A rare 1955 Mercedes-Benz vehicle known for its speed, design and engineering is now the most expensive car ever sold at auction.
RM Sotheby’s has sold a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé for a record 135 million euros or $142 million, the car auction house said on Thursday. The exclusive auction took place earlier this month at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.
Mercedes-Benz Group AG, which has owned the rare car since it was built decades ago, said it will use the money to start a fund for environmental science scholarships.
A private collector, whose identity was not disclosed by RM Sotheby’s, prevailed at the May 5 auction, where the bidders present were screened by Mercedes-Benz and the record-breaking car was the only lot up for grabs.
The highest bid was almost three times the previous record for a car sold at auction. A 1962 Scaglietti Ferrari 250 GTO sold for more than $48.4 million, setting the previous record at an RM Sotheby’s auction in 2018.
Rudolf Uhlenhaut on a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR racing car prototype in 1955.
Photo: Mercedes-Benz AG
The Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé, now privately owned, is one of two prototypes named after Rudolf Uhlenhaut, the car’s chief engineer and creator, who was head of car development. The company praised the car’s engineering, speed and design, with features such as gullwing doors.
“I don’t think anyone ever really expected Mercedes to sell something like this,” said Peter Haynes, RM Sotheby’s EMEA director of marketing and communications.
“It’s the sort of Mona Lisa of the car world,” said Mr. Haynes. “It’s very hard to imagine another car that would be worth more, just as it’s hard to imagine a painting that would be worth more than the Mona Lisa.”
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Mercedes-Benz said few people drove the vehicle, which the company said could reach about 180 miles per hour. It has never entered a race. Mr. Uhlenhaut used it as a company car.
Marcus Breitschwerdt, head of Mercedes-Benz’s brand and corporate culture department, said in a statement that the private collector who bought the car said it would make it available to the public on special occasions. The company’s second prototype will also be on display at the Mercedes-Benz Museum.
A private collector, whose identity has not been released by RM Sotheby’s, won the May 5 auction.
Photo: Mercedes-Benz AG
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Appeared in the May 21, 2022 print edition as “A 1955 Mercedes Sells at Auction for a Record $142 Million.”