World's most expensive car: Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR sells for more than €135m
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe. Picture: Mercedes
The world's most expensive car, one of only two in existence, has been sold at auction for a blistering €135m.
The 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe was sold to a "private collector" at a Southeby's invite-only auction held at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany.
The car sold for almost three times the previous record, set by a 1963 Ferrari 250GTO that was purchased for a reported $70m in 2018 by WeatherTech founder and CEO David MacNeil.
While the auction house will not name the individual buyer, Hagerty Insider reports that the buyer is "a well-known figure from Britain's automotive industry and a longstanding collector of specialist cars."
Named after its creator and chief engineer at Mercedes - Rudolf Uhlenhaut - the 300 SLR is one of just two prototypes built by the Mercedes Benz racing division.
The car was based on the company’s successful W 196 R Grand Prix car, which won two World Championships with driver Juan Manuel Fangio.
The 300 SLR had a larger, 3.0-litre engine and was able to reach 180 mph, making it one of the fastest road-legal cars at the time.
Sotheby's said the 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."
The proceeds of the auction are to be used to establish a worldwide Mercedes-Benz Fund that will fund environmental science and decarbonisation research.
