Notes on the most expensive F1 car ever

At €51 million ($53.9 million), the 1954/55 Mercedes-Benz W 196 R ‘Streamliner’ became the most expensive Formula 1 ever. It was sold on Saturday, February 1st, at an auction, held by RM Sotheby’s at the Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart.

The previous record was also held by a Mercedes W 196 R, a non-streamlined body, driven by the 1954 world champion Juan Manuel Fangio. The car in question was auctioned by Bonhams in 2013 for $29.6 million.

Usability

The new record in what is in essence a similar car proves one thing: over the course of a little over 10 years, Formula 1’s popularity has skyrocketed, and that effect also shows in the prices collectors are willing to pay. Traditionally, prices for Formula 1 cars have been substantially lower than the prices paid at auction for GTs. Let’s not forget, a top Ferrari 250 GTO could still outsell the Streamliner (but not the Mercedes Uhlenhaut 300 SLR coupe that sold for €135 million). The reason for that is easy enough to determine: usability. You can drive a 250 GTO to the supermarket.

That is not the case for Formula 1s, and thus they only had appeal to a smaller part of the collector market. This tendency is changing, as proven by other recent sales and for instance the Ferrari Corse Clienti program, aimed at using the F1 Ferrari you just bought (more on that in issue 13).

Unique

That it’s the Streamliner that is now setting the record, can only be called just. This is after all the only Formula 1 car with covered wheels, and a perfect synthesis of Mercedes pre-war experience with the streamlined speed-record-breaking race cars, and the 1954/55 Formula 1s. Only four W 196 R Streamliners were made. Fangio used this chassis – with normal body – to win the 1955 Argentine Grand Prix, and Stirling Moss used it to set fastest lap in the Italian GP at Monza.

Indy

Having won the world championship, Mercedes retired from international motorsport and the Streamliner was donated to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, where it resided untouched until now. With the Indy museum refocusing its collection on all things Brickyard related, the Mercedes was one of the cars that were allowed to go.

In a move similar to the Uhlenhaut sale, the car was brought back to Germany, where Mercedes Classic give it an inspection. In a lively sale, RM Sotheby’s auctioned it of for a final bid of just under €50 million, which became €51 million if you take into account premiums.

It also firmly places the status of the most valuable Formula 1 brand in the Stuttgart area, which will surely lead to some teeth-crunching in Maranello.