Independent on Saturday

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut sold for R2.27bn

A 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut, one of only two of its kind, was auctioned off recently for a whopping ¤135 million (R2.27 billion), making it the most expensive car ever sold, RM Sotheby’s announced recently.

The 300 SLR Uhlenhaut was sold to a private collector, fetching almost triple the previous record price for a car, which was set in 2018 by a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO that went for more than $48m (R762m).

The auction, which was by invitation only, took place on May 5 at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany, the auction house said, adding that the vehicle’s high price placed it in the “top 10 most valuable items ever sold at auction in any collecting category”.

According to an AFP ranking of artworks sold at auction in recent years, the 300 SLR ranks sixth or seventh, with the all-time record being held by Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, which sold in November 2017 for $450.3m (R7.15bn).

The car is one of just two prototypes built by the Mercedes-Benz racing department and is named after its creator and chief engineer, Rudolf Uhlenhaut.

“The private buyer has agreed that the 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe will remain accessible for public display on special occasions, while the second original 300 SLR Coupe remains in company ownership and will continue to be displayed at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart,” RM Sotheby’s added.

According to the auction house and press reports, the 300 SLR Uhlenhaut, recognisable by its unusual lines and butterfly doors, was modelled on the W196 Grand Prix race car, which won two Formula 1 world championships, in 1954 and 1955, with Argentinian

Juan Manuel Fangio in the driver’s seat.

In June 1955, tragedy struck the Mercedes-Benz team, when at the Le Mans 24 Hours sports car race in France, a crash of one of its 300 SLR cars killed French driver Pierre Levegh and 83 spectators.

That tragedy, the deadliest in motor racing history, led to the company’s decision to withdraw from the sport for years.

RM Sotheby’s said the proceeds from the auction would be used to establish a worldwide Mercedes-Benz Fund to be used in aid of environmental science and decarbonisation research.

“We are proud that we can contribute with our historical collection to this initiative connecting the past with the future of engineering and decarbonisation technology,” said Mercedes-Benz’s head of heritage, Marcus Breitschwerdt.

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2022-05-28T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-28T07:00:00.0000000Z

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