The most expensive cars ever sold

The Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé is the world's most expensive car

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6 mins read

4 February 2025

Think of the world’s most expensive cars and your mind might immediately go to modern, high-performance models like the Ferarri Enzo, Bugatti Veyron or the Pagani Zonda.

However, despite attracting multimillion-pound prices, these cars barely command a fraction of the sums achieved by more classic and exclusive models.

For example, the $4.8 million (£3.8m) required for a one-of-29 Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita wouldn’t even get you into the top 100 most expensive cars ever sold.

If you think a lottery win will help, you may still need to recalibrate, because the top classics now change hands for the sort of amounts usually reserved for old masters.

What’s more, because of the ever-increasing rarity of some of the world’s most exclusive cars, the list of the most expensive cars is always changing.

So here are the most expensive cars on the planet based on the price paid when the cars changed hands.

We’ve quoted the prices in dollars because most of the cars featured were sold in the US, but the converted figures in pounds sterling are correct at the time of writing and are equally eye-watering.

Now, take a deep breath and hang on to your wallet.

1. Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé

Price: $135,000,000 (£114,400,000)

A 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé is the most expensive car ever sold, having gone under the hammer for a staggering $135m in 2022 - the equivalent of £114.4m.

Previously owned by Mercedes-Benz, the car was sold by RM Sotheby’s at the Mercedes-Benz Museum to an anonymous buyer. The winning bid was placed on the mystery buyer’s behalf by Simon Kidston, head of historic car specialist Kidston SA.

The £114.4m hammer price is the current world record price for any car, more than doubling the previous record, which at the time was held by the Ferrari 250 GTO in third place on this list. It was so expensive that the SLR’s opening bidding price was higher than the final price of the 250 GTO.

Just two 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupés were made by Mercedes-Benz and they take their name from the firm’s chief engineer, Rudolf Uhlenhaut.

The car was designed as a road-going version of the W196 R grand prix car, with an enlarged 3.0-litre straight-eight engine allowing it to hit speeds of up to 180mph.

The car sold was chassis 00008/55 - the second of the two cars built and the one that Uhlenhaut himself used frequently. The sale makes the 300 SLR one of the top 10 most expensive items ever sold at auction.

All proceeds from the sale, Mercedes says, will be used to establish a worldwide 'Mercedes-Benz Fund'. RM Sotheby’s added that the fund will aim to “provide educational and research scholarships in the areas of environmental science and decarbonisation for young people.”

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2. Ferrari 250 GTO

Price: $70,000,000 (£52,300,000)

The most expensive Ferrari ever sold is this Ferrari 250 GTO, which fetched an eye-watering £52m in a private sale by German racing driver Christian Glaesel to US car parts mogul David MacNeil.

The car has an illustrious motorsport history, winning the 1964 Tour de France and finishing fourth in the 1963 Le Mans 24 Hours, among various other appearances. It's also never been crashed, which experts say is the key to its immense value.

Source: CNN

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3. Mercedes W196 R 'Stromlinienwagen'

Price: $53,017,370 (£42,949,388)

The most recent entry into the list of the most expensive cars ever sold, this historical Mercedes W196 R joined the rankings in February 2025 and is the second most expensive car ever sold at auction - and the most expensive Formula 1 car to go under the hammer.

It's got a heck of a history behind it, too. It was driven by Juan Manuel Fangio to victory at the Buenos Aires Grand Prix, before Sir Stirling Moss took the wheel and achieved the fastest lap at Monza, before retiring after 27 laps due to piston failure.

It also represented Mercedes' last racer before the firm brand pulled out of motorsport altogether at the end of 1955, following the death of Pierre Levagh and 83 spectators at Le Mans.

The crash, which also involved driver Lance Macklin, is considered to be the most significant tragic incident in motorsport history, with countries such as Switzerland banning motorsport for upwards of 40 years.

The Mercedes sold for $53,017,370 (once all those additional buyers' premiums were added).

Source: RM Sotheby's

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4. Ferrari 250 GTO Tipo

Price: $51,705,000 (£41,455,000)

You’re looking at the most expensive Ferrari ever sold at auction - and it’s another 250 GTO. It went under the hammer at an RM Sotheby’s auction in New York, though the auction house declined to reveal who paid the sky-high sum.

It’s a special Ferrari, this. Built in 1962, this GTO Tipo is one-of-one and is the only works model to be driven by a 4.0-litre engine from new, and one of just 34 GTOs built with Tipo 1962 coachwork.

It also bears an illustrious motorsport history. It’s the only GTO Tipo 1962 ever raced by Scuderia Ferrari and featured in the 1962 Le Mans 24 Hours and the Sicilian Hillclimb Championship. Previous owners include a chairman of the Ferrari Club of America.

Despite being an auction record, the 250 GTO Tipo still fell short of RM Sotheby’s initial bid estimates of $60,000,000, according to the New York Times. Still, the seller looks to have made an unbelievable profit, having originally bought the car for $500,000 in 1985 - the equivalent of $1.4m today.

Source: RM Sotheby's

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5. Ferrari 250 GTO

Price: $38,115,000 (£30,750,300)

It will come as little surprise to many that three of the four most expensive cars sold at auction to date are Ferrari 250 GTOs, although this example is merely fourth in the overall rankings.

No other car in the world has earned such a reputation and mystique, much of that built on previous record-smashing auction results.

More importantly, the car itself is one of the finest of its era, thanks to its powerful 3.0-litre V12, superbly balanced chassis and immaculate race pedigree. Only 39 were made and this one was raced by Jo Schlesser.

Source: Bonhams

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6. Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti

Price: $35,700,000 (£28,801,940)

This 1957 Ferrari was another record breaker when it sold at the start of 2016 to become the most expensive racing car ever sold at auction.

Previously owned for 40 years by a private collector, it caused huge interest, because it had been raced by Peter Collins and Maurice Trintignant in the 1957 Sebring 12 Hours.

After that, it competed in the Mille Miglia with Wolfgang von Trips at the wheel. Provenance like that in this market leads to such a high price being paid.

Source: Artcurial

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7. Mercedes-Benz W196

Price: $29,600,000 (£23,880,600)

This amazing Mercedes Grand Prix car is the second appearance from the three-pointed star in our list, and what a car it is.

Raced by Juan Manuel Fangio, it won the German and Swiss Grands Prix in 1954.

It was the most expensive car ever sold at auction at the time of the sale in 2013.

Source: Bonhams

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8. Ferrari 290 MM

Price: $28,050,000 (£22,630,100)

More Ferrari racing history makes it into our list.

This one was built for the 1956 Mille Miglia and was also driven by the great Juan Manuel Fangio - his name always adds considerable prestige and value to any car he competed in.

Only four 290s were made, and this one enjoyed further racing success after the Mille Miglia, too.

Source: RM Sotheby's

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