The very first example of the McLaren Speedtail to be offered at a public auction made a considerable $3,277,500 (£2,396,00).
Listed for the 22nd annual RM Sotheby’s Arizona auction, the 2020 Speedtail contributed to total sales of $35 million (£25.6 million).
Held at the OTTO car club in Scottsdale, extremely limited amounts of in-person bidding was permitted. However, over half of all auction activity came from online bid, with 90 percent of all lots listed being sold.
One, very, careful owner
One of 106 Speedtails made, chassis number 36 was first delivered to McLaren of Philadelphia last year. Even with an original list price of $2.25 million (£2.1 million), the first owner spent a further $170,000 (£137,711) on options.
Painted in MSO Atlantic Blue, with bespoke pinstripes, the interior of the Speedtail is a combination of tan Aniline leather and carbon trim.
A twin-turbocharged V-8 engine, combined with an electric motor, gives the hybrid Speedtail an output 1,035 hp. Trick aerodynamics allow a potential top speed of 250 mph.
Despite this, the first owner added just 30 miles to the odometer. This is far below the 2,500-mile annual limit, imposed by federal ‘Show and Display’ rules in the United States. These apply due to the Speedtail not being strictly road legal in the USA.
A diverse range of top-selling cars
As impressive as the McLaren’s final price was, it was only the third top-selling car at the RM Sotheby’s sale.
That accolade went to the 1955 Jaguar D-Type, once sold by Bernie Ecclestone of Formula 1 fame. The bright red D-Type achieved a considerable $6,000,000 (£4,380,000) on the auction block.
A 1937 Bugatti Type 57SC Tourer by Corsica claimed second place in the most-expensive stakes.
Gord Duff, Global Head of Auctions, RM Sotheby’s, commented that the “diverse top three” of cars sold proved that “once again that best-of-category, top-quality cars of every era continue to draw significant interest from collectors and bring strong prices.”
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