the Ferrari 250 GTO, Aston Martin DP215, Ford GT40, or McLaren F1 and Ferrari 275 P on the Private Sales stand would be a major event, but to have them all together at Monterey this weekend was nothing short of historic,\u201d said Kenneth Ahn, President, RM Sotheby\u2019s, following the auction. \u201cWe are deeply appreciative of our clients who have entrusted RM Sotheby\u2019s to offer some of the most significant motor cars to ever come to market, and equally grateful to our clients, enthusiasts, and media who traveled from all over the world to attend our sale. There was an unprecedented value of cars offered on the Monterey Peninsula this year, and it was very encouraging to see the level of strong demand across a broad range of great cars \u2013 a sign of strength that is very positive for our clients as well as the larger collector automobile market.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\nAdditional stand-out moments were found throughout the two-day sale, including when the one-off 1963 Aston Martin DP215 Grand Touring Competition Prototype<\/b> roared onto RM Sotheby\u2019s stage and achieved a final $21,455,000 (est. $18m\/22m) following a high-energy bidding contest, becoming one of the most valuable British motor cars sold at auction. The pinnacle achievement for Aston Martin\u2019s racing program and the last competition car built during the David Brown era, DP215 contested Le Mans in 1963 with Phil Hill and Lucien Bianchi behind the wheel, where it became the first automobile to break the 300 kph barrier at the event. RM Sotheby\u2019s also took the opportunity to announce that the company will be partnering with Aston Martin in 2019, presenting an additional Thursday night auction during next year\u2019s Monterey weekend, dedicated specifically to Aston Martin. As the official auction partner of Aston Martin, RM Sotheby\u2019s will celebrate the marque\u2019s 1959 win at Le Mans with an offering of the finest road-going and track-ready cars from its illustrious history.<\/p>\n
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From great American Classics through historic racers and the rarest of modern supercars, landmark prices were achieved across the 150 cars presented at RM Sotheby\u2019s Monterey sale. The 1966 Ford GT40 Mk II<\/b>, chassis no. P\/1016, part of the iconic trio of GT40s that swept first, second, and third overall at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, reached $9,795,000 on Friday evening. The 1957 Porsche 550A Spyder<\/b>, a hugely important car in Porsche\u2019s American racing history, soared to high estimate on Saturday to sell for $4,900,000, and a unique 1956 Maserati A6G\/2000 Zagato<\/b> racer fetched $4,515,000, a new record for the model at auction. Modern super cars showed continued strength with a U.S.-spec 1990<\/b> Ferrari F40<\/b> selling for an above-estimate $1,710,000, and the one-of-25 1998<\/b> Mercedes-Benz AMG CLK GTR<\/b> smashing the previous record for the model at $4,515,000. RM Sotheby\u2019s was also proud to partner with Mercedes-AMG in Monterey to offer a never-raced\u00a02017 Mercedes-AMG GT3 \u2018Laureus\u2019<\/b>. The chrome finished GT3 exceeded expectations, selling for a final $885,000, with proceeds<\/b>\u00a0to benefit the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.<\/p>\n
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RM Sotheby\u2019s Monterey 2018 \u2013 Top 10 Sales<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n